Quote Originally Posted by Frank S View Post
They always make it look easier in the demonstration than what happens in real life. The leak is more often than not in a pipe buried deep in the ground and may not show up until the ground is so saturated a sink hole develops then you have to try and excavate while pumping water hopefully not damaging the pipe more than it is. Whatever caused the rupture will not be a simple hole I can guarantee it could be a weld that failed, or the pipe rotted out either case the clamp is not going to work. if it was a rupture from freezing there will be a long crack and a bulged pipe. If the hole is recent due to damage from an auger or a Backhoe/ excavator bucket tooth piercing the pipe the clamp if it is wide enough it might serve as a temporary repair. otherwise just kill the pressure and section out the pipe and do it right by replacing the damaged area with a new section
If it were only that easy, where I am we've had a drought and the earth shrinkage is pulling on old cast iron water mains, the local water company has been using these clamp-on patches as the repair means digging out and replacing the whole main and lead take off spurs, something with the lack of capitalist reinvestment and shareholder/CEO payments that just ain't going to happen...
The water company CEO even donned her hard hat (f knows why when she's only stood at the roadside), welly boots and high-viz to do a PR op vox-pop to camera for the local news channel, she didn't like it when the reporter asked if she'd give up her annual bonus to help finance new pipes.

The company is owned by an off-shore profit centred investment management outfit through the Isle of Jersey, the trail then leads to Aus, and looks to extend into Asia (China most likely) from there. All down to Maggie Thatcher selling off our infrastructure.