This flare joint below ground is kicking my butt. What am I doing wrong? I'm putting in a new basement shower and discovered the water main was right next to the soil pipe when I cut through it. :) The main is 3/4 soft K-copper. In my jurisdiction outside of Minneapolis you can repair a main with flare connections, no braze or ProPress. I'm using a hammer flare tool, which sucks in this tiny space but the flares are coming out smooth and appear to be the right diameter. But whenever I pour water in the open end of the main I end up with tiny drips out the back of the nuts. My best guess is either: 1. I'm not tightening enough. Solution: Tighten more, but every article about flare fittings says to not \*over\*tighten so I'm stopping at 1/4 turn after hand tight. 2. There's dirt keeping it from sealing. Since this is underground and everything flooded when the main was cut it's impossible to keep dirt out of everything. I'm doing the best I can with wire brushes and pipe dope. Solution: Maybe use a flare seal?…