Tools required for PVC pipe repair

Safety. Gloves and glasses	Gloves and eye protection are for your safety. Glues and primers are not the best for you. Check out the material safety data sheet for more specific info. Gloves also prevent you from cutting yourself while digging and working with the pipe. Dirt can easily be flicked up into your eyes when digging.
Hacksaw or PVC pipe cutters	When using a saw, remember to deburr. A PVC cutter is a better option and worth the investment when doing a large number of cuts.
PVC Cement with brush	Some of the smaller bottles don’t supply an applicating brush. So be prepared. Rather buy 2 smaller bottles than a large one. Fresh glue it best! Don’t use the fast drying glue unless you know what you’re doing as it can and often catch you out by drying too fast. Use gloves and eye protection when gluing.
PVC Primer with brush	Some of the smaller bottles don’t supply an applicating brush. So be prepared. Primer cleans and softens the pipe before gluing.Use gloves and eye protection when priming.
Rag(s)	To clean off excess water, glue, or dirt.
Sandpaper, file, or similar	To remove excessive burrs.
Assortment of pipe and fittings required	It’s worth buying more than you need and then take them back later if not used or keep for later use. Make sure to take the parts back clean and free from damage so that it can be resold.

Table 1. Tools required for PVC pipe repair

So you’ve got a broken pipe leaking water and want to fix the joint? In this tutorial, I’ll be covering a few technical aspects to help you complete this task. If for any reason you’re not able to do this task or I’ve misguided you in any way because of the directions I’ve provided feel free to contact me at the details at the end of the post.

Introduction

With PVC (the white plastic pipe) there are a few ways to fix it. We’ll just stick to the basics here with some technical help and the principles around PVC pipe repairs as there are many different scenarios you may come across. Repairing PVC pipe comes down to your imagination. Yes, there is a hack to this stuff too which I’m not going to cover for obvious reasons.

There are 2 methods I’ll mention here are. I also don’t recommend temporary repairs.

The uncommon quick connect fittings (I don’t know why it’s not more common because it’s so much better and easier) which requires no gluing.

And,

The very common glued method.

The first thing to do is dig out the area around the break. This needs to be about a hand gap all the way round to give you some room to work and for excess water to drain away. And yes, dig those plants and roots out that are obstructing you. At the end of the day, it comes down to having enough clearance to give your hands access and without getting dirt on the cleaned, primed or glued pipe.

Fig 2. Clearance for doing the work. There may be instances when the old joins are disrupted and can blow them apart. Be careful not to disturb them.

Try your best to prevent dirt from getting inside the pipe. It doesn’t matter if you do. You’ll be flushing the system out later anyway.

Next, work out what gear you’ll need to do the repair. See Table 1 where there is a basic list of things to consider. Take a photo of the area and show them to your parts supplier so they can help with a method for the repair.

If I could, I would highly recommend using proper irrigation or plumbing supply stores and not the “green giant” as many of the parts aren’t up to scratch and you’re wasting your money more often than you think. You can often buy the same parts that are much better quality for about the same price or often cheaper.

I would like to touch on other versions of PVC pipe repair here. I often get asked if these quick and temporary repair methods and products are worth using. In short yes and no. Let me explain.

There are a variety of products like different epoxies, silicone repair tapes, fibreglass repair tape etc. None of these are long term solutions. The problem I have with them is you still need to go and get the repair kits. Then, spend as much time as a proper repair doing a half arsed repair. And then, if you eventually do the repair, you would need to remove the product to have clean PVC and then start the process all over again.

So, no. I don’t recommend these types of repairs.

The last thing I’d like to say is there are people out there that will pick on everything anyone does. If this is you, the world isn’t perfect and neither are we. All I’m offering is the help and knowhow to do the best and easiest repairs with the least amount of fuss and yes it will often outlast your irrigation system or whatever you’re repairing. So, if you’d like to help then contact me and give me your 2 cents worth and I’ll add your way and details to this post to further help others.

Glues and Primers

To start, use a rag or two to clean up the excess glue, water, or dirt.

PVC primer. Always use primer for you newbies. I rarely use primer on new pipe but always use it on old pipe or on high stress areas like a snap-on-tee or curved pipe. The reason for using primer is that it softens the pipe and makes the parts bond much better to each other after being glued. Some say to use primer others say don’t bother. As I said, to do it well, use primer and wipe off excess glue.

Make sure your primer is compatible with the glue you’ll be using.

