|
How to caulk around a bathtub |
 |
 |
 |
|
Written by Administrator
|
|
Monday, 17 August 2009 14:32 |
Aging caulk, around a sink, between a tub and the tile surround it, or covering the joints of a shower stall, provides a place for shower mildew to take hold, or worse --for water to seep through and destroy wallboard and framing. The good news is that caulk is very cheap and applying it isn't very difficult. It can take about an hour and all you need are a few common tools, and materials you can find at any hardware store. The key is to do it right, or you'll be caulking again in a year or two. You have to completely remove the old caulk and any. You need to start fresh with a clean, smooth, and dry surface.
Tools needed
1. 5-in-1 tool or a utility knife
2. Caulking
Parts/supplies needed
1. Non-abrasive pad
2. Cotton Rag
3. Painter's Tape
4. Caulk
About caulk
For tubs, sinks, or shower stalls, use caulk that comes in tubes labeled “Tub and Tile” or “Kitchen and Bath.” Either acrylic latex or silicone compounds, these caulks have been chemically engineered to resist mildew and to stick to smooth, nonporous surfaces like ceramic. But they have differences:
Silicone: Tough, waterproof, and very flexible, this type of caulk doesn’t work with all surface conditions. It’s difficult to smooth, mineral spirits are required for cleanup, and will smell up a room until it cures (dries). Silicone caulk leaves a residue that’s hard for anything (including new silicone) to stick to. That’s why if silicone caulk was used in a spot before, it must be scrubbed with an abrasive pad soaked in mineral spirits. It also only comes in clear, white, and almond colors.
Acrylic Latex: Compared with silicone, acrylic latex caulk is much more forgiving both in cleanup and the surface it can be applied to. Smoothing it is easy, it cleans up easily with water, and it doesn’t have much (if any) smell. It shrinks more and dries harder than silicone, so it will probably need to be replaced a little sooner --but replacing it is much easier than silicone. Acrylic latex caulk comes in many more colors and can be matched to your sink and tub glazes.
Step by Step
1. Remove Existing Caulk
Cut away your old acrylic latex caulk with quick, sharp strokes of a 5-in-1 painter's tool and a razor scraper or a utility knife. Please note: metal blades can scratch plastic sinks, tubs, and surrounds; use a plastic razor blade instead. Caulk removers also harm plastic.
2. Scrub
Scrub with a dry, nonabrasive pad to remove every trace of caulk residue. If you have old silicone caulk, use a pad soaked in mineral spirits. Use a soft rag dampened with mineral spirits, not a scouring pad, to avoid scratching plastic fixtures. Wipe the joint to with a damp cloth rag to remove the caulk dust and prepare the surface for the new caulk. Make sure to dry the area well with a dry rag or a hair dryer.
3. Tape and Caulk
Use two parallel strips of blue painter’s tape, about 3⁄8 inch apart, to help you keep the bead of caulk straight and uniform. It will also keep the caulk off surfaces it shouldn’t be on. Trim the nozzle at a 45-degree angle near the tip. The hole in the nozzle should be just big enough to fill the joint, roughly 3⁄16 inch. Point the nozzle hole toward the joint; hold the gun the same distance from the surfaces on either side of the joint and about 45 degrees out from it. Put steady pressure on the trigger as you move the gun smoothly along the length of the seam. It doesn’t matter if you prefer to push or pull the gun, it’s just important to be steady. Keep the caulk gun moving at a steady speed to keep up with the rate that caulk is coming out of the nozzle. If you move too fast, the bead will be too thin, possibly with bubbles or breaks in the seal. If you move too slowly, you will waste material and spend more time cleaning up. It takes some finesse.
