Just to update on the basin leak.
I used the Sikaflex. Thanks for the suggestion @Corona. And I thought it was ok.
Our guests have left and I’ve been down to the cottage to check. It’s better, but there is still a bit of a leak.
My problem is that the basin is in a cupboard and the leak is round the back of the pipe and there is no way I can get the caulk gun round the back. So I used a mirror and wearing a pair of disposable gloves tried to wipe the Sifaflex onto the joint - obviously with only some success.
Has anyone a clever suggestion for sealing the leak properly?
I did wonder if I squeezed a line of Sikaflex onto something like strong masking tape and with OH’s help we carefully fed the tape round the back of the pipe and then pulled it forwards to make a tight join with the pipe and basin that might work?
Alternatively, I see it’s possible to buy silicon bathroom sealant tape that has the benefit of a “bend” along its length so could be partly on the pipe and partly on the basin. Would the silicon adhere on top of the Sikaflex?
Hello Sue, I seem to remember that you dont have back to back guests in your gite?
If so then presumably it will be empty for a week?
Backwards and forwards to the local brico spendind a few euros each time quickly adds up with no guarantee that this or that filler or sealant will work.
My advice is to bit the bullet and either you or an artisan should remove the shelf that is stopping you from getting to the crux of the problem and renew the trap and immediate pipework.
Sorry if it isn’t what you want to hear but sometimes you have to admit defeat and get the professions in.
Hello John, thanks for your thoughts. In fact i did renew the trap and that works absolutely fine. It’s slightly smaller than the one I removed and so there is a bit of space now between the trap and the shelf. In fact the current issue is a different one. Unfortunately working on the trap and getting it off caused a leak where the basin meets the outlet pipe. The Sikaflex has greatly improved the situation so it’s now just a matter of just tweaking it to get that final bit of sealant in place.
Removing shelf and replacing pipework is beyond my capabilities. Maybe round your area it’s possible to get an artisan at short notice, round here, not so much. The people we normally rely on have been drawn away by large renovations of chateaux in the Dordogne - an extraordinary amount of money being spent.
For a crisis like a cumulus breakdown I’m sure they would come. For something small like this, no.
Maybe my solution is a bodge, but I feel is not beyond what we can achieve.
Hi Sue, it sounds like you are trying to apply the sealant to the outside of a leak, whilst this can sometimes work with polymer sealants like sikaflex and CT1 it is usually a bit iffy. Better if you can, undo the screw in the strainer which allows the connection to the outlet to the plumbing and the sink to open slightly the squirt in the sealant so it forms a seal both sides of the joint making a gasket. The brico shed often sell a flexie nozzle that allows you to get where a cartridge cant.
Fernox Leak Sealer LS-X NEW
Fernox Leak Sealer LS-X NEW
Item condition: New, original packing
Manufacturer: Fernox
Item number: WS9111519
TARIC: 32149000
Country of origin: GB
This does work Sue. I’ve used it for many years. The joint does not need to be dry as it reacts with the water to produce the seal. I fixed my toilet three months ago and its still perfectly dry. It’s one of those items I would never be without in fact I must remember to order some more today!
I agree, even if it’s something that one has done before. Sometimes it’s worth the money just to know that it’s going to work, first time.
I’ve installed quite number of bathrooms/showers/basins/kitchen sinks et al in UK. I have what, in my experience of doing the jobs in UK, appeared to be a very straightforward project which I would not hesitate to get stuck into, in UK.
When I started to assemble what I thought were the fittings to do this I soon became totally bamboozled by the FR way with compression fittings and waste pipe. For example, to cap off the H & C supplies to the original basin, now removed, I had to buy two compression fittings per pipe at a cost of over €18! But because the pipes still had the male compression fittings on them I only needed the female fittings, in the end. I’m used to a plastic push-fit end cap at 50p or a brass one at £1.20
But the complications mounted and the shop staffer waved his hands about at the shelves of fittings, saying I need 3 of these and 2 of those, with a step-down adapter from X to Y mm .
Then I heard a voice - an English voice - say “I’m a plumber. Can I help you with this?” Miracolo!
Although the help was spot on, the complications did not diminish. My head was beginning to hurt. In the end our man said, “Would you like me to do this for you?” Music to my ears.
Another English plumber hereabouts is fully booked past Nov " … or through into the New Year, if I want… ". But this chap can do me on Sept 19th! Remarkable!