Last week my kitchen sink decided to turn into a mini waterfall (yay me). Luckily, I remembered my dad once showed me how to quickly shut off the water under the sink—saved me from a full-on flood. So, um, friendly tip: always know where your shut-off valves are and make sure they actually turn (mine was stuck at first, fun times). Anyone got other handy plumbing hacks? I'm all ears, cause plumbing surprises aren't my kinda thrill ride.
Had a similar experience last winter—bathroom faucet started dripping, figured I'd just tighten something and call it a day. Nope. Valve was totally corroded and wouldn't budge. Ended up having to shut the main water line off till I could run to the hardware store next morning (fun times brushing teeth with bottled water...). So yeah, I'd second the advice on checking valves regularly. Also learned the hard way: keep plumber's tape handy. Cheap, easy fix for minor leaks until you can deal with the real issue.
Had something similar happen with my kitchen sink a while back. Thought it was just a loose connection under the sink, but nope—turned out the pipe itself had rusted through. Ended up with a mini indoor waterfall at 11pm... good times. Now I keep a bucket and some spare fittings handy, just in case. Curious though, does plumber's tape really hold up well enough for temporary fixes? Always figured it was more for sealing threads than stopping actual leaks.
Plumber's tape is definitely more for sealing threads than patching leaks directly. I've found it handy for minor drips around fittings, but if you've got an actual hole or crack, it's not gonna do much. For temporary fixes, you're better off with something like plumber's epoxy or even a rubber patch and hose clamp combo—those have saved me more than once at odd hours. Speaking of late-night plumbing adventures, anyone ever tried those silicone repair tapes? Heard mixed things, curious if they're worth keeping around.
Plumber's tape is definitely more for sealing threads than patching leaks directly.
Good point about plumber's tape—I learned the hard way it's not a miracle fix. Had a leaky pipe in the basement last month, tried wrapping it up with tape thinking it'd hold...nope, just slowed it down a bit. Ended up using plumber's epoxy like you mentioned—worked surprisingly well for a quick fix until I could get someone to properly replace the pipe. Haven't messed with silicone repair tapes yet, but might grab some next hardware store run just to have around.
