Hints & Tips

[Plouasne]

I hope that I can pass on some of my experiences, and findings about how to do things from both sides of the channel, in this posting, also other plumbers will pass on their hints and tips, so we all can share

The first one is about poly water mains laid in the ground, this is in the UK, a couple of times I have had to try and trace a leak in half a mile long water mains laid across fields, every time the leak was caused by the poly rubbing on a sharp stone, if the main had been laid in a plastic conduit, this wouldn't have happened

Plaster block walls; made out of solid plaster blocks, an old idea, but you might still come across them in old houses; to get a good fixing, the French chop out a pocket in the plaster wall, then get a piece of wood about 25mm thick and a bit smaller than the pocket, they drive a fair few nails into the edge of the wood, and using plaster of paris or a mixture of plaster of paris and plaster board adhesive, bed the wood block into the pocket so that it is just below the surface of the wall, then they "flush off" the pocket with plaster, this makes a solid fixing

Powder, Plaster board adhesive, if its anything like the French stuff, is a very good all round filler, its a bit slow to set, an hour or so, and has got a bit of "stickiness" to it, and also finishes of nice and smooth

To get a cement joint to "go off" quicker, you can add a bit of plaster to the mix, or use dissolved washing soda in the water to get a quick set

[puddle]

One of the best tips given me time wise was 'always work out of a corner'
to many people work into a corner,job can take twice as long

When fitting a bath,always fit the pipe tails on to the bath taps before fitting

Buy cheap central heating pump valve,scrap the body and use the nuts,when changing pumps with nuts that will not move,do not stress pipework,just cut through old nuts and use new

When removing an old combi boiler always remove expansion vessel,probably full of water and making boiler twice has heavy to carry

When removing a washing machine or such appliance put some washing up liquid under feet in make move easily and not mark floor

[Plouasne]

When I was working in the UK I always used flexies for the bath and sink, tails, saved a hell of a lot of time, in France most of the bath valves are over the bath, you can get a frame for both bath valves and shower valves, jus got to chop them into the wall at the right high and so that the ends are level with the wall, not exposed or recessed fire bending a sand loaded copper tube can get you a really tight bend, if you know how to go about it

When knocking out the knock out for a a tap in a fireclay sink, I always used to drill it out first with a masonry drill, then use a hammer to knock the rest out

[MrT]

love the washing machiine tip

[ipeaquint]

Fairy or Squeezy?

[helpsy]

Probably Sq-easy does it!!!!!

[leadpig]

its also far easier to sit on the floor and push the washing machine with your feet,it just slides in

[azzvon12]

When changing a washer on bath or basin taps i always carry a small plank of wood in the van.Drill two holes the width of the taps,slide the wood over the spouts of both the taps,this usally stops the taps spinning and gives a better purchase when trying to unscrew the insert to get to washer that someone seems to have cemented in place.Think ive explained that right.

[Plouasne]

If working on electrics, (pump re-placement, new immersion heater, etc) and you are away from the fuse board, or cannot lock the circuit off to be safe, I used to twist the live neutral and earth together, until it came time to fix the conductors in to their respective fixings
So if the circuit was re-livened it would blow the fuse or trip the breaker

[azzvon12]

keep em coming plousane im loving this.