removing limescale/gunk on brasswork in cold water tank

keystone

If OP hasn't got the confidence to do it themselves then of course they should get someone in to it. Why don't you just calm down and actually read what SCRGI is saying. Unless you have an agenda (the old boring rip-off tradesmen line) I can't really see why you are arguing.

To a lot of people, paying £50 - £80 to have a ballcock repaired/replaced when they can quite easily do it for themselves is just silly and not very MSE.

You are right in a way but repairing a badly scaled up ballvalve is utter nonsense. Its too much hassle, and too time consuming. Replacing it IS the only solution, it IS eminently DIYable and done and dusted in 15 minutes max. That is the correct advice to the OP outside the bickering and fluff.

Cheers

espresso

(Text removed by MSE Forum Team) If the OP has already bought a new valve, they obviously believe that they are capable of fitting it, even when a new washer may be all that is actually required. Yes they may need to buy another wrench but that is better than paying unnecessary labour charges - how much would that cost "in Surrey, within the M25"?

keystone wrote: »

You are right in a way but repairing a badly scaled up ballvalve is utter nonsense. Its too much hassle, and too time consuming. Replacing it IS the only solution, it IS eminently DIYable and done and dusted in 15 minutes max. That is the correct advice to the OP outside the bickering and fluff.

Cheers

Yes I agree that it's too much hassle for a tradesman but accumulated scale simply falls off when household lime scale remover is used. The OP should not be discouraged from doing this simple job themselves and saving a considerable amount of money which is why presumably they asked on here i.e. they have not decided that they can't do this simple job and need to call in a plumber.

southcoastrgi has incorrectly quoted PlutoinCapricorn stating "I am just not the right type of person to do that. I will definitely get a plumber in now" not the OP.

Obviously if the float has water in it then that can very easily be replaced and is not a good reason to fit a complete new valve, which only the OP has actually seen and knows the actual condition of.

southcoastrgi

espresso wrote: »

Yes I agree that it's too much hassle for a tradesman but accumulated scale simply falls off when household lime scale remover is used. The OP should not be discouraged from doing this simple job themselves and saving a considerable amount of money which is why presumably they asked on here i.e. they have not decided that they can't do this simple job and need to call in a plumber.

No one is dicouraging the OP from doing anything it is the OP that said they couldn't or didn't want to do it, why are you trying to put words into everyones mouths just because it doesn't fit your ideas, have you actually read anything on here at all ??

Oh yes that will work a sealed roof tank designed to contain cold water fit for washing your face & brushing your teeth & you want to fill it up with household lime scale removing chemicals OMG you really are more stupid that i thought, so now we have the 50p washer, £15 for a spanner, £3-50 for limescale remover, hours & hours of flushing to get rid of all the chemicals so you don't end up looking like a zombi & all your teeth fall out the first time you use the water from the tank, never mind the cost of the water if the OP is on a meter, but hold on i hear you say i would take out the ballvalve to clean it, so if you are taking it out then fit a new one & save all the above, plus limescale remover will rot the new washer you have just put in so back to square one !! but the most important point that you are missing & for some reason i cannot get it through to you is the OP isn't confident enough or has the correct tools to do it, plus he already has the new ballvalve !! sheeese you really just can't get through to some people.

espresso

southcoastrgi wrote: »

No one is dicouraging the OP from doing anything it is the OP that said they couldn't or didn't want to do it, why are you trying to put words into everyones mouths just because it doesn't fit your ideas, have you actually read anything on here at all ??

Where did they say that?

