The Odds WERE In My Favor

[Pappy]

8' wall = 96" x 2 = 192.

That makes the odds 192 - 1 against putting a screw through a 1/2" copper pipe anywhere along a vertical line on that wall. Installing a safety bar beside the toilet I went against the odds, once again validating Murphy's Law.

I was putting the low end of the safety bar lower than she wanted it, but she said she could live with it since it would put the screws into studs at both ends, making it more solid. On the plus side, I added a 2x6 block in the upper corner of the cutout I made for the pipe repair and the safety bar is now at the angle she wanted...

[Stytooner]

Don, I have been a framer on many construction sites in my younger days.
The steel protective plates for plumbing and electrical were rarely ever used. Not even the proper setback into the stud was always adhered to strictly.
This greatly increases the chances that some home owner or handy man will indeed put a crew where you don't want it at least once in the structures lifespan.
I've had to fix several issues before that were caused by an errant screw. Sometimes they are not so easy to pinpoint.
At least with a water feed line, you know almost instantly. You may never see it in a drain line or vent. With electrical, it could be awhile before it becomes apparent and could cause a fire.

I think HD had a clearance sale on grab bars a while back. I got about 6 in different lengths. Maybe $50 for all. I have since used two for the inlaws next door and I know we need at least a couple more installed.
That was a money saving snag at the time. Those bars can get expensive. Especially when coupled with a plumbing bill.

Glad it wasn't any worse for you, Don.

[LinuxRandal]

Screwing into a water pipe, is at least a pretty noticeable event. A nail into an electrical line, might not be. Years back, I helped a neighbor get his shop setup and in order, one of the last things he did was put a nail in the wall and put up a clock. That nail just knicked the insulation enough and acted as a conductor, that it started melting the fiberglass in the wall.
He had removed the batteries from the smoke detector, as it was acting as if the battery was bad (and he had no spares/next days project), and the three year old woke them up that night and saved their lives.
If I ever build, I will be making sure those plates are used.

[atgcpaul]

. Installing a safety bar beside the toilet I went against the odds, once again validating Murphy's Law.
.

For those of you keeping score this weekend, it's now Murphy's Law 2. DIYers 0.

[gsmittle]

For those of you keeping score this weekend, it's now Murphy's Law 2. DIYers 0.

Murphy lives in my shop. I quit keeping score. I DID use the steel plates when I installed electric, however.

g.

[Stytooner]

DIYer 1 so far.
I am pouring a small pad for a split heat pump for the master bedroom in our house today.
My telephone access is just stubbed up out of the ground right there and leaning on the house. I moved it back to give some clearance. I had two cat 6 cables attached. One snapped. The other was a spare. I am only posting this now because my spare snapped. DSL is working fine so far. Not to tempt fate, but I won't be touching that thing again.

[jdon]

Not to quibble, but the odds were probably greater than 192:1. Water and electrical runs are not likely to be either right next to the floor or ceiling- instead, at a level consistent with fixture connection or ease for the installer- i.e., in the "strike zone". OTOH, you must have had the bad luck to hit that pipe close to dead on- a glancing blow off the side might have avoided a puncture.

[Stytooner]

Does miscalculating concrete need concern Murphy or DIY dumb-ass?
I figured for 80 pound bags and bought 50lbs instead. It is still about 3.5" thick with wire mesh,so should last forever in my terms. It's just a little outside AC unit.

[Pappy]

The steel protective plates for plumbing and electrical were rarely ever used. Not even the proper setback into the stud was always adhered to strictly.

I think HD had a clearance sale on grab bars a while back. I got about 6 in different lengths. Maybe $50 for all. I have since used two for the inlaws next door and I know we need at least a couple more installed.
That was a money saving snag at the time. Those bars can get expensive. Especially when coupled with a plumbing bill.

No plates and the hole was less that an inch into a 2x6 stud.

Wish I had seen the sale. The bars cost me about $35 each.

[capncarl]

I love the handicap handrails, they never seem to work out where the mounting flanges hit studs on both ends!

Stytooner, the concrete pads that the AC installer uses weighs only about 50 lbs and is less than 2" thick and is mostly styrofoam. 3" concrete will be just fine.

We were planting shrubery on the side of our house where all utilities come in and hit the phone line with a roto-tiller. It wound up about a half roll of 6 pair cable that the installer had buried rather than put back on the truck. Good ole Ma Bell.

capncarl

[Stytooner]

You probably paid for that. Thanks for the info. These units can be mounted on the wall as well, but I wanted zero vibration during operation. That is best done with a slab.

On a side note, we have been using LP gas for our heat. When they filled up our tank at the first of the season, it was $4 something a gallon. We had a hard winter for sure, but this last time they charged it, it was over $6 a gallon. I could of course pay it, but doesn't the Gov't have some sort of price fixing in place for stuff like this? I'm not so concerned about myself, but it is the Folks that are on fixed income (IE all my parents and inlaws) that might get hit hard with some price gouging like that.
They will be getting the tank and gas back this week.

[BigguyZ]

I think you got off easy! Worst case would ahve been if the screw created a fairly good seal, and you just had a slow leak.

That happened to my brother's house. We installed a under floor radiant heat system for his house. We told the flooring guy doing the patch where the old cast iron radiators were to not use nails- or at least use short nails. Unfortunately he didn't listen, and one went right through the pipe! BUT.... that was over a year and a half ago... And just recently my brother noticed some water damage in the ceiling in the basement. We had to tear up a huge section of the ceiling in both the utility/ laundry room and the completely finished bathroom to find the leak.... The entire joist bay had been flooded with water. Much more damage than if the nail would have caused a gushing leak, and much more work to finish the ceiling, tear it up, patch it, and re-finish it.

Water leaks scare the crap out of me. They're just so damaging to the house.