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Author:
seagullcanfly (NY)
We recently finished our basement. As part of that finishing the majority of the copper piping was replaced with plastic (Pex?).
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A few months after construction was finished, some copper piping in the basement where the ceiling is still exposed in a utility room developed a pinhole leak. The majority of the ceiling in the basement is sheetrocked. We had a plumber come in who fixed the pinhole and for a few hours it was fine. Maybe four hours later, in the adjacent room where we can't see the ceiling, a massive water leak developed where water was dripping out of all the recessed lighting. We had the contractor who did the construction come by and the plumber who did the repair return, but neither could figure out the cause of the successive leak. It was never solved, and just eventually stopped leaking.
That was about two months ago.
Yesterday, another pinhole leak developed in the same utility room. It was repaired, and now 18 hours later were seeing the same leak in the adjacent room.
Without taking out the sheetrocked ceiling we really can't figure out the problem.
Anybody have any idea what's going on? We have very hard water, so the pinhole leaks we're getting in the remaining copper seems understandable (though the house is nearing 30 years old and we've never seen pinhole leaks until now). I just can't figure out why repairing one leak leads to a different leak in another room many hours later that eventually disappears.
The water is turned off. The leak wasn't happening for long so I don't know why if there was pooling water somewhere else it wouldn't have appeared sooner.
Edited 2 times.
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Author:
seagullcanfly (NY)
Just to clarify.
I know that hard water can cause copper piping to have pinhole leaks.
The majority of our copper piping in the basement was already replaced with plastic piping.
This problem has happened twice.
The first time, we fixed the pinhole leak, and four hours later water started dripping out of the recessed lighting in the adjacent room where we can't see the ceiling but it is plastic piping.
We never found the cause of the second leak and it disappeared after a day.
This is now the second time, another pinhole leak has been fixed, and it's now 18 hours later and I'm seeing water dripping out of the recessed lighting.
The water has been shut off.
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Author:
packy (MA)
you really need to make an access hole or 2 in the ceiling. turn the water off as if you are fixing another leak and have a look-see at what is happening when you turn it back on ...
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Author:
hj (AZ)
If the two pinhole leaks were near each other, and the ceiling leak is in the same place, water from the leaks may have "ponded" in the other room and leaked until it all drained out.
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Author:
KCRoto (MO)
I have seen this happen with leaking water mains. After a leaky section is repaired, the increased pressure causes the next piece to fail. The city that contracted the company I worked for only wanted the affected area repaired, so they dug up and replaced about 20', then the next day another break happened, and they replaced another 20'… ad nauseum
I can't say that this is what is happening, but it is a possibility. With a finished drywall ceiling, it is especially hard to find leaks, as they can travel across the back side of the rock until they find an opening, and nobody wants to cut up the ceiling to find it unless they have to.
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Author:
Paul48 (CT)
" For want of a nail, a shoe was lost. For want of a shoe, a horse was lost. For want of a horse, a rider was lost. For want of a rider, the war was lost."
I would suggest you focus on the nail. Good Luck
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Author:
hj (AZ)
Unless it was a "major" leak, it probably had absolutely NO EFFECT on the main line pressure.
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Author:
seagullcanfly (NY)
It turns out that turning off the water to fix the first pinhole leak and then turning it back on exacerbated a leak in an upstairs refrigerator.
Thank you to those who replied and didn't just assume I'm stupid for wanting to avoid removing a recently installed ceiling. It would have just been exploratory surgery, and I was having a hard time conceiving of a reason why the one repair would cause a temporary new leak in the other area.
Edited 2 times.
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Author:
KCRoto (MO)
If you are developing pinhole leaks in the copper, you may be in for a remodel and repiping soon anyhow. Make sure your insurance doesn't lapse, and hope for the best.
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Author:
Shooter (Canada)
Hi seagullcanfly - You have velocity assisted corrosion of the copper. Water velocity is far too high and is eating out your copper water recirculation piping from the inside.
What pump and line size are you using for DHW recirculation ? You want a very small pump - a Grundfos UP 10-16 BN5 LC which will do 2 or 3 gallons per minute and is specifically designed for DHW recirculation.
You also want to install a CircuitSolver by ThermOmegaTech on each branch of recirculation returns. This will automatically regulate the flow and temperature, providing exactly amount of flow - no more, no less.
Remember, velocity is your enemy. Suggest you use Model CS-1/2-115 which is set for 115ºF. CircuitSolvers are the Silver Bullet for preventing DHW Recirculation leaks.
Glad to discuss.
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