Damaged floor heating pipe


  #1  
Old 04-26-05, 03:04 AM
JeepinNYC
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Damaged floor heating pipe

While removing a concrete riser for a bathroom that was retrofitted into my house (a converted garage), I accidentally punctured (with a jackhammer) a copper hydronic heat pipe that was buried in the concrete slab below the riser.

What are the common methods to repair this kind of damage? A plumber is coming later this week to look at it, but I would like to have an idea on what is reasonable.

I've already removed about a 3 inch wide section of concrete about a foot on either side of the damage. There is a cast-iron sewer pipe parallel to and 2 inches from the copper pipe, which is probably why I hit the pipe - I didn't expect a heat pipe to be so close to a sewer line. The slab is dual layer: the original layer for the garage floor and the new pour for the converted space. The plumbing is embedded in that new layer. FYI, I want to have the sewer line removed anyway because the joints are above the new lowered level of the floor.
 
  #2  
Old 04-27-05, 11:08 AM
K
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The proper way to repair this is with a slip coupling, some length of ordinary pipe, and a normal coupling, all soldered. I think you can do this yourself. The slip coupling you can even make cheap just by filing out the dimple in a normal coupling.

BYT, good plan replace the cast sewer pipe as cast is surprisingly brittle and probably cracked up now from the jackhammer vibrations.
 
  #3  
Old 04-29-05, 01:16 AM
JeepinNYC
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That's exactly what the plumber did - a couple couplings and a length of pipe. After see what he did I probably could have done it myself, but I had already called him. Anyway I feel more comfortable that it's done right since it will be buried in concrete - I don't want a leak in there.

The cast iron pipe was being pulled out anyway because the bathroom is being completely removed. The plumber cut the cast iron and used some epoxy material to cover the end so the fitting didn't stick above the floor level. I was a but surprised by that but it makes sense.
 
 

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