Garage update 2

Putting up that 3 ft. piece took all day and then some!  

I used an angular saw to cut the PVC pipe, and a plumber's wrench to disconnect the propane gas line.  Ya, I know what you are thinking, well I took precautions.  Mainly, I turned the gas off at the propane tank, but turned on the fireplace before to ensure the gas was really turned off.  I also turned on all the water faucets, but turned off the main water line which was located in the basement. Last I unplugged the water heater. 

When I disconnected the gas pipe, there was hardly even a touch of odor.  Cutting into the PVC however, revealed some pressure.  It took a couple minutes, and maybe a 1/2 gallon of water to drain out.  I could hear the tank-less water heater gurgle as the water drained out of it.  All was OK, since I had a 5 gal bucket underneath for spillage.

I'd spent several days drilling holes into concrete using a DeWalt Hammer Drill, and that was just pure agony.  Sometimes I'd get a mason bit deep enough, but most times it would hit aggregate and just spin around like trying to cut through diamond.  Well I got fed up with those back pains, so I went out and bought one of these Bosch Rotary Hammer Drills.  WOW!  That made a huge difference, like cutting through butter! If you find the need to drill through concrete, do yourself a big favor, and get one of them.

Getting the studs aligned was pretty smooth going.  What was a real pain, was aligning the plywood and diamond plate to fit the adjacent wall, and still fit the custom holes I drilled over the tank-less water heater plumbing.                             

Lots of liquid nail glue, elbow grease, and swearing, I was able to get things lined up close enough.         

I figured once the diamond plate was up, I could reconnect the PVC and gas line.  I bought two couplers at Lowe's rated for 180 deg. Also picked up some of that yellow plumber's glue that looks like snot.

By this time, it was 2:00 am, and I went out to turn everything back on.  Had to reset the fireplace, which then came back on.  Had to turn off all the faucets, since they were all open.  Last I had to test the hot water, and sure enough, the water was getting hot.

Oh finally!  Time for a nice hot shower before going to bed.  Um... NO!  As soon as I turned on the shower, the water stopped flowing.  

Ruh-roh!  

I immediately went down to the garage and saw water pouring out the hot water line.  Then I ran downstairs to turn off the main.

As I'd guessed, I had unseated the coupler for the hot water line while pushing the other end in.  Also, I don't think I gave the glue enough time to dry.  All was not lost, as I fixed my error and instead, just went to bed. I got a nice warm shower in the morning though.