Ask Me Help Desk - Cracked sewer line

A few days ago Milo was INCREDIBLY helpful and told me how to make a the sewer line repair in my 80+ year old house. Rain put my project on hold but now I'm back at it and have another question.. . I'm in the middle of this project and I'm unsure what to do. I have dug out the pipe as far as possible without removing a stone wall, my parking pad and circle driveway (not an option at this point) The entire pipe that I have exposed is iron. I believe the pipe is iron all the way to the street because I found an iron clean out buried near the road.

Once the pipe exits the house and I have just over 5 foot fully exposed. The section that goes through the brick wall into the basement extends about 18" outside before there is a joint. The next section is about 3' and there is a joint with an elbow. I can't dig beyond the elbow, so that would mean I would be cutting the pipe before the elbow joint leaving adequate length to attach the coupling. My question is this: Both sections of pipe have a crack at the bottom. I can't get to a pipe section that has integrity. The pipe feels solid, but unquestionably it is cracked. Is it still possible to cut a cracked iron pipe using a grinder with a diamond blade or do I expect that it might break apart rather than cut cleanly? If I successfully make the cut, should I anticipate a problem attaching the coupling and tightening it down on a pipe with a crack? I realize that getting to a solid pipe with no damage is desirable, but I simply can't do that so I need try and make this less-than-perfect repair as good as possible.

Figured I'd run this by you guys before I make some huge mistake! I'd rather have a slow leak than no sewer connection at all! Thanks in advance for any added advice.

To replace a portion of cracked pipe only to leave more cracked pipe is defeating the purpose. You can still cut the pipe with grinder and use adapter, should be okay as far as connection, but its kind of like fixing one of two leaks in a car tire, your still going to have problems with that tire.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mygirlsdad77

To replace a portion of cracked pipe only to leave more cracked pipe is defeating the purpose. You can still cut the pipe with grinder and use adapter, should be okay as far as connection, but its kind of like fixing one of two leaks in a car tire, your still gonna have problems with that tire.

Thanks for your reply. I would like to replace the entire sewer line but I can't afford to do that now. I would have to destroy thousands of dollars of beautiful 80 year old stone work to dig the line. Because of this I will have to use some sort of retro-fit liner at a later date (when I can afford to pay for it).. . My main objective is to get the leak out of my basement. The broken iron sewer pipe extends inside the house about 18" and drips inside the house. At this point I am satisfied to move the problem outside. I was nervous about cutting the cracked pipe fearing that I would create an even worse problem if it broke off rather than cutting cleanly.

Can you post a photo of it ? ( exterior section of the pipe )

Yes, you can cut it carefully with grinder, all the way around. Don't use hammer to remove the pieces. Be patient and progress slowly.

When you attach coupling tighten up the s.s. band carefully so the pipe won't collapse under the pressure from the band.

Okay, I see your situation now. Do as Milo suggest and you will be OK. I also agree that a reline would be your best bet in the future so you don't have to destroy the ambience of the place. Good luck and please let us know how things work out.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Milo Dolezal

Can you post a photo of it ? ( exterior section of the pipe )

Yes, you can cut it carefully with grinder, all the way around. Don't use hammer to remove the pieces. Be patient and progress slowly.

When you attach coupling tighten up the s.s. band carefully so the pipe won't collapse under the pressure from the band.

I would attach a picture but my kids have the digital camera.. . Borrowed it for a trip 6 weeks ago and have yet to return it.. . What's new? A picture would also explain why digging out any further would be devastating.. . It would destroy the ambiance of my house and also require significant equipment to remove a 4' granite stone wall, 2 sets of stairs, a granite cobblestone parking pad and part of my circle drive that has a low granite wall along one side.

Milo, I cut the pipe, attached the couplings. Added a clean-out and it seems to be fine. The coupling actually covers the last part of the crack and perhaps the pipe beyond the elbow that I can't see is not cracked. Wishful thinking I'm sure, but there is a chance that it is OK. I put my hand through the elbow joint and felt the next pipe section and couldn't feel a crack. Anyhow it all drains just fine. I ran a 1" hose that is connected to my irrigation water line and has huge volume into the open sewer line just to see if it seemed slow or clogged and it ran for a long time and never indicated any problem. Maybe I'll be lucky!

I can't thank you enough for your time and patience. Your advice was right on!

Oldhouse2: The cracks in the pipe usually don't extend past Hubs. There is a good chance pipe is solid past the Hub. So you may be OK here. I would leave the trench open for few days and start using house plumbing full blast. Monitor it couple times a day just to make sure...

I am glad you managed to repair it yourself. You saved yourself about $1K. Good job !

Stop by if you need help with your next project ! Milo