DIY plumbing w/ light documentation performed on the 8th day of January 2017 by yours truly :)
The Master Shower is online again after giving us quite a scare during the rapid pipe shearing thread failure event that sent hardware and hot water everywhere, down the walls, into the kitchen below, even across and through the recessed electric lighting sockets. Fortunately the damage was minimal. A 95 Tungsten lamp heater is being used to provide water evaporation heating to the localized zone of water exposure where the shower water most adversely impacted. Heating to maintain for 300 hours continuously to achieve substantial heat assisted dehydration of the latent materials surfaces and structural elements, limiting the potentials for the formation of mold, dry rot, etc.
Failure Analysis
The history of a small drywall problem in the kitchen can be sourced to a slow progressive corrosion failure in the OEM shower arm bracket thread, allowing water to drip slowly when the master shower was operating. The sporadic nature of showers taken made this association hard to identify. I had incorrectly predicted that it was a drain problem previously, but found no evidence to support this claim. The OEM Shower arm was the culprit. Its catastrophic instant failure was the end of a slow progressive breakdown that started with poor manufacturing techniques with low QA QC performance, and likely a combination of over-tightening during the original installation, stressing the poorly manufactured arm threads. Analysis points to the conclusion that OEM installer used too much force when tightening the original shower arm. The OEM shower arm had a manufacturing defect where the thread profile produced unusually thin wall segments in the arms tube structure profile, making for a thread that can "peel" off easily. A small crack from mechanical loading of the arm by shower accessories over time produced a corrosion gap where water slowly reacted with the plated metals in an electrogalvanic ion disassociation oxide corrosion, evidence by green copper oxide present in the OEM failed article thread failure separation boundary. Tearing of the metal alloy reveals a high copper content metal with poor tensile strength and mediocre corrosion resistance. A pure nickel arm would be cool, as would one made of titanium ^^ For now our replacement arm is made of brushed nickel over stainless, electrolytic or electroless ??
Brushed Nickel, Teflon Tape, Blue Painters Tape, 1/2" Easy Out Tool. New Brushed Nickel Pipe Bracket Mounted with Installation " via Pipe & Crescent
 |
Removed Busted Old L Tube with Thread Piece Separated
The Extractor Tool with my Forged Steel Crescent Wrenches |
 |
| Female Pipe Threads Exposed by Extraction |
 |
| Ready for new Hardware |
 |
A Pipe Wrench, Teflon Tape, Blue Painters Tape
& Brushed Nickel "Shower Arm" L Bracket Pipe |
 |
| Wrap teflon tape onto the pipe threads for water sealing |
 |
| Snug in, Teflon the "Head" end connection |
 |
| Apply high end brushed nickel bracket |
 |
The Chrome Handle & Tube were chosen for Meg's Nickel
Allergy : The Chrome Parts were cheaper too ^^ |
This was an alternative to using an epoxy tube insertion repair, like would be done in space station keeping space satellite repair EV procedure. Proven classical plumbing technique utilized with lower toxicity, greater install speed performance, simplicity, proven methodology via a consultation with an expert at McClendon's Hardware in Renton Wa!
No comments:
Post a Comment