4. Smooth the bead
Quickly, when the seams are filled, take a damp lint-free rag or paper towel and press it into the joint with your finger. Pull it along the joint in one continuous movement to shape the fresh caulk into a concave (curved inward) bead. Then quickly pull the tape off, one strip at a time –make sure the tape doesn’t touch any of the fresh caulk. Go back immediately and smooth the bead again to smooth out the tiny ridges left by the tape’s edges. Let the caulk cure (set) for at least 24 hours before using the sink, shower, or bath.
|
|
How to fix a sweating toilet |
|
|
|
|
Written by Administrator
|
|
Monday, 17 August 2009 14:31 |
A sweating toilet is much more than just an annoyance, the condensation running down your toilet can seep under your bathroom’s flooring, rotting the plywood subfloor and soaking into the floor joists. It can also stain baseboard molding, soak drywall and lead to mildew.
Why does a toilet sweat?
When the weather becomes hot and humid, it means that moisture is in the air. The water entering the toilet tank from its supply line is much colder, anywhere from 50° to 60°F. When the warm moist air in your house comes into contact with the toilet’s cool porcelain surfaces, the moisture in the air condenses, turning back to water. And even though a toilet will sweats only on warm, humid days, it can “sweat” quite a bit of water very quickly.
Just add Heat
Some toilet manufacturers claim that toilet-tank insulators they produce will cure sweaty toilets. Most of these insulators don’t work well if at all. There are only two proven ways to stop toilets from sweating. The first is to use an air conditioner or dehumidifier; they will dry out the air in the bathroom. But what if you don't have one of these units or don't want to run it all summer? The second solution is to install an anti-sweat valve in the toilet’s water-supply line. The way this valve works is it adds a little hot water to the line, raising the water temperature in the toilet enough to warm up the tank and bowl and prevent condensation from forming/
You can buy anti-sweat valves at a hardware store or plumbing-supply dealer. They come in both adjustable and preset types. The adjustable models are generally recommended (even though they can cost about $10 more). The adjustable version will allow you to adjust the water temperature and turn off the hot-water altogether when you don’t need it.
Preparation steps
First shut off the main water valve to the entire house, then drain both the hot-and cold-water lines by opening up all the sink and tub faucets and flushing all the toilets.
To avoid burning or melting the internal components of the valve with a soldering torch, you should make all connections to the valve with brass compression adapters (about $1.50 each). First loosely thread a 5/8 x 5/8-in. compression adapter into each of the three valve ports. Hold the valve against the horizontal cold-water pipe with the lower inlet port even with the pipe. Mark the spot where the center outlet port of the valve intersects the vertical pipe section, also mark the location of the lower inlet port on the horizontal pipe. Use a hacksaw to carefully cut out the pipe section.
Next, solder a 90-degree L-fitting to the vertical pipe coming down from the back of the toilet, then with a 6-in.-long stub of 1/2-in.-dia. Pipe, extend it. Use lead-free solder and a MAPP gas torch --lead-free solder because it’s relatively hard, and MAPP gas burns hotter and works faster than propane does. The cold-water line’s ready for the valve, so locate a nearby hot-water line (e.g. under your sink) and cut out a section to accept a new copper T-fitting. Splice the T-fitting into the line and assemble a short vertical riser pipe with a 90-degree L-fitting and short horizontal pipe stub. Point the stub toward the spot beneath the toilet where the valve will be installed. Solder the T- and L-connections. To reach the valve location, add a length of pipe.
Valve Installation
Coat the male threads of the three brass compression adapters lightly with a pipe joint compound (also referred to as “pipe dope”). Thread the adapters into the valve ports and then tighten each with a wrench. Slide a nut and compression ring onto each pipe end and then insert the pipes into the adapters. Coat each compression ring with joint compound and thread the nuts onto the adapters. Carefully tighten each nut with a wrench, make sure not to overtighten. Turn the main water valve back on and immediately check for any leaks.