The one time I always use primer, whether new or old, is when I use Snap-On Tees. See Fig 3. The glue and primer need to be applied to both sides liberally. Once the glue has dried after assembly, (this depends on the brand and type used) a hole gets drilled to let water through. BE CAREFUL NOT TO DRILL THROUGH THE BOTTOM OF THE PIPE. You would have done all that work for nothing.

PVC cement. Don’t waste your time with thick or old jelly looking glue, as it’s past its use by date. Don’t be a tight arse and get yourself a new can. It’s not worth the frustration when it blows apart.

There are a few types and brands out there. From the colour to the speed that it dries at. I generally stick to a brand called “Christy’s” as in Fig 4. My opinion is that Christy’s brand does a good job of bonding to the PVC and I have had no trouble with it to date. Saying this, all the other cheaper brands work well as long as you follow the directions and use fresh glue and primer. Hence buying the smaller bottles for the work being done.

Cutting the PVC

PVC Pipe cutter or hacksaw. You can use anything to cut the pipe and deburr the burrs. As a guide, use fine tooth devices, like a metal hacksaw to reduce the saw from getting snagged. See Fig 5 and 6 below.

Be careful not to crack the pipe when cutting. This often happens if too much pressure is applied during the cut. Let the cutter do the work. Remember, less is more.

Fittings.

There are a vast number of replacement fittings depending on where your break is and how much room you have. There are some shops that only carry the bare basics and require you to use your imagination quite creatively. Just remember if the shop doesn’t have the type of fitting you require have them order it in. You will often be able to get away with fittings they have in stock to get the job done. The suppliers can help with that.

There are too many types of fitting to list here. You can get everything from tees, elbows, coupling, joiners, adaptors, male, female, PVC, poly, threaded, or glued and in almost any combination.

When assembling the parts remember to do a test run so that you know what to do and in what order.

Bad practices – I often come across repairs that have been heated to remove/loosen the glue. I disagree with this practice as there can be some ramifications to this. The issue is if you have a blowout in the future this can cost you a small fortune in your next water bill. I personally have never done this. I have always been able to do the connection properly even when it’s been very tight in places.

Below are some parts used to make your jobs easier. This is especially handy when working around roots and tight spaces.

Fig 7. Slipfix coupling. This coupling expands and retracts into place. So, no need to dig out a massive trench to flex the pipe.

Fig 8. Snap-on fitting. This goes over the pipe you have to add to. If you need to modify the system in any way this is a great fitting to know about. Remember to follow the manufacturer’s directions.

Fig 9. Dura coupling. A fantastic bit of kit that’s flexible and is a great way to repair a pipe that has been distorted in any way, like around tree roots. Or even if you have a funky angle to work with. At the time of writing it has a 10 year guarantee.

The quick connect method

Click here to view the PDF catalog

Safety

Use gloves and keep your fingers out from inside the holes as these couplings have razor sharp blades to stop them from separating. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Use gloves and glasses to prevent glue and primer from getting on your hands and in your eyes. It’s nasty stuff!

I would suggest the Hyflex gloves, made by Ansell with a cut rating of about 3 or higher. See Fig 12 and 13.

Step 1

Have a plan and set all your equipment out ready and in arms reach of the pipe. Your plan may often consist of using slip joints. These joints expand in and out to make it easy to connect as mentioned before. Remember to measure the cut so that the fitting expands close to its max length when fitted. See Fig 7.

Go through the motions of assembly to make sure you have the procedure down pat. Another thing to check is the angle of the fittings in relation to each other.

Step 2

As you have done before, have the area to be worked on clear of dirt and roots as mentioned above. See Fig 2. Now cut away the damaged fittings and pipe to expose the area that you’re going to work in.

This method always recommends deburring the cut ends. Otherwise, the seal inside the connector can be damaged or deformed and won’t seal correctly. Tests have been done with all sorts of burrs, conditions and damage using these fittings. I have never seen them fail except on extreme angles.

Step 3

The great thing about this product is, that it doesn’t need to have dry parts as with the gluing method. Remember it is our recommendation that because it has a seal, it needs to be reasonably clean and free of major scratches to seal well. The seal is limited to how much it can seal so its worth keeping the connection free from dirt, damage, sharp edges and severe angles.

These couplings have a high degree of tolerance and don’t need to be perfectly in line with the join either as in Fig 11.

Please ignore all the other issues in this image below as I’ll mention them another time. The below image shows a misaligned pipe that can easily be joined with the quick connect method. Sometimes this amount of misalignment can break glued joints over time especially if there is movement in the connections.

