So we had a leak under the garage floor, smart plumbers bypassed it with plastic through the ceiling. Pipe that was under the concrete is paper thin. One of my neighbours at the factory complex, (who's in the mining game,) Said, if the inside was black, it could be SRBs. Flushing the cold water pipes out with chlorine will get rid of them. The plumber says, health risk? He doesn't know anybody that does it, but it could be possible, there's somebody out there that provides the service, with health dept approval.
Any clues anybody?
are you sure not electrochemical process rather?
where two different metals connect electric potential exist..boaties people know this and bulb of zinc keep them safebut in your place, electric current may flow through wet surfaces...
try to dry it out
Not good at being clear am I?
Mains water leak in the cold pipe. Dry it out macro?????
Yeah, drying it out will get rid of the problem 
Can you get someone else to confirm that SRB can dissolve copper in fresh water?
I have no idea what they are, but the few google searches I have done suggest that they need sulfur. There was some mention of them precipitating copper from a sulfate solution in mining, but it doesn't sound like something that would be happening in the water mains.
Has the plumber got his own explanation? Copper does come in various grades, so maybe someone used the cheapest, but it still wouldn't be paper-thin.
Select to expand quotedecrepit said..
Not good at being clear am I?
Mains water leak in the cold pipe. Dry it out macro?????
from outside if touching any other surface...
for example, if you put any other metal thing on the copper pipe
and the connection is wet
then Volta battery has created that dissolves one of those or both metals...
But that is only one of the possibilities
I have a similar copper pipe completely perforated inside a hot water cylinder.I did replace this solar hot water cylinder now with simple full electric
but from curiosity, I did open the broken up
To see what is the problem and why.
Now I know. Manufacturer fault ( AUSSIE MADE NOT CHINA) in design.That copper spiral was inside a copper cylinder but welded with tin/lead to supporting arms.Failure was exactly above this welding spot where two different metals met.
electrolysis..
so one may blame bacteria
the other chemicals that could dissolve copper -
and electrolysis is the last but most likely if the damage is the focus to a small area
you could blame Volta, his fault not the plumber
anyway
from the chemical analysis, you could see most likely blue crystals near damage CuSO4 if that is sulfur bacteria at play
but if you flush your pipe with chlorine you will create another fascinating in color chemical. Cupric Chloride.
this stuff attract water -
but if stuff was more like black , copper sulfide is most likely indeed
I hope that I did help
to make right decision 
to replace that stuff with plastic
nothing eat plastic!!
actually, that get me thinking a bit
I intended to put copper piper inside concrete slab under newly build a house here on the farm.
The system is known as under floor heating, very popular in Europe.
But my intention was to use SOLAR WATER HEATER to heat the whole un insulated slab under the house.Solar energy is free, swimming pool water heater style cheap.But it seems that putting copper pipe into concrete slab will not be a good idea for everlasting free heating !! 
Just had to replace all the copper pipes in my roof due to leaks, plumber had to do 3 other premises recently, suspected that it was to do with the greater use of desalinated water.
Select to expand quoteelmo said..
Just had to replace all the copper pipes in my roof due to leaks, plumber had to do 3 other premises recently, suspected that it was to do with the greater use of desalinated water.
remember that plumber is there to.....
get paid....
a lot for the job. !!!
Do you think he is so stupid to cut the branch he sits on!
He will replace something for you that could fail soon after, otherwise get hungry.
I have may electric hot water replaced a month ago, that is already dripping the water constantly... 
i did hope for the next 15 years stress-free and have now in one month already...
Considering I found the pipes corroding and leaking in the first place, Both HW and cold water pipes were weaping.
I don't have a problem with the plumber replacing them before they leak further and collapse the ceiligs.
Select to expand quoteelmo said..
Considering I found the pipes corroding and leaking in the first place, Both HW and cold water pipes were weaping.
I don't have a problem with the plumber replacing them before they leak further and collapse the ceiligs.
fine, what are you going to replace with?
copper or plastic?
