Snapped water pipe!

[amavadia]

Nightmare! I was working on moving the main internal stopcock about 30cm back so it will come up inside a pipe box/pillar I am going to make. I dug out a channel and was planning on lying the existing pipe down, not realising that it was coming up almost vertically from the ground so by pressing it flat I was making it bend almost 90 degrees. It looked like it was coming out the ground at about 45 degrees. First few times I pressed it down it was ok. Bit of resistance but I thought it just needed time to adjust to the new bend. Connected my elbow, new mdpe and new stop cock. Was about to cement it in and pressed it down once more to fit a jig to keep it down and I dent it go. 

 

So now I have a snapped off water pipe coming up in a clay tube. Any suggestions for a solution? I’ve dug out and exposed some of it in the tube to see a bit more.

 

Thanks!

[RichS]

Lead-lock, but you'll need a bit more working space.

[PeterW]

Looks like a 3/4 black alkathene - but as @RichS says you will need more space. 

[amavadia]

Yeah it’s a 21mm black . I will need to put an elbow in there. First thought was to deepen the channel but just wondering if there are other options first

[Russell griffiths]

I just wouldn’t take the chance, 

question

 1 how long do you intend living here ?

 

if the answer to question 1 is more than a quick tart it up and sell it on, then I would run a new water main. 

That black alkathane will haunt you for years to com, my neighbours main has been repaired 6 times the first time I did it I told her to replace it, 4 years later she has spent more on repairs than a new one actually cost to put in. 

[amavadia]

Probably live there a couple of years I'd say but apart from the break which was caused by me putting it under unreasonable strain, the rest of what I can see of the pipe is in decent condition. Also the line from the outside stopcock to the point where it comes up inside the house goes pretty much under the whole length of a load bearing wall. 

 

Tomorrow I will try dig some more workspace.

 

Another problem though is it is not coming up completely vertically so even if I put a 90 degree on it, the connecting horizontal piece will be sloping downwards.

[amavadia]

I’ve cleared some more space. I think enough to put a fitting on the end. But I also dug down inside the clay tube and got to the point where the pipe goes into its horizontal run to the front of the house. There seems to be some play in it and I can move it back and forth slightly (didn’t try too much) but it got me thinking about replacing it. But not sure if I actually attempted it it would be that straight forward and the pipe would just come out and allow me to feed a new one attached to the back of it? 

 

Other thing is at the front of the house where it connects to the severn Trent stopcock is concreted over and just in front of the door. Does anyone know how much they would charge to connect up a replacement pipe? 

 

Thanks 

[Russell griffiths]

Does this go through the wall and outside 

can you not go outside and dig a hole and join it there. 

[amavadia]

It goes under the wall and looks like they have put a clay conduit. Although not sure if that spans the whole horizontal run as I can’t see it.

 

i tried feeding the 70cm piece of pipe I have in along side the black and it went in pretty easily. Might be worth just buying a roll and see how far it goes along side?

 

Unhelpfully placed stopcock so I would have to break the concrete panel which Severn Trent fitted around it. 

[RichS]

Oops, my mistake. I thought it was lead ?