Plumbing
Plumbing fittings for the bathroom, the new stress therapy
If you are new to plumbing, have been baffled by the array of plumbing fittings and components at your local hardware store and have concerns about tackling those mysterious tubes that carry water then take heart. With a few basic precautions, plumbing is a very safe and satisfying job to tackle.
Before starting any work on the plumbing system, the first thing to do is work out how to turn off your water supply. If you are planning to change your heating system in the bathroom, learn a bit about how it works as you may have to drain down the system to allow you to open up plumbing fittings.Don’t worry about those hundreds of plumbing fittings hanging on racks at your DIY store. Basically there are two categories; (1) fittings for water supply to your bath, shower, WC and wash hand basin and (2) fittings for the drains to take waste water away.Depending on the country you live in and the age of your property, you may find the pipes and fittings come in a variety of materials. Newer properties will have plastic fittings for water supply and drainage. Older properties will have a mixture of cast iron, steel, copper and plastic plumbing fittings.The new plastic plumbing fittings are, by far the easiest to work with. The pipes, connectors, bends and tees can be push-fit together. If your property uses older style iron or copper fittings for the plumbing water supply, you can buy adapters and use the easier plastic fittings for your additions.If you are up for a challenge, however, soldered copper fittings used with copper pipe give a really neat and professional finish. To work with copper plumbing fittings you need a fair range of tools including a blowtorch, flux, wire wool, a heat mat, a hacksaw, files and emery paper. You can also utilize compression fittings for copper plumbing with fewer tools but a water-tight fit requires careful application of sealing products.As with any small project, make sure you plan out your changes carefully. Always do a trial assembly of your plumbing components before you do the final fix, especially when you are working with soldered joints. Working with pipe-work can be a very calming activity and is great therapy especially when you turn on the water and it all works.