Select to expand quotefinsup said..
Any lime in the concrete? Or wherever the pipe was.
Wasn't in concrete, under it. The pipes had been laid before the garage floor was poured over it. So probably about 10-20cm of dry sand between pipe an floor. And corrosion looked to be on the inside not the outside. It's weird. where the pipe was cut about 50cm out from the concrete it looks normal thickness. but it just snapped off about 5cm under the concrete, when the plumber went to bend it out of his way. Where it's snapped it's paper thin.
Interestingly what I've read says you'll get blue stains in the sinks if copper is coroding, we have none of that.
Select to expand quoteMacroscien said..
actually, that get me thinking a bit
I intended to put copper piper inside concrete slab under newly build a house here on the farm.
The system is known as under floor heating, very popular in Europe.
Don't they use PEX for a lot of that, just because its cheap and flexible?
I was a bit surprised that there was PEX in my house, and I was very surprised at how flexible it is.
Select to expand quotedecrepit said..
So we had a leak under the garage floor, smart plumbers bypassed it with plastic through the ceiling. Pipe that was under the concrete is paper thin. One of my neighbours at the factory complex, (who's in the mining game,) Said, if the inside was black, it could be SRBs. Flushing the cold water pipes out with chlorine will get rid of them. The plumber says, health risk? He doesn't know anybody that does it, but it could be possible, there's somebody out there that provides the service, with health dept approval.
Any clues anybody?
Never hurts to dose with chlorine, we were on bore water as kids and the council used to get a lot of complaints about the chlorine stink, treatment plants use all the time, mainly of disinfection.
You need a fair bit of contact time to remove sludge though, here's a good write up, plumbingperspective.com/keeping-a-plumbing-system-free-of-microorganisms
Select to expand quoteRails said.. >>>Never hurts to dose with chlorine, we were on bore water as kids and the council used to get a lot of complaints about the chlorine stink, treatment plants use all the time, mainly of disinfection.
You need a fair bit of contact time to remove sludge though, here's a good write up, plumbingperspective.com/keeping-a-plumbing-system-free-of-microorganisms
Thanks rails, but this paragraph from the article precludes the use of chlorine. The plumbers have used plastic pipe to bypass the leak.
Chlorine can break down plastic components used in modern plumbing systems. There is not well-documented information on the chemical compatibility of various plastics and chlorine, but when asked, many manufacturers of plastic components that come in contact with drinking water cite the drinking water regulation of 4 mg/L maximum. However, the more exposure to higher chlorine concentrations over time, the shorter the life of the plastic components, so it is better to stay below 1 mg/L free chlorine.
I think Macro and Elmo are right, the best solution is to replace copper in the roof with plastic.
Give me a yell if you like. 0433925778
Unlikely bacteria caused it but if you cut the problem area of pipe open it will provide a bit of a story. Even a section nearby.
Thanks Corey, I'll take some pics of the broken off bit and post them in a bit. Can't get to the leak it's under the garage floor. This is about 4m from the leak.
Bloody hard getting the interior in the sun, without my shadow on it, and seeing the phone display with sun directly on it, so don't complain it's a bit blurry. This a section from under the pavers, that seems reasonably thick.
A closer look at the broken under concrete piece, looks like the difference between cut and broken end thicknesses is probably due to the lip left inside the pipe by the cutting tool.
So this looks more like a blue copper salt, than a black bacteria?
Have you got good drinking water filter? Iam worry a bit if you drink this blue stuff...not sure if filters filter out metals. Looks like all the missing copper on pipe you may drink out. I use reverse osmosis on my farm. But that for rainwater anyway.
Google also "copper poisoning" if you have any symptoms
Thanks Macro, but there is no blue stain under any of the taps, so I think it's mainly staying in the pipes. These pipes are 15 years old, so the amount of copper coming through would be extremely small.
Select to expand quotedecrepit said..
