Leaking cylinder

[phil100uk]

Hi all this is my first post so please be gentle with me .

I am a keen diy'er and i can do most jobs around the house with good results ,however i have got a plumbing problem that is reocerring .
A few weeks ago i was removing some stud partioning in the bathroom cupboard where the hot water cylinder is and a lenth of wood with a nail in fell onto the cylinder and went through the cylinder skin causing a major leak , i drained the water out and cleaned the area around the hole and then used flux and pipe solder to try to repair the hole , all has been ok for about 2 weeks but today i noticed a small stream of water coming from the repaired area so i am worried that the repair i made is not going to hold even if i try to do it again , i am pretty good at doing soldered joints as i have fitted new pipes in the past with no problems so i was wondering if i am doing something wrong or is it not possible to repair a cylinder this way because of the pressure inside of it , i would like to repair it if possible rather than replace it because it is quite a large one and there would be quite a lot of work and expense to do this , any help would be much appreciated .

 

[seco services]

solder a copper plate over the hole. cut from an old cylinder

 

[Whitespirit66]

If soldering is proving troublesome, why not fit an Essex flange and just block off the flange's outlet.

These flanges can be fitted without access being needed to the inside of the cylinder. I have used this method with no problems on several occasions.

They are available cheaply here, described as 'cylinder flanges' http://www.bes.co.uk/products/103.asp

A 15mm one will do.

 

[TicklyT]

A bit cut from a dog end of copper pipe and opened out flat will do for a patch
Anneal the patch by heating to red heat and quench in water to get the scale off, and it should be quite malleable.

Or solder a copper penny over the hole.

Before soldering, check your penny with a magnet. Older ones were a cuprous alloy, later ones are copper plated steel, so the solder might not take so readily.

I would drain the water level down to well below the repair to get a better chance of heating the job evenly.

Tin both the patch or penny and around the hole before sweating the patch on.

Traditional plumbers' solder or body solder (originally used for filling seams in car bodywork) would be easier to work as it stays plastic enough to push around to the right places or 'wipe' before it hardens as it cools.
Better not mention the lead content though.