Remember to deburr the cut ends before the fittings are assembled!

Step 4

Slip the fittings together and take care gently pushing them together. You will feel a bit of pressure halfway in as the pipe hits the seal. You’ll need to gently manipulate the join to slip further to a dead stop.

This connection method allows you to manipulate the joins to whatever angle you would like as the coupling is able to rotate without the risk of pulling apart.

Step 5

Once you’re done connecting you can now run, flush and test your system at full pressure without delay.

And you’re done! Easy as that.

The Glued Method

Safety first as always,

Fig 12. These are brilliant gloves made by Ansell. There are many different types for all sorts of uses.

Fig 13. Safety glasses. Use them! you only have 2 eyes and they’re fragile. Look after them. Image supplied by RSEA safety.

Use gloves and glasses to prevent glue and primer from getting on your hands and in your eyes. It’s nasty stuff!

Step 1

Have a plan and set all your equipment out ready and in arms reach of the pipe being glued. Your plan might consist of gluing one end in first, then the other end. Your plan may also use slipfix joins. These joins expand in and out to make it easy to connect. Remember to measure your cuts so that the coupling expands close to it’s max length when fitted. See Fig 7.

Go through the motions of assembly to make sure you have the procedure down pat. Another thing to check is the angle of the fittings in relation to each other. Remember, once you glue you cant unglue easily.

Or you may want to glue both ends and fit in one motion.

REMEMBER TO GO THROUGH THE MOTIONS BEFORE GLUEING!

This all depends on the pipe being repaired and how its set out.

Step 2

Cutaway the damaged fittings/pipe. Remember to have the area clear as before in the previous method.

Step 3

Dry and wipe any dirt away.

Deburr the burrs.

Prime the pipe where it will be glued and always wait for the primer to dry before gluing. This includes water that may be dribbling out. Get rid of as much as possible. A little is okay.

Step 4

Fig 14. This is one of the more complicated jobs I’ve done. There’s a lot going on here. Remember to try make sence of your pipe. What line supplies water? Where does it supply too and in which direction the water is traveling. What is the orientation of the pipe as in the image above as it shows many combinations.

Before gluing, have your fittings orientated the right way. Also, make sure to keep your parts either parallel or perpendicular to each other. There may be times when this doesn’t work as in Fig 14. Glue doesn’t have a huge tolerance for joins that aren’t straight and parallel to each other. See Fig 11.

Another thing to check before gluing is the directions of the up and downstream fittings. Are they pointing in the direction they should be? Eg, If you had a Tee to glue in place, is it pointing horizontal or vertical?

Step 5

Once the primer has dried, glue both the internals and externals of the parts. The internals get glued first. There is no need to smother the fittings in glue. Just enough to cover the contacting surfaces liberally.

Try not to get dirt on the glue!

And don’t wait! GET A MOVE ONE HERE!

Now push your parts together and hold them for about 15 seconds with a small twist when sliding together. Not too much of a twist though. About 1/8th of a turn is plenty. There are times when you aren’t able to twist the join like with a plumbers U. Just hold the the join in place for a bit longer and make sure the other joins are supported to prevent movement and breaking the new glue as it hasn’t cured.

After waiting for about 15 seconds, let go and wipe off the excess glue as this will keep softening the pipe and create a weak point.

This next step is crucial!

Don’t disturb the glue!

Wait for some time (this depends on the manufacturer) for the glue to cure. This can range from 30min to 24hrs. With the Cristy’s brand of glue I often prime, glue and test within 10 minutes of gluing. Over time I’ve learned when I can get away with it and when I can’t. In your case – always read and follow the manufacturer’s recommendations/instructions.

Step 6

Once you have waited for the glue to cure enough you can flush and test the system. The wait will vary depending on the fitting type, setup and glue used. As a general rule of thumb, wait for about 30 minutes. If you have a U shaped connection or a critical join wait for a few hours before testing it. See Fig 15.

Fig 15. A “U” shape connection like this one has the potential to push itself apart. This is a classic case of when to use fresh glue, primer and a good brand like Christy’s cement. The blue glue is only rated for low pressure situation like drainage areas. Not in this situation.

Run the system for a few minutes to build up the water pressure fully and check the full lineup.

This completes connecting PVC pipe tutorial for newbies!

You are now a fully qualified PVC pipe fixer.

Contact us here if you have any questions.

If you find you need help or the process explained is inadequate.

Feel free to contact Lime Gardens on,

Email – info@limegardens.com.au

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