Thanks Macro, but there is no blue stain under any of the taps, so I think it's mainly staying in the pipes. These pipes are 15 years old, so the amount of copper coming through would be extremely small.
the toxic amount is more like 1.5 mg/l
so you are not going to see anything
and keep accumulating in the body over time,
15 years is still quite a new house, pipes should last much longer
You could see clearly a thick blue deposit. This is definitely very soluble stuff the access your water supply
Anyway for cooking and drinking, I use always separate tap with filtered water, the rest like washing and bathing doesn't matter me much
Mandurah water is pretty high in calcium and combined with chlorine in the water can create a hostile environment to copper albeit over time. The colour of the deposits shown look like the salts / deposits left behind.
SymptomsCopper is present in almost every type of tissue in the body. High concentrations of the substance accumulate in the:bonesmusclesbrainliverkidneysCopper toxicity can lead to various symptomsTrusted Source, including:stomach painnausea and vomitingdiarrheablue- or green-colored stooldark, sticky stool containing bloodheadachedizzinessfatiguefever or chillsaching musclesextreme thirsttachycardia or abnormally fast heart ratechanges in taste that can lead to decreased appetite or anorexiaCopper toxicity can also trigger the following neurological and psychological symptoms:sudden changes in moodsymptoms of depression or anxietyfeeling irritable or overexciteddifficulty focusingCopper toxicity can have severe health effects, such as:kidney failureheart failureloss www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/copper-toxicityof red blood cellsliver diseasebrain damagedeath
www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/copper-toxicity
any doubts at all, contact your GP
Select to expand quotesaltiest1 said..
What is the inner surface like? Smooth or pitted?
Dot made the suggestion of splitting it and opening up, I'll do that tomorrow, and have a closer look.
Select to expand quoteMacroscien said.. >>>> Anyway for cooking and drinking, I use always separate tap with filtered water, the rest like washing and bathing doesn't matter me much
We've been thinking of putting a rain water tank in for a while, guess we'll put it a bit higher on the todo list
Select to expand quotedecrepit said..Macroscien said.. >>>> Anyway for cooking and drinking, I use always separate tap with filtered water, the rest like washing and bathing doesn't matter me much
We've been thinking of putting a rain water tank in for a while, guess we'll put it a bit higher on the todo list
that is a good choice! $2250 cost me 25,000L delivered!
Select to expand quotedecrepit said..Dot made the suggestion of splitting it and opening up, I'll do that tomorrow, and have a closer look.
humour me 
while you do the splitting and opening it up stuff, can you keep the inner coating damp and avoid any unnecessary heat or friction?
then take a little bit of the [still wet] inner coating stuff and put it on a hard surface [brick / old brake drum or disk / anvil] and let it dry out,
then....
lock up the chooks and chain up the kelpie,
do the PPE bit - glasses, welding gloves, ear plugs, and crank up the stereo [ACCA DACCA Back in black or 1812 overture recommended]
raid the shed for a hefty hammer or gympie and give the [now dried out] inner coating stuff a smart rap with aforementioned fine adjustment tool.
Time your hit with the bells or cannon on the stereo
report back if there is a kaboomy flash with a bit of smoke 
When I was still lucky enough to live there, my company specialised in finding and fixing these leaks. It certainly kept me busy. Also worked with a water treatment company here in Sydney that looked after mains supplies. The composition of the water there in Mandurah has changed in the last 15 years since both the desal plant and the use of subterranean supplies have been introduced. The latter especially has ramped up calcium. If you want to stop the copper being eaten on mains supply you can instal an ion exchanger that removes calcium (softener). My preference would be rainwater although you'd still be paying water rates despite not using any.
Select to expand quotedecrepit said..saltiest1 said..
What is the inner surface like? Smooth or pitted?
Dot made the suggestion of splitting it and opening up, I'll do that tomorrow, and have a closer look.
Yes that will show if any electrolysis has occurred.
