Do I need a professional plumber?

[OneMoreFarang]

My experience with Thai technicians is mixed. In my experience very few are good, some are good enough to do the job, and many are just useless.

 

I have to do a few simple freshwater and drain connections in my kitchen.

In general I am pretty good with DIY, but I never did plumbing work. I looked at a couple of videos on YouTube. One explains how to use Teflon tape. 

If you are a plumber or if you did already some work like that, is it as easy as it looks like? Or does it look easy but somehow it actually is a lot more complicated than it looks?

 

Obviously I know how to and where to close the water valves. And after the job I would open the valves slowly to make sure there is no leak.

Is that good enough? 

Would you do a couple of pipe connections yourself or would you hire a professional and hope he does a professional job?

 

It's just a few connections, all in all less than an hour work.

 

This is just one of the videos which I watched to make sure I do it right - in case that I do it myself.

 

 

 

Edited September 15, 2023 by OneMoreFarang

[transam]

2 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

My experience with Thai technicians is mixed. In my experience very few are good, some are good enough to do the job, and many are just useless.

 

I have to do a few simple freshwater and drain connections in my kitchen.

In general I am pretty good with DIY, but I never did plumbing work. I looked at a couple of videos on YouTube. One explains how to use Teflon tape. 

If you are a plumber or if you did already some work like that, is it as easy as it looks like? Or does it look easy but somehow it actually is a lot more complicated then it is?

 

Obviously I know how to and where to close the water valves. And after the job I would open the valves slowly to make sure there is no leak.

Is that good enough? 

Would you do a couple of pipe connections yourself or would you hire a professional and hope he does a professional job?

 

It's just a few connections, all in all less than an hour work.

 

This is just one of the videos which I watched to make sure I do it right - in case that I do it myself.

 

 

 

If you are using PTFE tape, be sure to use it going in the right direction, roll the tape on with the finishing tail pointing in the direction of the fittings screw on direction...

Don't use PTFE where the seal is a rubber washer of some sort.

[OneMoreFarang]

1 minute ago, transam said:

If you are using PTFE tape, be sure to use it going in the right direction, roll the tape on with the finishing tail pointing in the direction of the fittings screw on direction...

Don't use PTFE where the seal is a rubber washer of some sort.

Thanks, I appreciate your reply.

And the good news is that I knew these two facts already - see above YouTube video. 

[BritManToo]

Glue joints are very easy, wipe with tissue before gluing.

Screw threads rarely need tape, usually you just hand tighten them.

 

Kitchen sink drain blocked today, no way to clear it, steel snake just broke.

Spent the afternoon hammering through the wall, Thai plumbing, in the wall with 90degree bends ......grrrrrrr!

Torrential rain stops play, but tomorrow my kitchen drain goes on the outside of the wall.

Edited September 15, 2023 by BritManToo

[jvs]

OnemoreFarang,just go for it.It is not difficult and easy to do,learn as you go.

No need for a professional of some sorts.

If it still leaks you just do it again.

[transam]

5 minutes ago, jvs said:

OnemoreFarang,just go for it.It is not difficult and easy to do,learn as you go.

No need for a professional of some sorts.

If it still leaks you just do it again.

The problem with a condo is if you have a leak, and it leaks whilst you are in the land of nod, those living below may not be very happy.....????

[rumak]

buy the best tape ( instead of save 20 baht) .........  don't overtighten 

 

if pvc connecting to metal pipe...... use the pvc with copper inside 

[transam]

48 minutes ago, rumak said:

buy the best tape ( instead of save 20 baht) .........  don't overtighten 

 

if pvc connecting to metal pipe...... use the pvc with copper inside 

I had one of those leak around the outside of the brass........????

 

The threaded PVC is OK if you do not overtighten, and use plenty of tape....

[Mark Nothing]

The waterpipes in my toilet ceiling from the condo above were leaking drip by drip and took months to resolve by plumbers.  Maybe five housecalls.

 

When it was finally "fixed", I painted the blackened water stained ceiling.  Which led to the water leaking again.  So to prevent the newly painted ceiling from turning black, I used a roll of clear packing tape and wrapped around the waterpipes many times.  It has held for 6 years, and counting.  Ceiling still white.  No drips.

