On Mon, 17 Nov 2008 04:56:01 -0800 (PST), buffalobill
wrote:

On Nov 17, 7:36*am, George wrote:
We have a bathtub that has a drum trap - which appears to be lead, as do
the connecting pipes. *(The stack is cast iron.) *The trap is leaking.

I'm thinking to cut the lead pipe on the stack side of the trap, use a
rubber coupling to join that end to PVC from there to the tub. *Is there
reason NOT to do this? *The alternative would be to unsolder the lead
pipe from the stack Y, and connect the PVC there. *This looks like it
would take big heat, and might never get clean enough for the new joint
to seal well.

TIA,
George

buffalo ny: where is the leak?

Near the top. The trap cover screws into a (brass?) threaded ring. I
think this may be a separate piece, joined (soldered?) to the trap body,
and the leak is at that joint. It's not easy to get a good look at it,
and I could be misunderstanding things.

... is this a job for epoxy?

The situation is actually more complicated. The joists under the tub
are kind of ... distressed. I think they need sistering, which would be
easier with the pipes removed. AND, the last thing I want is to have to
take the ceiling down again, should an epoxy-ish fix fail.

... it is
probably not a soft lead pipe. probably a horizontal galvanized drain
pipe leak, feeding an iron or brass trap.

I could be wrong, but I think it's lead. All the metal is that dull
grey color, and none of it is magnetic. The joints have significant
build-up of solder. The pipes are curved, in a kind of 'hand-crafted'
way. And, the trap wall is kind of flattened on one side.

G