It is actually you who would benefit from going here

This is what the OP actually said earlier today (enlarged so that you don't miss it this time):

morg_monster wrote: »

Hiya
We need a new ball float/valve in our loft cold water tank as the overflow pipe drips whenever the tank is full. I bought the part from our local plumber's merchant over a year ago, thinking I might have a go at changing it myself.
I am regretting this as although the part was cheap, when I tried to fit it I realised we didnt' have a wrench/spanner big enough to fit around the nut so had to buy a new one... and probably I'll need a second wrench to give leverage... But anyway I have decided I will have one more try before I just call a plumber to do it. (This is when I really wish that my friends/family weren't all white collar jobs like accountants, web designers, lecturers, but something USEFUL like a plumber or mechanic...)
The next hurdle is that all the old brasswork is covered in hard limescale and other gunk which to me looks like it is going to make it be virtually impossible to turn the nuts... So what I'm asking is, can I clean this stuff off a bit without polluting our water?!
Oh and any other advice would also be happily received! (including how much you think a plumber would charge to do this in Surrey, within the M25...) (PS I do know where the stopcock is ;-)
Thank you!

You have made too many assumptions about the OP's problem and their abilities Keith. I can just imagine you, sucking though your teeth and telling a customer what needs to be done before you have actually seen the job.

I don't really know why you post on here, as you are obviously a money maker not a money saver, which is what this site is all about!

southcoastrgi

morg_monster wrote: »

Haha, I'm glad my posting helped someone!! Yes I really wish I'd just called a plumber when it first started dripping. Right now I have to go up into the loft a few times a week to unscrew the ball float a little, just to stop the drip becoming a constant trickle... Problem is it drips onto a flat roof - not such a worry in the summer when it evaporates quickly but I know we need to get it sorted before it gets too much cooler or we'll have a rotten roof to replace too.
I hadn't thought of using vinegar up there, might give it a go although only have malt ... being an avid chutney maker...

espresso wrote: »

Where did they say that?

It is actually you who would benefit from going here

This is what the OP actually said earlier today (enlarged so that you don't miss it this time): ditto



You have made too many assumptions about the OP's problem and their abilities Keith. I can just imagine you, sucking though your teeth and telling a customer what needs to be done before you have actually seen the job.

I don't really know why you post on here, as you are obviously a money maker not a money saver, which is what this site is all about!

Oooo Keith someone has been doing their homework, yes of course i have seen every one of the problems on here that i reply to, i am not assuming anything, the OP said they don't have the correct tools to do it (how many more times do i have to say it), i am replying as a time served plumbing & heating engineer who has been running my business for 30 years & have changed more ballvalves (yes ballvalves not ballcocks) than you have had coffee's, wether you diy a ballvalve or get a plumber to do it a roof tank ballvalve is better to be replaced & not re-washered especially one that has been dripping for a year.

once again how can i be a money maker i don't do any of the jobs that people ask about on here, i just along with some of the others on here try to give the best advice foc i might add, & in this case the best advice is to fit a new ballvalve, if the best advice was to spend time cleaning the old one & fitting a new washer then i would say so but it's not, the old one WILL be worn inside so it will have to be replaced anyway, so doing the job twice really isn't MSE is it.

southcoastrgi

espresso wrote: »

It is actually you who would benefit from going here

got that link bookmarked have you, because it's not me that needs it, maybe you should put yours on & read what myself, KS & the OP have written

espresso

southcoastrgi wrote: »

Oooo Keith someone has been doing their homework...............

Yes I remember your arrogance from your previous user ID, no homework required.

You seem to believe that the more times that you say that it need replacing, that it adds credibility to your posts but you have not actually seen it, so you simply don't know!

The OP posted that they wish that they had called a plumber "when it first started dripping" over a year ago, not today when they are asking for help not discouragement.

You get no BS from me & if i think you are wrong i WILL tell you

Well I think that you do post a lot of BS and are incapable of reasoned discussion.

I really do hope that your rantings have not put the OP off doing this job themselves and saving money.

keystone

with my comments but if the OP has already bought a new valve, they obviously believe that they are capable of fitting it, even when a new washer may be all that is actually required.