 

The quality of the workmanship is so low now that I do everything myself.

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, BritManToo said:

Screw threads rarely need tape, usually you just hand tighten them.

If you use a single or double wrap of PTFE it lubricates the joint doing nothing to fill it but making tightening easy.

[transam]

4 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

If you use a single or double wrap of PTFE it lubricates the joint doing nothing to fill it but making tightening easy.

PTFE tape is a sealer and filler, they even make it for gas fittings......

[OneMoreFarang]

2 hours ago, transam said:

The problem with a condo is if you have a leak, and it leaks whilst you are in the land of nod, those living below may not be very happy.....????

Yes, that is a good point. This is why I will make sure that I am there for a few hours after I worked on it.

[sometimewoodworker]

2 hours ago, transam said:

PTFE tape is a sealer and filler, they even make it for gas fittings......

It certainly is if you use enough of it. It is also a really good lubricant where you use hardly any.

[bbko]

18 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

It certainly is if you use enough of it. It is also a really good lubricant where you use hardly any.

Just out of curiosity, why would someone need a lubricant when joining pvc? Or are there other uses besides pvc?

[brianthainess]

22 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Screw threads rarely need tape, usually you just hand tighten them.

Sorry I have to disagree with you, I always use tape on screwed threads, even tapered ones. Some pump pressures are very high.

[sometimewoodworker]

15 hours ago, bbko said:

Just out of curiosity, why would someone need a lubricant when joining pvc? Or are there other uses besides pvc?

When using a screw thread fitting (specially with plumbing where tolerances are so variable) a lubricant is often useful, and yes PTFE is used with other materials 

[TimeMachine]

The world wide rule still stands. If you want it done right, do it yourself. YouTube shows you how to do everything except brain surgery and how to please a women these days.

I found that my own paranoia stopped me from doing things. If you have standard reasoning and physical ability learning and doing it yourself is best option. Go through the vids and I can't stress enough, buy the right quality proven tools. 

[phetphet]

Don't totally rely on PTFE tape. There are often joints that just won't seal using it.. 

 

Buy some pipe jointing compound as well. Rectoseal from Lazada is what I used.

The one thing I couldn't find here was a hank of fibre (used to use horse hair in the old days) to replace the PTFE tape.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 9/15/2023 at 11:04 PM, OneMoreFarang said:

My experience with Thai technicians is mixed. In my experience very few are good, some are good enough to do the job, and many are just useless.

 

I have to do a few simple freshwater and drain connections in my kitchen.

In general I am pretty good with DIY, but I never did plumbing work. I looked at a couple of videos on YouTube. One explains how to use Teflon tape. 

If you are a plumber or if you did already some work like that, is it as easy as it looks like? Or does it look easy but somehow it actually is a lot more complicated than it looks?

 

Obviously I know how to and where to close the water valves. And after the job I would open the valves slowly to make sure there is no leak.

Is that good enough? 

Would you do a couple of pipe connections yourself or would you hire a professional and hope he does a professional job?

 

It's just a few connections, all in all less than an hour work.

 

This is just one of the videos which I watched to make sure I do it right - in case that I do it myself.

 

 

 

If you can do DIY you can do household plumbing. I did it for a few houses belonging to the family.

 

My experience of Thai workmen is that I had to redo everything they did anyway.

 

My BIL built an outdoor bathroom and the basin outflow didn't work, so I dug it up and found that it ended in the ground, with no way for water to drain away.

He also forgot to provide a water supply for the shower, basin and toilet, so I had to drill holes in the wall and replace the tiles.

He also omitted to provide a wire for an inside light, which was also omitted, but that's a different topic.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 9/15/2023 at 11:14 PM, BritManToo said:

Glue joints are very easy, wipe with tissue before gluing.

He's probably referring to the threaded connectors for the taps. You'd have to be mad to glue taps.

 

 

[thaibeachlovers]

On 9/16/2023 at 12:15 AM, transam said:

I had one of those leak around the outside of the brass........????

