Mark,
One of the worst think you can do with old cast iron pipe is break it
loose so you have to tear out the wall or concrete to repair it. The
joints in cast iron pipe, as pointed out by someone else is made up of a
bell end and a straight end on the pipe. After inserting the straight
part into the bell Oakum (a tarred fiber, rope-looking item) is pounded
in to seal the joint. After that molten lead is poured in to seal the
joint. If you flex the joint at all, the lead will let go, possibly
giving you a leak.
The way most professionals deal with this kind of thing (as well as cast
iron radiator plugs and fittings) is to drill out the center of the
plug, then enlarge the hole until you can get a Sawzall blade in. Then
cut almost to the edge of the plug in 2 or 3 places. Next, use a cold
chisel to break out the pieces of the cap. Be careful to not cut into
the threaded part the cap is screwed into.
I have not done this myself, but have seen it done on very old (80+ year
old) fittings without a problem. I tried the pipe wrench trick on a well
pressure tank fitting that was only 20 years old and broke the tank with
the plug not coming loose at all!
BTW, they do not use lead and oakum any more, all joints are now rubber
couplings and hose clamps, which go on straight pipe without bells. If
you break a joint loose you may have to do more work to repair than the
time it will take you to cut the plug out.
Peace,
Pat
Thusly spake Mark Andy, On 1/17/2010 3:23 PM:
> Howdy,
>
> I have a clean out that I want to remove, but its been in place for 60
> years or so:
>
> Here's a picture:
>
> http://www.maracing.com/misc/cleanout.JPG
>
> It looks to me like the cleanout plug is threaded into a fitting
> that's then perhaps leaded into the Y fitting. If that's right, I'm
> afraid to heat up the fitting with a torch to get it to loosen up.
>
>
--
Pat Horne, Owner, Horne Systems
(512) 797-7501 Voice 5026 FM 2001
Pat@HorneSystemsTx.com Lockhart, TX 78644-4443
www.hornesystemstx.com
-- We support Habitat for Humanity - a hand UP, not a hand OUT --
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