"Clean out" plugs rust over time and will not seal, I usually replace
with new PVC clean out plugs _and_ use Teflon tape. Other fellows use
pipe "dope" a thread sealer that comes in tubes (looks like toothpaste)
or both dope and tape (not recommended but I've seen it done, best
practice is to use one or the other). I wouldn't use silicone for this
application, it's much too permanent. You may want to get Roto Rooter in
to "run the lines" they will get the old plug out and replace it with a
more modern option, part of your problem may be a "slow" main line that
is backing up and leaking about the plug. The vertical drain waste and
vent lines (DWV) should not have any water and brown stuff standing in
the line, stacks rarely leak until they completely fail and crack.
I like the idea of a whole house filter, you could install a 20-micron
whole house, your darkroom filters (5-micron, right?) should last longer
then, but still should be changed at least once a year.
Now that I'm semi-retired I plan to replace ALL my house plumbing over
the next years with PEX, fantastic if allowed by your local building
code. My father was a well driller and his father was a REA lineman so I
was born into the trades and have no fear doing my own repairs. Since I
am just repairing old work one bit at a time my municipality doesn't
require a permit. The pipes I have replaced so far were almost 100%
blocked with lime deposits, I was not getting anywhere near 80 PSI
before I replaced the bad bits of water line.
There are supposed to be transition fittings between iron and copper
pipe but some plumbers save a few bucks by not using them, the
transition fittings eliminate the galvanic corrosion mentioned by a
previous response.
And if it is well water, my well driller "DNA" would suspect that the
screen at the bottom of your well is failing and letting stuff in or if
the well casing is steel the well casing could be failing. Acid
treatments can resurrect a well for a while but water wells, like all of
man's creations, only have a finite life span.
On 10/4/2015 11:54 AM, (Redacted sender JS2RT for DMARC) wrote:
If the lug nut thing is a cleanout so that the roto rooter man can clean out the drain piping I would rather use heavy teflon tape as a sealer instead of silicone because you may have to remove it in the future when the sewer line needs to be cleaned.
Take a look upstream of the filters and see if there is any place where copper piping meets iron piping. That is a sure location for galvanic corrosion which will look like rust. The only way to correct it is to eliminate the copper to iron connection. If the darkroom is the only place you are having problems with dirty water the problem is going to be near the darkroom.
Since the municipal water piping is pressurized at 80 psi or more water will leak out of the pipes if there is a problem with the piping. Dirt won't be able to get into the piping because the water will be trying to keep it out.
Jim
In a message dated 10/4/2015 10:20:09 A.M. Mountain Daylight Time, michaelandpaula@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
The dirty water is a serious long-term problem and, as has been
suggested to you, likely due to the excavation going on all around
you, although if you are on city water that should not be an
issue. If you have a well, dirt is most certainly getting into
your well, with how many serious pollutants.
First thing I would do is to get a "whole-house: filter and
install it where the water comes into your house. If it gets dirty
quickly, the excavation is the problem. If it does not, then the
problem is coming from your own house. If it is coming from
outside, you may have a legitimate lawsuit against the excavating
companies and/or adjacent landowners. If that is the case, talk to
a lawyer.
If you are planning to stay in your house a long time, I advise
replacing what can be replaced with the waste stack. If you are
not planning to stay there a long time, the caulk should be enough.
Good luck.
Michael
On 10/4/15 11:10 AM, Adrienne Moumin wrote:
Hi, group,
After being out of commission for several months, from
photography and life, due to being sidelined by a broken foot, I
am slowly coming back to life to tackle the piles of overwhelm
that have accumulated during my incapacitation. I have two issues
in my darkroom, one brand-new and one not as new, that are
bedevilling me. Our 1949 money pit continues to wreak havoc on my
art and my life, 10 years on...
_Issue 1_: The other day I had our neighborhood
handyman/renovator over for a toilet issue on the 3rd floor. He
asked about the main waste stack, which of course is in my
basement darkroom - in a corner behind the sink. When I had the
darkroom built about 8 years ago, I painted everything, including
the ugly chipped-paint waste stack (original to the house), to
make it all look clean and new. Everything was (I thought) fine,
until the other day when I took my renovator down there, to
discover a huge brown drip (now dried), which began at the place
where the (sic) lug nut is, and extending down past the point of
the sink top, where I can't see how far down the drip extends. It
looks more like rust rather than anything else, but the fact that
any liquid at all came out of there is worrisome to me - since it
means total dismantling of the sink and its plumbing and all the
chemistry etc. stored below...let's just say after 10 years of
incessant home repair issues, I have dug in my heels against the
life-disruption of any more except those which cannot be avoided.
I prefer to do my art in a house that is an eyesore, than to give
up doing the things I love and have my time stolen from me, in
service to any more of this unending nonsense.
My renovator friend tried to tighten this huge lug nut thing, to
no avail. He told me I could "fix" this by cleaning up the rusty
drip if I was bothered by it, and then running a bead of silicone
caulk around where the drip emanated (which he said is merely
screw threads so it's not a huge surprise that something leaked).
But I am nervous about this as a solution, since it has never
leaked before. He also said he could remove that whole section of
the waste stack, and replace it with newer material.
_Issue 2_: For about 6 months, I have noticed that replacing the
water filters, results in them getting rusty/filthy VERY quickly,
even though I only use the darkroom sporadically. The hot filter
is much worse than the cold, although I noticed the other day
when I was in there with my renovator, that the cold is also
affected over the past few months of my not being able to get in
there.
This is has happened a number of times - to the point where I
have taken to buying water filters in groups of 6 and replacing
them nearly every time I use the darkroom, which is a ridiculous
remedy and does not solve the issue. It seems to have gotten
worse after I was compelled to have my friend replace some of the
metal plumbing connectors which were actually corroding since
they were not meant to be wet, and leaching small chunks of metal
into the water (why the original builder of the darkroom would
use such connectors in the first place is beyond my comprehension...)
I have read that nearby excavations can cause excess rust in
water coming in to a house - and there is a TON of excavation
going on all over the neighborhood, for new construction, new
roads, etc. But I'm not sure if this is the cause of this (rust?)
building up in the filters or not.
So I thought I would ask all of you, fount (font?) of collective
knowledge and experience, if anyone may have dealt with either of
these issues, and might have some insight.
With thanks,
Adrienne
/Adrienne Moumin
Handmade B&W photographs and photo collages:/http://
<http://picturexhibit.com/>picturexhibit.com
<http://picturexhibit.com/>
NYC and Silver Spring, MD
212-602-1809
