Hepworth or not?

[ngrayson]

Forgive me if I break any rules but this is my first posting. I have searched for what I need but cant find anything so here goes.

So here is my problem. The stop cock no longer turns off the water even though its turning OK (and does reduce flow marginally) so I suspect the washer. I can turn it off in the street so Plan A is to do that and then take apart the stop cock and replace the washer. I know it probably wont come apart easily which is why I need plan B which is change the stop cock.

The house has a mixture of copper and plastic plumbing and some one has butchered it. The stop cock is copper one side into the system but the feed in is on a grey plastic pipe with a straight coupling to a short piece of copper on the stop cock.

This fitting is marked HBP 22 which I suspect is hepworth unless someone knows better and also that its not reusable but can be carefully removed?

So with pipe and fittings of that genre if I replace it with a modern Hepworth coupler (this is the mains feed in), what sort of pipe insert will fit this older pipe. Most importantly, is this a bad idea.

Either way I have to do something and am open to suggestions.

 

[glasgowgas]

irrespective of what the pipe material is, its a 22mm incoming water main.

isolate water from the street toby

either replace washer in faulty stopcock

or replace stopcock with a new 22mm one

 

[Biggles..]

why not just replace the gubbins,leave stop cock body in place and fit new internals.

 

[ngrayson]

Guys, thanks for the suggestions. If all goes to plan, then its stop cock apart, new washer and job done.

I'm someone who like to anticipate how to resolve it if it goes wrong and that includes changeing the stop cock. The issue is though that the feed is plastic and converts to copper about 1 inch from the old stop cock into which it is soldered.

If it comes to replacement, given that I dont know what style the HBP 22 is, I have to assumme that I need to cut back and so need to join to the older plastic pipe.

I've done plenty of pluming, soldered, compression and JG speedfit so am confident once I know what he old pipe is. Suspect its hepworth and was hoping someone might know.

 

[glasgowgas]

View media item 11886
ok then

a wee bit more info is required

is your stopcock compression or soldered?

 

[ngrayson]

Soldered one end to only 1 inch of copper before the joint to the plastic.

 

[glasgowgas]

Soldered one end to only 1 inch of copper before the joint to the plastic.

and what is the joint to plastic?

compression or pushfit?

 

[ngrayson]

Its a pushfit straight coupler looks like a hepworth slimline. Its marked HBP 22 but I cant find anything that matches that as a part number in the net to know for sure.

I have plenty of compression, solder and pushfit and copper and 22mm plastic pipe and can make good the top side. I have even bought a 22mm replacement stop cock just in case.

As I said, its the hotch potch one the feed side that bothers me as I dont know for certain the pipe make and subsequently what buy just in case I do need it.

I guess as you indictae a picture would help. I'll try to do so tomorrow.

Thanks for persevering.

 

[glasgowgas]

if its a hep straight, buy another hep straight (£2 ish) stopcock and a bit of 22mm

split the old hep pushfit,copper,stopcock

and replace with half the new pushfit, bit of 22mm and new stopcock

 

[ngrayson]

OK, many thanks. One last question.

Since I wont know until I have the job apart whether or not the pipe needs and insert. Do they, its not the newer type of hep, its been on there for at least 10 years.

 

[glasgowgas]

OK, many thanks. One last question.

Since I wont know until I have the job apart whether or not the pipe needs and insert. Do they, its not the newer type of hep, its been on there for at least 10 years.

the pushfit can be split in half / removed with the removal tool

this leaves an incoming water main ( isolated at the street ) with the pushfit coupling, bit of 22mm and stopcock removed,leaving HBP 22MM pipe.

if there is an insert in the pipe, just connect onto this

if no insert, put one in, and connect onto this.

 

[ngrayson]

To all those who commented a big thank you. It helped to clarify my thinking.

In the end, as I expected, the stop cock could not be undone. When I started the removal process, the solder (from the original installation) had run down all of the pipes so in the end, I had to remove the stop cock and those pipes it feeds.

I was able to get a hepwoth insert for the pipe in in the end I used my JG cutter to cut just below the Hep fitting. A bit of pipe bending a few compression joins and most importantly a JG pushfit couple on the hep pipe to the copper on the new stop cock ( I nearly went compression onto it which is allowed according to hep) and Job done. Took longer than I though.

Even with the old stopcock and its pipes held in a vice, we still could not undo it so I was on a hiding to nothing. Mind it is about 40 years old.

Anyway, thanks again guys its nice to know that people you dont know are prepared to help. Now, I'm off to crack a bottle of Blacksheep rigwelter and if I could attach one to this for you I would.


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