"Pete Verdon" d wrote in
message ...
As I get closer to the date of the Great Bathroom Refit, I can bash
holes in things to find out what's inside without having to live with
the resulting mess for too long. I've just done exactly that with the
boxed-in soil stack:
http://pverdon.csoft.net/stuff/DSCN3581.JPG
http://pverdon.csoft.net/stuff/DSCN3582.JPG
My new layout will require the toilet waste to enter from a direction at
90º to the current one; more or less from where the picture was taken.
Do you think I'm likely to be able to simply swivel the branch on the
pipe, without having to break into the stack at all? Would make life a
hell of a lot easier if I could...
Yes you can, BUT, with a little care and attention. Run some diluted
washing-up liquid around the spigot seams where the "T" meets both stack
pipes, and leave it to seep in for a half hour or so before trying to move
anything. This helps to lubricate the rubber rings inside the spigot
joints, which may be a little dry and fragile after years of being in the
same position. Don't want you to end up with a space shuttle disaster when
you flush the loo for the first time.
The other thing I'd like to point out, is that the "T" looks to have two
optional boss inlets on the sides. In the pictures you have given us, the
stack and "T" are close to the wall on the side away from the main branch of
the "T" (let's say the back of the tee). When you swivel the "T" around to
the new position, the boss inlet may force the pipework away from the wall.
This may need trimmed down with a hacksaw to make it shorter and not force
the "T" away from the wall.
That's how it looks in the pictures, anyway, but I might be wrong because of
the angle the shots where taking from. Something to be aware of, maybe.
If not, I'm presumably going to have to pull everything upwards to
disassemble it. This is the highest fitting on the stack; it then goes
through the loft and out the roof. However, I'm worried that if I lift
it I'll break some sort of seal at roof level and cause a leak. This is
an early 90s house; is there a typical fitting that's used? (and does it
slide?)
The "T" should swivel around without problems, with a good bit of pressure
on the existing pipe to the loo. Use the existing loo pipe as a lever to
pull the "T" around. If you can, that is. If you can't use the existing
pipe as a lever, then put a brush pole, or the like, in the branch and use
that to put a constant pressure on the "T" until it moves.
Don't hit anything with a hammer. It's all plastic, and will break very
easily. Use a constant pressure, with the helps of long levers if you can,
until the adhesion of the rubber rings breaks. Once the "T" starts to move,
it should slide around with a lot more ease. It's the initial "Getting it
started" that can be the bitch. The rubber rings inside can, and do, adhere
tightly to the walls of the plastic, so can need a good pull to make them
break their hold. They've been in that one position for a long while,
remember.
Finally, when I bashed the hole in the side of the boxed in pipe, I
found it stuffed with fibreglass loft insulation. It doesn't serve any
immediately obvious purpose; is this normal and should I be aiming to
replace it when I rebuild?
Cheers,
Pete
It's like everything else in a house, Pete. The fiberglass is there for a
purpose. It's a bathroom, so needs to be kept warm, especially in winter,
so the insulation helps in that. Also, it acts as a sound deafening system,
to stop you hearing wind and water as they howl through the pipe as it's
used and weathered. It may also be acting as a part fire break between
floors and the loft. Leaving a gaping hole right through the house is a
great way of allow smoke and fire to easily penetrate by the same route.
Make sure you have something to stop up the gaps around the pipework again,
as tightly as you can, to stop smoke and flames from easily breaking through
to other floors. And also make sure you have some sort of sound barrier in
any pipe boxing, to stop you hearing the howls of the wind on stormy nights,
and your solid waste banging its way down to the sewer system.
You do also need insulation inside pipe boxing. The waste water system may
seem to be dry most of its life, but it actually has water lying in traps
every so often along its length. Insulation doesn't just help prevent heat
loss, but does actually help retain the heat in the pipework itself.
Freezing in the pipework and you have to call out the plumbers because your
sewer pipe has collapsed, because the trap got iced by the wind blowing down
from the roof vent, and you removed the insulation that helped the pipe
retain heat and stop that happening. The fiberglass insulation is there for
a lot of reasons. HONESTLY, it is !!!
Good luck with it, and have fun. Some pictures of the finished product are
always welcome in the group. They help keep our spirit up. :-)