One of many reasons why I would hate a unit in the attic. Here in my part of the country, midwest, units are not installed in the attic. Main floor or basement mostly.
Looked like they put glue on the coupling and not on the pipe. The problem is the guy that glued the pipe in the attic glued the pipe in the wall as well.
With WATER in a attic.. the smartest thing you did was cut the whole thing out and replace with new. When you found that second bad fitting it became a no brainer, let me replace the whole thing or get me out of here.. Goog Job as always :)
Those are the calls that make you feel bad as a business owner yet you get to make some money from it. I wouldn’t have done anything differently once you found that second joint with water. Take all risk out of it.
That is definitely a situation where I would rebuild that drain from that 90 back to the coil and add straps to support it to keep pressure of the fittings.
That elbow probably also has a lot of stress on it being one pipe is bent up at 30 deg or more. And being in the attic probably has a lot of thermal stress on it too.
Clearly the drain pipe work needs to slope to allow the water to drain but surely it should be clipped/supported to avoid the strain on the connectors.
Having the air handler in the attic is the problem. I'm glad mine is in a closet. It might get the carpet wet if it leaks. I don't have any glue on my pvc.
Ted....I do agree with you about running a new drain all the way back but I am wondering why you do not a union at the evaporator coil? I put them in to clean the coil pan drain and to vacuum from that end if I have a bad clog. I would like to hear your reasoning on this. Thank you for another great video.
That Oatey One Step is also my favorite brand of glue for PVC flue and drain lines. Basically anything not under pressure. For water lines, I'd use purple primer and glue, code here doesn't allow one step, but hardly any PVC around here for cold water lines, sometimes it's in houses that are on a well system, but it's rare I come across PVC on pressurized water lines.
So, I think the drain line comes out of the compressor unit, why is it insulated? Will it be running in the winter time? If there is a heat exchanger perhaps???
Why didn't you use primer on the joint you glued? Did you use some type of all-in-one? Otherwise, I understand that primer is required to chemically bond the glue and pipe. Thoughts?
Ted, would it be possible to get a 20ft stick of 3/4 pvc from your supply house? It would minimize the amount of joints (hopefully spanning from the 90 that goes down the wall to the unit.)
very likely, no cleaner/primer and just a small whiff if glue (on repair/unclogging). without cleaner(dyed primer for inspection purposes) lol. it will 95%+ not soften the pipe surfaces enough for them to bond together.
Original contractor should have secured the condensate line as per code, then stress would not have caused that last joint to fail. New construction inspector also failed to catch that the lines where un-secured.
So did the homeowner file a claim with his insurance to have the companies pay for the water damages and replace, paint, the sheetrock? When gluing pvc I prime n glue it, hold the socket s together for about a minute or two to let glue dry. It will pull apart by itself. To me looks like the original company did glue 90. But 2nd company should've done a more thorough analysis on the drain and check for water leaks, IMO. THEY can be expensive and trouble. Glad ya got that straight for the homeowner.
I'm gonna say the original installer was lazy/cheap and just "wiped" glue on the outside of all the joints to make it look like they were glued! I've seen this before cheap companies or lazy workers or both! Cut costs at any expense! By the way, you said there was glue inside that joint, but from what I could see, there wasn't any and I watche'd it 3 times to be sure!
Some people don't know that crap happens. And sometimes people cause the crap that happens and want to place the blame eleswhere. I get the covering of your bases. Do you have camera glasses?
35yrs of gluing pvc together for golf course irrigation....joints cannot just fall apart if glued and PRIMERED properly. yes primer... Also when it was first installed...likely moving the pipe around before it sets would cause a bad joint. "glue" is a bad term...you are solvent welding. Not just an irrigation guy...HVAC and plumber.. journeyman.
Nobody's gonna catch that when they are changing a coil. Realistically Not much you can really do to prevent that from happening. Just a shitty situation for everyone
One of many reasons why I would hate a unit in the attic. Here in my part of the country, midwest, units are not installed in the attic. Main floor or basement mostly.
Looked like they put glue on the coupling and not on the pipe.
The problem is the guy that glued the pipe in the attic glued the pipe in the wall as well.
With WATER in a attic.. the smartest thing you did was cut the whole thing out and replace with new. When you found that second bad fitting it became a no brainer, let me replace the whole thing or get me out of here.. Goog Job as always :)
Your honest and unbiased approach in dealing with this type of situation makes you stand out in the hvac business.
Detective Cook solves another cold case, after examining the three PVC colored glues. Very nice case of deductive logic in action. 😎
Those are the calls that make you feel bad as a business owner yet you get to make some money from it. I wouldn’t have done anything differently once you found that second joint with water. Take all risk out of it.
And this would be a perfect example why you shouldn’t use pressure to clear a drain line!
That is definitely a situation where I would rebuild that drain from that 90 back to the coil and add straps to support it to keep pressure of the fittings.
That elbow probably also has a lot of stress on it being one pipe is bent up at 30 deg or more. And being in the attic probably has a lot of thermal stress on it too.
Nice work Ted. Good decision on the repipe.
Great catch Ted
Nice Detective work Ted 👍 Au
Clearly the drain pipe work needs to slope to allow the water to drain but surely it should be clipped/supported to avoid the strain on the connectors.
Kilz will cover the water damage. Then top coat with a good quality flat latex. Repipe was the best solution to prevent further damage.
