Can I get help with a small leak?

Hello everybody!

This is my first post on these forums, but it's not likely to be my last. We recently purchased a home who had a... let's just say "handyman" living in it before. We think he was a cabinet maker of sorts, because he clearly made all of the cabinets in the house and did a decent job at it, but he dabbled in everything. He's done a great deal of remodeling on his own and clearly cut a number of corners; some humorous, some confusing, and all are going to be costly to fix. Unfortunately, with buying a house and all, money is tight, so I need to fix what I can on my own. I'm a computer guy myself, so plumbing, woodworking, etc are very high in my skill set. So I was hoping to get some answers here.

The most pressing matter I have at the moment is that of a small leak. I've spent 20 minutes or so searching through the forums to see if I could find the answer on my own, but it would seem that each problem has its own solution. So I thought it best to just post my problem and see what comes of it. I recently removed an area of shelving that the previous owner installed and uncovered what appears to be a drainpipe that goes into the concrete floor. Shortly after then, an extended portion of pipe was accidentally kicked (not hard) and then the leak began. A very small amount of water began to drip from the main pipe at the connector and it creates a small puddle in the period of 24 hours, but only when the plumbing is in use. We had a bit of a plastic, caulking sealant that we've used on windows in the past (the name escapes me at the moment) and we'd hoped that it would be enough to temporarily seal this leak, but the water still worked its way through.

We know that the pipe leading into the ground is cast iron and we're already planning on replacing it with newer plumbing when we can afford it, but what can we do until then? Is there a temporary seal that will hold the water back on cast iron until we can get the thing replaced? Or do I have to just keep soaking it up with towels?

I guess you realize you have a huge mess. I don't know for sure why you have a leak where you point out, but I can see several other things that are wrong. First of all, this is a combination of 3 materials. Cast iron, PVC, (white) and ABS (black). Now, using either PVC or ABS and then connecting to cast iron is OK if it is done right, but don't mix the two plastics. They are chemically different and they are not physically sized to match. The use of Fernco connectors is not permitted above ground. For exposed connections you should use a banded connector. These are similar to Ferncos but have a stainless steel band around the entire length. I certainly would not run romex wires along the pipes either. Back to the leak. I can't tell from you photo how the transition to cast iron was made, but if it follows the pattern of the rest of the work he did, it was not done correctly. It might very well be easy to fix. I would not replace the cast iron unless the is a real necessity. Cast is still and excellent drain material, it's just hard for a DIYer to work with and is quite expensive compared to PVC or ABS. I think the next step for you is to figure out just how the transition was made and what you have to get/do to correct that. Then I would get rid of the ABS and convert to all PVC. More photos and a good close-up of the cast iron connection might be helpful.

Heh, yeah... I'm fully aware of how much of a mess I have on my hands... more-so than I've revealed... We have another cast iron drain in another portion of the (technically) daylight basement that used to have a similar leak, but it's subsided on its own. In that particular case, though, we had a plumber take a look at it and give his opinion while he was out working on another job we had for him. He took one look at it and said, "Well there's yer problem!" Apparently, the previous owner punched a hole in the side of the cast iron drain pipe and attached PVC to it with some kind of rubbery goop. The plumber said that the cast iron pipe would have to be jack-hammered out and replaced. His quick estimate was in the $1,000-$2,000 range for that job alone.

Another fun little discovery came when we needed to replace the handle assembly in the shower... apparently... when turning off the hot water at the hot water heater, cold water still comes out when the hot water tap is turned on. So we're thinking that he actually has cold water running into the hot water pipes somewhere along the line.

Oh, but getting back to the leak

I've attached a couple more photo's that are closer up shots of the cast iron bit. The leak appeared to be coming from where the cast iron is touching the cast iron and you can see the goop that we used to try to stop it up (I'm pretty sure it's 100% clear silicone. After gooping it up, the leak has become harder to track, so I think it's actually coming from under the goop.

You may be wise to get another estimate on that repair job. It may be that this plumber didn't want the job so he gave you a high estimate. Maybe not, but for that much money, it would be worth checking. The close up of the leaking connection shows you have several inches of cast iron above the floor. I think you can cut the bell off and use a banded connector to transition to PVC. Once the transition is made, you can reduce to whatever size PVC you need to. Cutting cast iron is not too bad if you rent a snap cutter.

Small Leak ?

#1 he is useing all abs. pipe NO PVC. pipe !
what you may thank is PVC. is just steel pipe painted white !

#2 get plumber out to " recaulk" that lead joint at the reducer bushing to fix
the leak at same time he can install the right couplings on that abs wye


MACPLUMB 777 MASTER PLUMBER

Yup, painted. Sorry 'bout that.

MACPLUMB 777 said:

#2 get plumber out to " recaulk" that lead joint at the reducer bushing to fix
the leak at same time he can install the right couplings on that abs wye

MACPLUMB 777 MASTER PLUMBER

Click to expand...

So there is no way (or is no advised way) for me to pick something up from the hardware store to make a temporary patch to this leak? With money as tight as it is, I'd rather get it temporarily resolved for less than $50 if possible.

I have used it before in applications that are not in my home.