Check the termperature
A flathead screwdriver will adjust the temperature of the water flowing through the valve. Turn the cold-water adjustment screw counter-clockwise to open it all the way. Next turn the hot-water screw clockwise until it closes completely. Flush the toilet and open the hot-water side by turning the adjustment screw counter-clockwise 180 degrees. Wait at least an hour and then check for any condensation. If there is still some condensation, open up the hot-water side of the valve another 45 degrees. Still need to open it more? Try another 45 degrees. Finding the right water temperature will likely take several flushes over 1-2 days. But when the water in the tank closes in on room temperature, the sweating will stop. |
|
Last Updated ( Monday, 17 August 2009 14:33 )
|
|
|
Written by Administrator
|
|
Monday, 17 August 2009 14:30 |
If a toilet develops cracks or leaks, uses too much water per flush, or is discolored, it may be time to replace it. A plumber should be able to take care of this within a few hours, but if you enjoy do-it-your projects, you might want to consider doing it yourself. Toilets are heavy and awkward lift, but if you (or someone you know that will help) have a strong back you can save the expense of calling a plumber by doing it yourself. Replacing a toilet can take you between 4-7 hours (give or take), depending on your level of plumbing work experience.
Tools needed
1. Adjustable wrench or open-end wrenches
2. Drill/driver
3. Hacksaw
4. Handsaw, or inside pipe cutter
5. Jigsaw
6. Level
7. Propane torch
8. Screwdriver
9. Striker, to light torch
10. Tape measure
11. Tubing benders
12. Tubing cutters
13. Utility knife
Parts/supplies needed
1. Bucket
2. Chromed brass supply line
3. Closet bolt caps
4. Closet bolts, washers, and nuts
5. Flux
6. Lead-free solder
7. No.10 1&5/8” Stainless steel screws
8. Pencil
9. PVC primer
10. PVC cement
11. Rags
12. Rubber gloves
13. Seat assembly
14. Small bucket
15. Stainless steel washers (for shimming)
16. Stop valve
17. Toilet bowl and tank
18. Tank bolts with washers and nuts
19. Teflon paste (pipe dope)
20. Tubing cutter
21. Wax rings (with and without integrated rubber gasket
22. Wax ring
23. Wire-brush pipe cleaner
Step 1: Remove the old toilet
The first thing you need to do is shut off the water supply to the toilet (you may have to shut off water to that bathroom). Flush the toilet, but keep holding the handle down –this will empty the remaining water out of the tank. A sponge can be used to wipe the tank dry (if there is any water left in it). The next step is removing the tank from the bowl. You’ll need to loosen the bolts at the bottom of the inside of the tank. While you use a screwdriver on a bold, hold the nut on the outside of the tank with pliers to keep it from spinning. Remove the tank from the bathroom (you’ll need the room).
Remove any water that is left in the bowl with a sponge, then remove the bolts at the base of your toilet. It may be difficult to remove the bolts, there may be some plumbers putty around the bolts or they may be corroded. Use a scraper to remove putty or penetrating oil to free corroded bolts. Your option of last resort is to use a hacksaw to cut the bolts off. To break the seal between the toilet and piping, carefully rock the toilet back and forth. Carefully lift the toilet (it’s heavy) and remove it from the bathroom (again, you’re going to need the room when installing the new toilet).
Step 2: Prepare the floor and soil pipe
With rubber gloves on, quickly stuff a rag into the soil pipe to prevent sewer gas from coming up into your bathroom (this will also prevent anything from falling in while you’re working). Then check that the hole in the floor is big enough to for the closet flange (needs to fit up to its collar). If the hole is too small, trace around the base of the flange with a pencil. Then with a jigsaw, cut away the excess flooring. Before you cut, make sure you won’t cut any joists.
Try fitting the soil pipe into the closet bend and put the flange over the soil pipe. Measure the gap between the flange's collar bottom and the finished floor. Take out the soil pipe, use a handsaw to trim by the amount of the gap you measured. Remove rough spots on the cut edge with your utility knife. Test attach the flange to the soil pipe, and the soil pipe to the closet bend –you want to ensure the flange's collar will now rest properly on the floor.
