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[annihilator]

Hi,discovered a weeping joint right where the mains supply comes into the house.



obviously will turn the stop cock off first,but does it look the sort of joint that just needs tightening or re-soldering?
Cheers John.

[JasonH]

Before you start messing with it double check it's not condensation running down the pipe. This time of year the water and pipes are really cold. We get loads of condensation on the water pipes where they enter the house.

[STEMO]

No solder on that joint, John, it a compression fitting. Try tightening it a wee bit (looks like someone has already had a spanner on it). If that doesn't stop it, undo the nut, and you will find either an metal olive around the pipe or, more likely, a fibre washer, which will be knackered. I can't tell from the pic whether it's 15mm (1/2") or 22mm(3/4"). Either way, a simple fix, but buy the washers before you undo the joint, or you'll have no water while you go and buy them.

[STEMO]

Oh...while you're out, buy some things PTFE tape.

[powerslinky]

Agree with Stemo here  . .certainly  looks like a compression joint  .. .but that also looks like solder where you have the arrow  .  .so could be a soldered tap connector fitting . can't really see clearly 

Best make sure the stopcock tap does shut right off before you do any spanner work though .

Also looking at the blue poly supply you will probably be able to turn off suppy in the footpath outside at the OSV (Outside Service Valve) as a better precaution 

Condensation tip is also very possible this time of year .  .water is cold house is warm = condensation on pipework 

If it is a leak & a tighten up won't stop it, , probably easiest way to fix would be to buy a straight compression joiner , cut the pipe back say 150mm  , fit joiner , fit new bit of pipe to stopcock with a new olive  . TPFE tape or joint compound is advised on all compression joints though    HTH

[powerslinky]

Agree with Stemo here  . .certainly  looks like a compression joint  .. .but that also looks like solder where you have the arrow  .  .so could be a soldered tap connector fitting . can't really see clearly 

Best make sure the stopcock tap does shut right off before you do any spanner work though .

Also looking at the blue poly supply you will probably be able to turn off suppy in the footpath outside at the OSV (Outside Service Valve) as a better precaution 

Condensation tip is also very possible this time of year .  .water is cold house is warm = condensation on pipework 

If it is a leak & a tighten up won't stop it, , probably easiest way to fix would be to buy a straight compression joiner , cut the pipe back say 150mm  , fit joiner , fit new bit of pipe to stopcock with a new olive  . TPFE tape or joint compound is advised on all compression joints though    HTH

John . . . if it is a soldered tap connector  . . . the repair I suggested, with new pipe & an olive at the stopcock end , won't work as it will obviously need another tap connector fitting that end    
Where you have drawn the arrow, is the pipe the same diameter all the way into the brass nut or is there a "shoulder" there . This will define if it is a nut & olive directly into the stopcock or a tap connector fitting .As said cannot see very clearly

[Bigron]

If Big Al is right and you CAN replace the connector, might I suggest that you use a servive valve instead; it will be an additional means of isolating the supply.
If you are feeling really lazy/in a hurry, clean up all around and apply roof sealant, either bitumen paint or from an aerosol!

Ron.

[annihilator]

Cheers for all the responses,it's deffo a leak I think the silvery solder looking stuff is the reflection of water residue on the joint.
The pipe involved is the feed to my combi boiler sealed system so once the stop cock is off will any water drain back out of that joint when/if I clean it up and put ptfe on it.
Thanks.

[TD]

Cheers for all the responses,it's deffo a leak I think the silvery solder looking stuff is the reflection of water residue on the joint.
The pipe involved is the feed to my combi boiler sealed system so once the stop cock is off will any water drain back out of that joint when/if I clean it up and put ptfe on it.
Thanks.

Probably, I was wondering why you had a drain off at that point, so probably best to shove a hose pipe on it and see if any water drains out after the water is turned off 

[powerslinky]

Cheers for all the responses,it's deffo a leak I think the silvery solder looking stuff is the reflection of water residue on the joint.
The pipe involved is the feed to my combi boiler sealed system so once the stop cock is off will any water drain back out of that joint when/if I clean it up and put ptfe on it.
Thanks.

The rising main supply/stopcock usually supplies all cold main supplies in the property not just your boiler. But thats not to say it is not just a separate supply to the boiler from the main supply to the house .
So, once you have closed the stop cock any water in that pipework above the stopcock will flow out if you undo the top nut. IF it supplies all the house it could be quite a bit . There is a drain outlet on that stop cock, usual method is push a short length of garden hose onto the drain outlet & then undo the drain valve screw & drin into a vessel/bucket , but make sure the stopcock is closed first

Are you sure this stopcock only supplies the boiler?  Easy to check once closed  . . .just check kitchen cold tap & possibly other cold supplies in house . But kitchen will ( or should . . be mains)  others colds in house could be tank fed 
If this stopcock supplies other cold feeds  . . .it will be easier to drain down if you open another tap once your hose & bucket are set up  . . .again HTH 

[Kevin Wood]

If it's feeding a combi and/or sealed heating system then there should be a check valve so you shouldn't get any flow back from the pipe. It might be worth opening the drain valve, as suggested. On the other hand, if it hasn't been disturbed for years, it might start leaking if it's touched. I think I'd leave it be.

Close the stopcock, open the main drinking water tap in the kitchen and let any excess flow out from there, then disconnect the pipe, having a few rags / old towels to hand just in case.

[powerslinky]

If Big Al is right and you CAN replace the connector, might I suggest that you use a servive valve instead; it will be an additional means of isolating the supply.
If you are feeling really lazy/in a hurry, clean up all around and apply roof sealant, either bitumen paint or from an aerosol!

Ron.

Gawd help us  !    not too sure about that method bigron 

[Viral_Jim]

I dunno, if your water pressure is as cr4p as ours, it should hold it. 

[annihilator]

Re-tightening seems to have done the trick  ,will leave a tissue around the joint and check it remains dry.
Thanks again for all the advice.
John.

[amba]

That stopcock looks like it hasn't been open/closed for a good while so best advise is to shut mains off outside property with a screwdriver..should find it under the small mainhole/inspection cover in the path or road outside your property.

Had a similar looking stopcock at our home and WaterBoard guy had a 3ft metal rod with a V cut in the end .Took him ages to get it shifted and he was worried about it shearing off.His advise was to turn it off and on every month or so and under no circumstances put any lubricant or oil on it as would eat away at the packing inside.

Agree with the advise of cutting pipe back about 150mm and inserting new pipe and coupling joint as that way you will be setting new olive onto new pipework .Clean all ends with emery paper or wet/n/dry to ensure pipe end is square and has no burrs .PTFE is wise on all compression joints despite what most plumbers advise.