repairing lead pipes!!

[fronnie]

Hello all
was called out today to a leak in shop coming from upstairs flats, after a lot of messign about found it on the rising main, which is a lead pipe. It was a pinprick of an hole which was sending a fine mist all over the place.
Anyway as ive never ,believe it or not in a few years of plumbing , come across any work with lead pipe how do i effect a permanent repair.
I made a temp repair using plumbers mait emergency repair putty as it was the only thing i could get due to location of pipe. I have advised customer that it needs replacing with copper.
so i have a few questions please
1. whose responsibilty is it to replace the lead pipe, it is lead even from the supply in the street?
2. the stopcock is seized solid so water could not be isolated, and couldnt find the one in the street. Any one know of any secrets to permantly repairing this or any lead pipe leak please.
3. finally does anyone have any tips on fixing thus plumbers mate leak repair to pipes as i find it a pain in the a??e lol

 

[breezer]

.
3. finally does anyone have any tips on fixing thus plumbers mate leak repair to pipes as i find it a pain in the a??e lol

i didn't think it was meant to seal THAT hole

 

[PEDANTICVINDICTIVEMAN]

You will need to get the local water authority to earn their money and find and or fit a new stop tap at the boundary, or freeze the main where it comes in, use a brass lead loc (lead to copper coupling) connecter from your local merchants, fit a new internal stop tap/drain tap replace old lead at your convenience.
I have never use plumbers mate bodgey stuff.

 

[kevplumb]

1 bray it flat
2 freeze it
3led loc both sides
4 put a bit of copper in between said fittings
5 make joints off
6 go and get p*&****d

 

[fronnie]

only used it as a temp repair as a lot of water was coming through shop roof, and due to location of pipe was only "emergency repair" stuff that i could use. and due to time of day couldnt get to a merchants for owt else.

 

[kevplumb]

hello ped

 

[fronnie]

wheres ped!!

 

[kevplumb]

offline for a week (sigh of reelefe)

 

[ChrisR]

The water supplier apparently has no responsibility for isolating the supply to your property. I have been told that in North London they are tipping concrete down the holes in the pavement. They found it too much trouble to free the things and get access, so that's their solution.

If you take som e of the pressure off the pipe by opening the cold tap, you could try tapping the surface of the pipe where the hole is. Not hard, just enough to dent the surface, but tap it 20-30 times.

Whether that works or not, you can but clamps that go round pipes, or rather each side of a pipe, which will hold some suitable goo in place. I have used bandage and LSX, then the clamp, tap on for 10 minutes while it sets a bit.

Technically you aren't allowed to use heat to mend a lead pipe, and if you say , put a piece ofcopper in with lead locs, you're supposed to replace all the lead from there downstream to the taps. You won't be able to put a lead/solder patch over it while it has water in anyway. If you patch it to stop the flow, and freeze upstream, you could then put a lead-loc/line in though.

Doing a solder repair is easy with the right materials, once you realise how it works. At first attempt you'll probably just make a big hole in the pipe.