plumbing suggestions for repairing a cracked cast iron pipe (1 Viewer)

[archie]

I got a crack in a cast iron plumbing drain pipe in an unfinished basement. The crack is at the bottom of the pipe and water is currently dripping overhead so access is not an issue. There is a Y connector in the in the vicinity of the crack so replacing bad section is not easy. I could call a plumber to replace the section but since it is an unfinished basement I don't really care if it is repaired by an expensive plumber now because I could just let the water go down the floor drain if the repair fails. Since the fluid is not under pressure I think it should be an cheap easy fix for as little time invested. Before I waste my time going down the wrong route I would like your suggestions on how you would fix it. My experience in plumbing only involves putting sinks,toilets, dishwashers and other finished work, not so much rough plumbing.
The question is what would you suggest?
JB quick?
Hydraulic cement?
Weld? have equipment but can I do it to cast iron and will it screw up anything attached to plumbing-phone lines, dishwashers electronics.
shove a bunch of clay into the crack ?
strap a rubber sleeve?
etc.....
thanks alot for the suggestions.

 

[sirenmoses]

I tried JB Weld as a temp repair to motorcycle footpeg: it held exactly 1/2 the distance required.

My vote is for rubber sleeve, until proper repair. I'd stay away from welding...

 

[archie]

thanks for the response! Just thought about soldering lead but the problem is it's leaking water and crack is on the underside. BTW, the crack is a hairline crack about 2 inches long.

 

[-Spike-]

I have actually used JB Weld (the standard stuff) on a cast-iron sewer pipe repair, and it worked very well. The trick is to heat the repair a bit after applying the JB Weld; the heat will make it flow right into the crack. Looks good too.

-Spike

 

[archie]

I have actually used JB Weld (the standard stuff) on a cast-iron sewer pipe repair, and it worked very well. The trick is to heat the repair a bit after applying the JB Weld; the heat will make it flow right into the crack. Looks good too.

-Spike

Thanks for the suggestion! Was the area wet when you applied it? I might have to shut down the bathroom for a few days for things to dry out.

 

[Spud]

Home Depot has this stuff...Plumbers Epoxy.
Small tube should be more than enough and is only like $5.
Stuff is like a bondo and you just work it with your hands, (wear gloves), then put it in the crack and smooth it out etc. It is waterproof and will set up underwater too.

 

[-Spike-]

Dry. I'd go with dry. You could probably shut it down for a few hours and hit it with a torch (lightly) or a heat gun to dry the crack if you needed to do it quickly. I used a heat gun to warm the JB on several projects, gives me good control. You'd want to heat the iron, not just the putty, to get it to penetrate well.

-Spike

 

[FJ60Cam]

I'd cut out the bad section and splice in some PVC of the same diameter using the rubber boot/clamp thingies. I think it would take less time than trying to McGuyver it, and would last longer...

 

[osagecruiser]

cut it out using the sawzall blade specially made for cast iron pipe...get a piece of pvc to replace the section and use a fernco coupler to put it all back together...may need a pair of fernco's...all parts should be available at your local loews or home depot...good luck

osagecruiser

 

[archie]

Thanks for the input! I think I'll epoxy it because the Y branch goes up into the wall which would make that connection difficult. It's a $5 and maybe 30 minutes worth of work (max). Worth the gamble.
Thanks for the hint about the special blade for cast iron. I never knew they had special blades, I should have had that 20 years ago cutting a vent stack. I was mostly polishing it with my reciprocating back then .

 

[-Spike-]

Screw special blades. They make a tool that's basically a chain with teeth on it, wraps around the cast iron pipe, tool tightens, scores pipe, and pipe snaps nice and clean. I rented one from Home Depot for not much cash. Damn near effortless and less time than it will take you to get the Sawzall out of the case.

-Spike

 

[bkfj40]

Screw special blades. They make a tool that's basically a chain with teeth on it, wraps around the cast iron pipe, tool tightens, scores pipe, and pipe snaps nice and clean. I rented one from Home Depot for not much cash. Damn near effortless and less time than it will take you to get the Sawzall out of the case.

-Spike

the chain cutter is the best way....


while the epoxy or jb weld might not be the ideal fix, it's quick and easy and the worst thing that will happen is it won't work. Then you can do the real repair with fernco couplers, some pvc, the cutter, and some beer!


bk

 

[archie]

I've seen those chain cutters and thought that they would be pretty pricey too buy and never turned up used at flea markets and garage sales. Are they just as easy as strap wrenches to use?

 

[Toyo FJ40]

I've seen those chain cutters and thought that they would be pretty pricey too buy and never turned up used at flea markets and garage sales. Are they just as easy as strap wrenches to use?

No their not. They tighten down on the pipe with a built in ratchet till the pipe breaks. On new cast they work great but with old cracked cast pipe it's about 50/50 that the pipe will crush. The Lenox cast saws all blades work great. If the wye is upstream then you can cut the pipe and split the bell off the wye and pop a peice of PVC with 2 furnco couplers. If the wye is downstream then you have the wye's bell to deal with which makes it more of a pain in the ass. There are rubber seals that replace the lead and oakum normaly used in cast joints.

The best home owner repair on cast I've seen was fiberglass fabric and resin wraped around the pipe and it lasted for years.


Kevin

 

[-Spike-]

They tighten down on the pipe with a built in ratchet till the pipe breaks.

I usually tighten it down snug and then move the chain back and forth, scoring the CI. Then tighten some more. Never had a pipe crush, although I've only done a few. All old pipe.

-Spike

 

[trainrech]

If you do go the way of cutting a section out and "splicing" in a section of plastic, make sure you take a look at how to support the pipe above the splice.

 

[archie]

If you do go the way of cutting a section out and "splicing" in a section of plastic, make sure you take a look at how to support the pipe above the splice.

thanks for the warning, wouldn't want a section of vertical pipe falling down on my toes .

 

[Toyo FJ40]

I usually tighten it down snug and then move the chain back and forth, scoring the CI. Then tighten some more. Never had a pipe crush, although I've only done a few. All old pipe.

-Spike

Only had it crush pipe that was allready cracked near the cut or had been buryed for 40 years, then you cut and hope for the POP and not the Crunch.
Sawsall is slow but if you need to split a bell it beats a BFH.


Kevin

 

[FJ60Cam]

An angle grinder with a cutoff blade makes quick work of the cast iron... but it's alot messier than the other methods, especially if you have a layer of funk in the bottom of the pipe

 

[Jim the C]

thanks for the response! Just thought about soldering lead but the problem is it's leaking water and crack is on the underside. BTW, the crack is a hairline crack about 2 inches long.

Hello , looks like I'm 10 years late to this thread but found in that I'm looking at same issue. How did this end up? What did work? thanks