OK just once more. If the valve is badly scaled up then replacing the washer is totally uneconomic if you DIY. If the DIYer values their time at £10 per hour (just for the sake of argument) and it takes 2 hours (yes OK some will take less, a lot will take more) to remove the old one, take it apart, clean it up and replace it thats £20 in labour (washer is peanuts). New Part 2 valve costs iro £6 in B&Q (wash my mouth out for even mentioning them). If the DIYer takes a generous half an hour to remove and replace then they have spent maximum £11.00. QED.

Yes they may need to buy another wrench but that is better than paying unnecessary labour charges - how much would that cost "in Surrey, within the M25"?

Can you show me please where I have said anything else on this thread other than the job is easily DIYable?

Yes I agree that it's too much hassle for a tradesman but accumulated scale simply falls off when household lime scale remover is used.

On the outside yes - when the threads are totally gummed up with the stuff and it needs something akin to a half ounce of nitro to take the thing apart then no.

The OP should not be discouraged from doing this simple job themselves and saving a considerable amount of money which is why presumably they asked on here i.e. they have not decided that they can't do this simple job and need to call in a plumber.

I haven't and I won't. I've got more work downstream out of people that I have initially advised to do this sort of job themselves than I can shake a stick at. Existing customers who give me repeat biz would get it done for a few quid (nowhere near £80 which is what I think you suggested) but thats because they are good customers already. Its all about business strategy. In any event if the person on the end of this uncooperative piece of kit doesn't have the knowledge or the confidence to do it why should they be persuaded (bullied) into DIYing it? It may well be that the MSE way for them IS to call someone in despite what you might think.

Obviously if the float has water in it then that can very easily be replaced and is not a good reason to fit a complete new valve, which only the OP has actually seen and knows the actual condition of.

Agree if thats the case but where did the OP say that the float had water in it? You would normally reuse the existing float with just a failed valve anyway.

Cheers

morg_monster

Oh my god, what did I start?!!

Thank you for all the discussion it is actually useful! And don't worry about scaring me off I'm an MSE old hand. Oh and also female.

Although as I said I did want to try and fix it myself (I do like to try and DIY things a bit) I have never tinkered with plumbing before (only owned our own house for a few years and this is the first plumbing issue that's come up). Knowing me I will !!!!!! something up and end up having to call a plumber out anyway, and seeing as I only have time to do these things on the weekends, I guess that would be extra £ if it ended up being something urgent. I have read plenty of instructions online about doing what I want to do, but couldn't originally find any youtube videos which is my usual starting point (lots of "how to replace toilet ball float" but not tank)

Fouling up our water tank is what I'm very scared of so that's why I don't want to try any of the limescale products I have under the sink.

Yes the current ball *float* is plastic as is the replacement - just the float though, everything else is brass/metal. The float doesn't have water in it, it floats fine, but the bit that actually closes up the inlet is probably so scaled up it doesn't close properly (so yes the washer probably does need replacing). I tried bending the arm but had no success. By unscrewing the float a little it seems to push the arm up a bit higher and closes off the water flow a bit better. However it seems like the pressure of the water on the bottom of the float slowly makes it screw back up the thread and so the dripping gets worse after a few days.

Thanks for the idea of just replacing the washer - the video was useful to see how it all actually works, but I wish they had shown some closeups! As I said above I couldn't previously find any videos but there were some useful "related videos" from the one linked to so thank you. (like this one with good close up)

So thanks both of you (three of you? I kind of lost track...) You are like the different sides of my conscience! "You can do it yourself..." "Just get someone else to sort it...".

T_T_2

Come on now fellas, can we put the tape measures away for a minute?

I've seen enough threads where Southcoast and Keystone have demonstrated ways for members of the forum to solve their own problems to know that they aren't trying to trick the OP into using a plumber unnecessarily. The reality is, if you have limited experience, limited confidence, inadequate tools and potentially improper parts then you shouldn't be tackling the job yourself.

The OP has wisely assessed that a plumber is required in their own individual circumstances, why can't you Espresso?