Plumbing

First Fix Plumbing...

This section contains details regarding the first fix plumbing. I will also carry out all the plumbing work myself, except any LPG plumbing, which has to be carried out by a CORGI registered plumber.

First fix plumbing covers all the pipe work which needs to be installed behind walls and under floors. Once the first fix plumbing is completed I will then be in a position to install the plasterboard, and hopefully the pipes will be in the right places for things such as baths and radiators.

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The first plumbing job was to get the water main re-connected. Here the new rising main has been installed in the bathroom, with connections for the toilet and shower. Because the walls are dry-lined all the pipes can be hidden in the void behind the plasterboard.	First of all the pipes have to be laid out and cut to the correct length. Once this is done you can then begin to solder up all the joints. Here the central heating piper are being installed in the loft area above the back of the house.	I have decided to use copper pipe throughout the house. It would have been much quicker and simpler to have used plastic pipe, and push fit connectors. However, I prefer to use copper as it is in my opinion more robust, more skilled to fit, neater and much cheaper.


Here all the pipes are laid and ready to be soldered up. This is the main run of pipes, and contains central heating flow and return, the rising main, the hot water supply and also a cold water feed from the water storage tank.	This is a picture of the water storage tank, ready to be filled up. This tank is 50 gallons and conforms to the various bylaws stipulated by the water authority. A tank is not just a tank!	The main flow and return central heating pipes in the back porch roof. Here there is a branch off to a radiator. The main flow and return pipes are 22mm, and the branches are 15mm.


This picture shows the completed pipe work which is embedded in the bathroom wall. These pipes are used for hot and cold water supply, and for central heating.	The same pipe work as before but now insulated. Normally you do not need to insulate pipes located in warm parts of the house. I have decided to insulate them to increase efficiency and reduce heat loss, and hopefully save me a bit of money off my heating bills.	This is the radiator installed in the back porch. It will need to be removed when the plasterboard is fitted, but hanging the radiator now allows me to get all the pipes in the right place.


The new kitchen radiator installed.	Here are the main central heating flow and return pipes to the front of the building, with a branch to an upstairs radiator. These pipes have been insulated to protect them, and reduce heat losses.	Flow and return pipes for the living room radiators. Again, these have since been isulated with foil pipe lagging to reduce heat loss.


Here are the hot and cold water supply pipes for the en-suite bathroom upstairs. You can see the isolating valves - it's always nice to be able to shut off just one section of plumbing should a problem occur.	Flow pipe to an upstairs radiator.	The upstairs radiator temporarily fitted in place. I have temporarily installed all the radiators so I can get all the pipe work in the right place. These will need to be removed when I install the plasterboard.


Here you can see the temporary connectors I used to allow me to fill and test the central heating system. The push fit connectors allow me to remove these valves once I have completed the test.	The upstairs radiator again, showing the temporary drain valves for testing.	Here the main drain is in place ready for the upstairs toilet to be attached. You can see the shower waste connection at the bottom of the picture, and the air admittance valve. This valve saves me from having to cut a hole in the roof for the soil stack to vent through.


The en-suite toilet installed, and ready to be tested.	A shot of the boss connector - this is where the sink waste will be connected to. You can also see the hot and cold supply pipework in the back.