# metal pipe thread repair?



## Alan (Apr 12, 2006)

He should have used an ez-out. It's hard to tell if that will ever seal without looking at it. Do you have access to the back wall behind the valve? :huh:


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## digitalknoll (Mar 29, 2010)

*ez-out*

yeah, i tried two different ez-outs and neither would catch the old pipe. the 1/2" which should have worked was too small. and i couldn't use a tapered style cause the fitting was an elbow and its was too long. his solution made sense at the time, now i know better. i do not have access behind the wall because there is a block wall behind it. 

DK


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## Alan (Apr 12, 2006)

You can try pipe dope in addition to teflon tape. Tape the threads first, and then put pipe dope on top of them. No guarantees that it will hold for very long, or even at all, but it's worth a shot. 

Is this guy a friend of yours or something? I'd be pretty pissed if I had to tear my shower apart, because he screwed the pooch.


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## digitalknoll (Mar 29, 2010)

*no friend*

this guy actually had his apprentice do the slice and dice on me. i'm having my uncle over this week to take a look at the damage. he says the same thing, that this dude might have really  me over. i'm calling the pipe cutter tonight to let him know what his guy did, and see if we can get to a resolution. i just bought this house two weeks ago and it was in perfect working order. now i have some  nut ruin it.


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## Alan (Apr 12, 2006)

Did he slice through all of the threads or just a couple of them?

If there are still some good threads, you might be able to get it to seal...


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## plumberinlaw (Feb 22, 2010)

if all else fails, one time repair is JB weld next time your going to have to open the wall and replace all the bad parts


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## digitalknoll (Mar 29, 2010)

*sliced threads*

he got all of them, but only on the bottom of the fixture (6 o clock). It's a channel about a 1/16" wide on the bottom of the fixture. basically thats just what he did, saw slowly at the bottom until the old stuff was thin enough to get out. he just went too far into the good pipe. i'm thinking if i can find some kind of sealer that can fill that channel i should be alright.


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## plumberinlaw (Feb 22, 2010)

Hey! give it a try. Water only flows while you are showering it's not under pressure all the time. to bad they were to cheap to buy an internal pipe wrench


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## DangerMouse (Jul 17, 2008)

Being as it's at 6:00 plumberinlaw's idea of JB Weld (I'd use 5 minute quickset) seems to be worth a try. Mix the 2 parts and set down a GOOD SIZED blob along the broken/sawn area. Immediately screw in the new piece just till it starts to feel snug, wait 5 minutes and unscrew just a hair to keep it from sealing too hard, wait 5 more then gently unscrew it. The next day, repair with tape and/or dope as you normally would.

I've had good success with it, though not with plumbing. Isn't there a waterproof epoxy that would work better than JB? Marine epoxy?
All you need to do is fill in the groove, "remold/rethread", and make the tape set right again.

DM


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## Daniel Holzman (Mar 10, 2009)

I had a similar problem with a broken copper female fitting out of my boiler. Very difficult to rethread, I ended up using epoxy metal filler. The repair has lasted ten years without any trouble. I got the filler at a big box store, it was similar to Oatey epoxy putty except that it was specifically designed as a metal filler.


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## digitalknoll (Mar 29, 2010)

ok, so there is an actual metal filler. thats good to hear. this problem is in the master bath, but i have another that i am using in the mean time. so i actually have time to work this out and find the best method. i think i'm gonna look for the metal filler that daniel mentioned. thank you all so much for all the advice and help. its great to see that there are still people out there that have time to help. :thumbsup:

DK


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## DangerMouse (Jul 17, 2008)

JB Weld IS an epoxy metal filler. It's even slightly magnetic! I was simply concerned about it getting and staying wet. There's also gas tank leak epoxy filler (automotive store) that might work better in this case. 

DM


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## Alan (Apr 12, 2006)

The good news is that it will never be under much pressure at all. The end of the pipe is always wide open through the showerhead. :thumbsup:


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## DangerMouse (Jul 17, 2008)

.....and the bad news is....? (or doesn't he want to know? lol)

DM


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