Step 3: Install the soil pipe and closet flange
Take the pieces apart and apply PVC primer to the outside of one end of the soil pipe and also on the inside of the closet bend. Take the PVC cement and apply to the areas you applied the primer to, and then immediately twist the soil pipe into the closet bend. Apply primer and then cement to the other end of the soil pipe and the inside of the closet flange. Immediately twist and press the flange onto the soil pipe, you’ll want to do this until the collar is seated on the floor. Turn the collar so that its slots are on the right and left of the hole. The closet bolts, which you will insert into the slots, have to line up parallel to the wall (behind the tank). With stainless steel screws long enough to bite into the subfloor, attach the collar to the floor. It’s important to note that when you are gluing a fixed-collar PVC flange, you must align the bolt slots quickly before the cement sets.
Step 4: Solder the stop valve
First make sure that you shut off the bathroom's water-supply. Take a bucket and position it under the supply line. Carefully sever the line with a tubing cutter, leaving approximately 1 inch of pipe to attach the stop valve and escutcheon. Let the pipe drain into the bucket. Take off the valve's handle and stem, heat from soldering could damage the plastic washers in the stem. Use a rag to dry the inside and outside of the pipe. Then, using a wire-brush pipe cleaner, clean the inside and outside of the pipe and inside of the valve's inlet. Apply flux to both areas.
Place the escutcheon over the supply line, then place the stop valve --the valve's outlet should point up. Light your propane torch and heat the supply line stop valve joint. When the joint is hot enough to melt the solder, turn off the torch and run the solder around the joint. When you can see a drop of solder appear at the bottom, the joint has been filled.
Step 5: Set the toilet bowl
Take the long brass closet bolts and insert them, threaded-end up, into the flange collar's slots. Place a brass washer over each bolt. Carefully and gently, with its flat-side down, press the wax ring, over the flange. Carefully lift the toilet bowl over the flange (you may need an extra pair of hands and muscles for this), align the holes in the toilet’s base with the closet bolts, and then carefully lower the base onto the ring.
Press the bowl down onto the wax ring, without twisting or rocking it, until the bowl's base rests on the floor. If the bathroom floor is uneven, you can shim the bowl by using the stainless steel washers. Drop a nylon washer over each of the bolts, then hand-thread the nuts. With only one quarter turn at a time, tighten the nuts with a wrench, alternating between the two nuts. Stop immediately when you feel firm resistance; overtightening will crack the toilet bowl. Use your hacksaw to trim the closet bolts at a point two threads above the top of the tightened nuts –be careful not to hit or mark-up the toilet’s porcelain. Snap the plastic bolt covers into place, this will both camouflage them and somewhat protect them from water.
Step 6: Install the tank
Examine the large-diameter rubber tank-to-bowl (also called “spud”) washer on the outside of the tank's bottom; make sure it is firmly seated. Put the small-diameter rubber tank washers into the small tank holes from inside of the tank, and then carefully insert the tank bolts through the holes. Gently place the tank onto the back of the bowl, making sure the ends of the tank bolts slide into the holes. Place a nylon washer onto each of the bolts, then hand-thread the nuts. While using a screwdriver to hold each bolt head in place, hand-tighten the nuts, switching back and forth from nut to nut --checking repeatedly to make sure the tank is level. Be very careful not to overtighten, it will crack the porcelain. When the tank is firmly attached, connect the tank's handle to the flapper chain.
Step 7: Install the supply Line and seat assembly
With a tubing bender, curve the supply line to fit in-between the stop-valve outlet and the tank-supply fitting. When you’re finished bending it, hold the pipe, flared-end-up, between the stop-valve outlet and the tank-supply fitting and mark it half an inch below the outlet. You’re doing this to leave enough length of the line to sit inside the outlet. Using a tubing cutter cut the supply line across the mark you made.
Place the plastic nut, compression nut, and compression ring (in that order) onto the supply line. Apply a thin coat of Teflon paste to the valve's outlet threads, then insert the line in the outlet, and fit the compression ring. Hand-tighten the supply line's plastic nut under the tank, then tighten the compression nut with a wrench –be careful not to overtighten.