Having the air handler in the attic is the problem. I'm glad mine is in a closet. It might get the carpet wet if it leaks. I don't have any glue on my pvc.
Great Video. Thank you for sharing. I'm looking for to watch part 2
That original glue job looks like it was done in haste.
Nice find & film the final results so tech's can see how it's done right ... Thx
Ted....I do agree with you about running a new drain all the way back but I am wondering why you do not a union at the evaporator coil? I put them in to clean the coil pan drain and to vacuum from that end if I have a bad clog. I would like to hear your reasoning on this. Thank you for another great video.
Light glue and no primer? got to do both for the joint to make a good connectin. Doing it the right way is hard. good job. NCISTed
Good job on flipping the repipe. Water on the coupling could’ve been condensation due to lack of armaflex causing dew point to be reached
That Oatey One Step is also my favorite brand of glue for PVC flue and drain lines. Basically anything not under pressure. For water lines, I'd use purple primer and glue, code here doesn't allow one step, but hardly any PVC around here for cold water lines, sometimes it's in houses that are on a well system, but it's rare I come across PVC on pressurized water lines.
I CAN'T WAIT FOR PART 2
Happened to me in my own house . Forget to glued elbow fron bathroom sink on a 2- nd floor. No glue at all. Survived 10 years. My own doing.
Also, the wrong kind of flexes in that attic, gotta love new construction
I agree with you, all that drain needs to be replaced and done right.
As soon as you repair it, it’s yours! Good move to replace the entire line.
Amazing catch😊😊
So, I think the drain line comes out of the compressor unit, why is it insulated? Will it be running in the winter time? If there is a heat exchanger perhaps???
Where I'm from.Our inspector's won't even let PVC pass.With out seeing Purple primer. On glued PVC. No Way ...
There is no float safety switch on the coil it would absolutely have installed one if I touched that drain and a pan switch as well.
Ted I agree with you make it new 👌
Why didn't you use primer on the joint you glued? Did you use some type of all-in-one? Otherwise, I understand that primer is required to chemically bond the glue and pipe. Thoughts?
Stay away from the blue "hot" glue. It sets brittle and doesn't hold up well at all. Purple primer and glue = plastic weld for the win.
Mr .T Would you ever us the poly pipe to not have but 1 joint.
Ted, would it be possible to get a 20ft stick of 3/4 pvc from your supply house? It would minimize the amount of joints (hopefully spanning from the 90 that goes down the wall to the unit.)
What was the brand of glue you were using?
very likely, no cleaner/primer and just a small whiff if glue (on repair/unclogging). without cleaner(dyed primer for inspection purposes) lol. it will 95%+ not soften the pipe surfaces enough for them to bond together.
Original contractor should have secured the condensate line as per code, then stress would not have caused that last joint to fail.
New construction inspector also failed to catch that the lines where un-secured.
why did you let the glued joint slide out ~1/8" after gluing? @11min 15 sec
You are doing the right thing by replacing all the pipe. It’s the safest option to do.
why dont you like using unions?
Usually PVC fittings go together pretty tight without Glue.
👍🏻👍🏻
That lighter blue glue looks like pipe dope 😅
The second I saw the unwrapped suction line at the coil, I knew anything else they touched was going to be a disaster. Did you insulate that?
Hard working guy
I could be wrong but I can't see that much water damage unless the pipe was plugged
Ted, a completely new PVC pipe is the best solution.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle might have written that tale. Interesting., and unfortunate, as you say. It's not as if there was no glue used.
Good idea. Take it out and redo it!!
I had such bad luck with leaking drains that when I replaced my heat and air all in the attic I went with a outside package unit........no more leaks
So did the homeowner file a claim with his insurance to have the companies pay for the water damages and replace, paint, the sheetrock? When gluing pvc I prime n glue it, hold the socket s together for about a minute or two to let glue dry. It will pull apart by itself. To me looks like the original company did glue 90. But 2nd company should've done a more thorough analysis on the drain and check for water leaks, IMO. THEY can be expensive and trouble. Glad ya got that straight for the homeowner.
Sup mr ted!
The lack of primer is the main problem!
I'm gonna say the original installer was lazy/cheap and just "wiped" glue on the outside of all the joints to make it look like they were glued! I've seen this before cheap companies or lazy workers or both! Cut costs at any expense! By the way, you said there was glue inside that joint, but from what I could see, there wasn't any and I watche'd it 3 times to be sure!
Some people don't know that crap happens. And sometimes people cause the crap that happens and want to place the blame eleswhere. I get the covering of your bases. Do you have camera glasses?
WOW 😊 I'm the First to Comment. I wish I Can be Calm and talk like Him. Very patient man👍
35yrs of gluing pvc together for golf course irrigation....joints cannot just fall apart if glued and PRIMERED properly. yes primer... Also when it was first installed...likely moving the pipe around before it sets would cause a bad joint. "glue" is a bad term...you are solvent welding. Not just an irrigation guy...HVAC and plumber.. journeyman.
takes one rooky mistake to mess things up and leave someone to deal and fix it later.
Didn’t look like there was any sufficient amount of either primer (clear?) or glue was used as evidenced in the 90 which Ted repaired
that trap will never hold water at that pitch
How does one not notice that before the water damage gets that bad
Nobody's gonna catch that when they are changing a coil. Realistically Not much you can really do to prevent that from happening. Just a shitty situation for everyone
9 years is a long time. Looks to Me like it would have leaked before now.
Helicopter 🚁
First ? 🤷🏻♂️