Oh! No! ....What should I do now? The water outlet connector broke when I turned th
e stopcork valve at the bottom of the tank and the water was flowing out uncontrollably.
e stopcork valve at the bottom of the tank and the water was flowing out uncontrollably. That happened on the 31 August 2008, a Sunday afternoon. It was also a public holiday and a long weekend. Where can I get a
plumber at that moment? How to stop the water wastage? 
Those were the two questions that popped up in my mind immediately.
My immediate reaction was to stop the water from flowing out of the tank. Being a DIY buff, I have used a rubber or cork stopper before. I yelled at the top of my voice from the roof of the house t
o my family members to find a stopper. And this little wine bottle cork prevented the lost of 1,000 litres of water.
Next, I shut down the inlet stopcork valve. So that the water in the tank would be used up in two days' time and the tank's outlet connector can be replaced.
All I needed were a new PVC tank outlet connector(right side of the picture), sealing tape(centre) and a new ball valve stopcork valve (left side of the picture).
All these cost less than RM20.00 (USD6.00).
One set PVC connector RM2.40
One roll of sealing tape RM0.50
One piece stopcork valve RM13.00
One can of PVC glue RM2.50
The above items are easily and readily available at any DIY or hardware shop.
One set PVC connector RM2.40
One roll of sealing tape RM0.50
One piece stopcork valve RM13.00
One can of PVC glue RM2.50
The above items are easily and readily available at any DIY or hardware shop.
As for the tools, two pieces of pipe wrench or plier to dislodge and remove the old and rusty connector and replaced with the new PVC connector. 
Removing the old outlet connector was problematic due to the rust but I managed to get it done.
If you were to engage a plumber, this would cost you easily RM250.00 (USD80.00) for a simple job on a public holiday. Furthermore, by the time the plumber arrived, the 1,000 litres of water would have gone down the drain.
Removing the old outlet connector was problematic due to the rust but I managed to get it done.
If you were to engage a plumber, this would cost you easily RM250.00 (USD80.00) for a simple job on a public holiday. Furthermore, by the time the plumber arrived, the 1,000 litres of water would have gone down the drain.
This locking plier on the right is a very useful tool for plumbing maintenance job.
It pays to have some handyman DIY skills. You can acquire these skills easily by watching the workmen at work or read any DIY manual or book. DVD and online DIY guides are also available on the internet..