Step 8: Attaching seat and testing for leaks
Take the seat assembly (seat and cover) and place over the bowl, then insert the plastic bolts through the seat back and the bowl's seat holes; tighten the nuts by hand –do not overtighten. Turn on the water to the toilet (or bathroom if you had to turn off the whole supply. Open the stop valve behind the toilet and allow the tank to fill. While watching carefully for leaks, flush the toilet a total of six times. Check for leaks after every flush and then let the toilet sit unused for 15-20 minutes. If you don’t see any leaks and it appears to be working normally, you can begin using the toilet normally.
|
|
How to Repair a Two-Handled Stem Faucet |
|
|
|
|
Written by Administrator
|
|
Monday, 17 August 2009 14:28 |
Most people will ignore a dripping faucet out of fear or ignorance, they usually crank the handle so hard they tear a rubber washer or cracking something and make the leak worse. It’s a repair that an experienced plumber can finish within 10-15 minutes and a handy homeowner in about 30 minutes.
Most leaky compression faucets really only need new seat washers. You can check by prying off the decorative cap on each of the handles, removing the handles’ screws, pulling off the handle and using a crescent wrench to unscrew each handle’s packing nut. After you unscrew each stem, remove and replace the seat washer which is held in place by a brass screw. Remove the stem from the packing nut and replace the O-ring –one of the main culprits for leaky handles. Put the faucet back together and tighten the packing nut. If your faucet continues to leak, it’s possible that the seat has become pitted. You’ll need to remove the stem and then grind smooth the valve seat with a valve-seat dresser, a tool that can be temporarily screw down into the faucet.
Tools needed
1. Adjustable Wrench (to loosen the packing nut)
2. Faucet-Handle Puller (in case the handle won't budge and you need more force to remove the screw)
3. File (to file away the pitted wall of the stem)
4. Needlenosed pliers (to pull out the stem assembly)
5. Screwdriver (for removing the screw that holds the handle in place)
6. Seat Wrench (to remove the seat and check it for burrs)
Parts/supplies needed
1. Seat Washer (the rubber disk on the stem's underside)
2. Washer Screw (made of brass)
3. Nickel/Copper-Alloy Retainer Bowl (to rebuild the stem)
4. Pipe Joint Compound (to reseal the seat)
Step 1: Removing the cap and handle
A dripping spout indicates that the problem is in one of the handles, remove the caps from the water handles. If you find encrusted screws, you can try strong-arming them with a screwdriver, but you can end up stripping the head or hurting yourself. You may need to use a faucet-handle puller to get the job done.
Step 2: Disassembling the stem
Next you need to remove the packing nut, which attaches the stem into the faucet body. Loosen it with an adjustable wrench, then pull out the entire stem assembly with a pair of needlenosed pliers. The seat washer (a rubber disk on the stem's underside), usually the cause in a spout drip, may look scarred, and its fastener screw badly corroded. If that’s the case, twist the screw off carefully –you don’t want to snap its shank. If you do, it will be necessary to drill it out and rethread the hole with a "tap and die" kit.
Step 3: Fixing and rebuilding the stem
Before replacing the washer, you may want to take care of the protruding edge that the washer fits into. You can file away the pitted wall and replaces it with a nickel/copper-alloy retainer bowl. It will be held in place by a new washer screw. Sometimes it's better to rebuild the stem instead of buying a new part because you can save money and replacement parts for older faucets can be tough to find.
Step 4: Inspecting the valve seat and reassembly
Find an identical-size replacement washer and fastens it on with the new brass screw. Before you place the stem back on the valve seat (the cylindrical piece that butts against the washer and creates a seal with it when the faucet is off), remove the seat with a special seat wrench. Turn it counterclockwise and checks it for burrs caused by scraping and corrosion. If the seat is badly damaged you could end up replacing the washer repeatedly, but it will continue leaking. If it’s undamaged you won’t need to replace it. Just seal it with pipe joint compound and reassemble the handle. |
|
Last Updated ( Monday, 17 August 2009 14:30 )
|
|