 

The threaded PVC is OK if you do not overtighten, and use plenty of tape....

Agree, No need to use metal connectors. Just plastic and glue.

[thaibeachlovers]

1 hour ago, phetphet said:

Don't totally rely on PTFE tape. There are often joints that just won't seal using it.. 

 

Buy some pipe jointing compound as well. Rectoseal from Lazada is what I used.

The one thing I couldn't find here was a hank of fibre (used to use horse hair in the old days) to replace the PTFE tape.

If referring to plumber's hemp, you be lucky to find that anywhere now IMO.

I have a jar full, but I got it in the 80s. Thread tape is usually good enough though.

Edited September 17, 2023 by thaibeachlovers

[rgrdns]

Hi,

My experience...I've seen enough from the so-called professionals still need to meet one, you better off do it yourself, plumbing is so simple here certainly the tasks you're up to.

Regards 

[roo860]

On 9/15/2023 at 9:21 PM, OneMoreFarang said:

Yes, that is a good point. This is why I will make sure that I am there for a few hours after I worked on it.

Just out of curiosity do have have any insurance for your room? Incase there's a problem with water from your room damaging the condo below you?

[OneMoreFarang]

2 hours ago, TimeMachine said:

buy the right quality proven tools

I don't think there was any technician at my home who wouldn't love to have my tools.

 

Until now I don't have all of them, but I am working on it. ???? 

 

[OneMoreFarang]

1 hour ago, thaibeachlovers said:

If you can do DIY you can do household plumbing. I did it for a few houses belonging to the family.

 

My experience of Thai workmen is that I had to redo everything they did anyway.

 

My BIL built an outdoor bathroom and the basin outflow didn't work, so I dug it up and found that it ended in the ground, with no way for water to drain away.

He also forgot to provide a water supply for the shower, basin and toilet, so I had to drill holes in the wall and replace the tiles.

He also omitted to provide a wire for an inside light, which was also omitted, but that's a different topic.

And did he "think" he will get away with all that?

Kitchen Hoods without exhaust hose seems to be also common in Thailand. 

[OneMoreFarang]

39 minutes ago, roo860 said:

Just out of curiosity do have have any insurance for your room? Incase there's a problem with water from your room damaging the condo below you?

Unitl now I don't have it. When I bought my condominium I asked an insurance broker and he recommended I should wait until I move in.

But this situation inspired me that maybe I should get an insurance now. 

[rgrdns]

6 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Unitl now I don't have it. When I bought my condominium I asked an insurance broker and he recommended I should wait until I move in.

But this situation inspired me that maybe I should get an insurance now. 

Hi,

It's mandatory in Thailand to have a "building insurance" for condominiums, ask the building management what exactly their insurance covers besides the building structure or common area's.

If you are planning to buy insurance, read their policy very thoroughly e.g. what exactly it covers...it's interesting expierence I can tell you.

[BritManToo]

2 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

He's probably referring to the threaded connectors for the taps. You'd have to be mad to glue taps.

 

 

Glue joints are for plastic pipes!

 

This mornings effort, the Thai plumbers put 7x 90 degree joints in this 1m length of pipe (in the walls). Impossible to get a steel snake down to clear, so I had to dig through the wall, then dig out the slab floor. Managed to do the job cutting out all their joints, and with 3 joints creating a washing machine drain point at the same time.

 

Just finished gluing the joints 5 mins back, will fill the wall and slab another day, tired now. Next time the kitchen sink drain blocks up the steel snake only needs to go round 1x 90 degree bend.

 

It didn't help having 3 days of torrential rain, forcing me to block up the hole in the wall and bring my tools in.

Edited September 17, 2023 by BritManToo

[TimeMachine]

16 minutes ago, rgrdns said:

Hi,

It's mandatory in Thailand to have a "building insurance" for condominiums, ask the building management what exactly their insurance covers besides the building structure or common area's.

If you are planning to buy insurance, read their policy very thoroughly e.g. what exactly it covers...it's interesting expierence I can tell you.

My condo supposedly had insurance for rooms. But when the electric supply room burnt we had to all pay .