Copper Pipes and Connectors

Plumbing refers to a system of pipes that allows water into and out of a building or a structure. The term itself comes from a Latin term, plumbum, which is commonly known as lead.

Here is a piece of history on plumbing.

The first plumbing systems were installed to get rid of human wastes. In the Indus Valley, which is found in western India and Pakistan, most shelters had assembled drainage for waste disposal by the year 2500 BC. Moreover, a palace on the island of Crete had pipes to supply the dwellers with drinking water by about 2000 BC. The ancient Romans used lead metal for their pipes. In addition, their old systems still have installed iron pipes and older houses have lead pipes for their water and wastes, respectively.

However, present-day plumbing make use of copper pipes for central heating pipe-work and for water feeds. However, the use of modern plastic pipes, brass, and even steel are also slowly taking place.

Why is copper popular in modern plumbing?

Many plumbers and manufacturers have discovered some advantages of copper over lead and iron pipes and these are:

1. Copper costs low as compared to lead and iron.

2. Copper does not corrode relative to iron.

3. Copper is non toxic relative to lead.

4. Copper is easy to work with and relatively soft as compare to both lead and iron.

5. Copper pipes are manufactured in an array of sizes:

a. between 8 and 10 mm – for micro-bore heating systems

b. between 12 and 15 mm – for connections to appliances and individual taps

c. 22 mm, 28mm, and 35 mm – to overcome pressure drop

Moreover, trade outlets may keep stocks between 3 and 4 meters while those DIY or Do-it-yourself outlets may stock sizes between 1.5 and 2 meters.

Below is some information on connectors:

1. Connectors are typically fitted to the size of pipe. The main styles, which cater for needs for pipe-runs are:

a. straight connector

b. connector with 90-degree bend

c. T-shaped connector

Normally, they are made to connect to pipes that have the same sizes or different sizes at each end.

2. Connectors can be made to integrate modern pipes that have sizes in meters to copper pipes that have bigger sizes to outside screw threads such as used on sink taps and/or iron pipes.

The two basic types of connectors used for linking copper pipes are:

a. Compression connectors

These are used as internal rings, which are compressed onto the copper pipe. In addition, end nuts are tightened onto the body of the connector.

These connectors can be reassembled and dismantled easily. Also, if a pipe run is to be dismantled, the end of the pipe can be cut so that the end nut can be removed. Then, the connector can be reused again with a new set of olives.

b. Solder connectors

These types of connectors are made to provide a fit that slides into the pipe that is made of copper. To do this, the joint is usually heated. Then the gap between the connector and the pipe is filled with solder thru capillary action.

There are connectors that assemble a ring made of solder into the body, while others are made of solder and copper and need to be integrated around the exposed gap after heating the pipes or connectors.

Unlike compression connectors, solders are not reusable. They cannot be dismantled and disarranged too.

This article is made to provide you with basic information on copper pipes and connectors. I guess we can leave the plumbing to the plumbers themselves!

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Evaluating A Home - Water Pipes

When evaluating a home you are considering buying, it is easy to get caught up in the visual aspects of the home. Water pipes are just one unseen area you remember to inspect.

Water Pipes – Drip, Drip, Drip

Alright, I’ll admit right away water pipes are not exactly the most glamorous aspect of a home. In fact, water piping in most homes is more than adequate to keep you in hot showers while you live there and take care of all your water needs. If there is a problem with the interior water pipes, however, you are in for a very costly and disruptive experience.

The main issue with water pipes on the interior of a home is their location. It is easy to forget about them because they are primarily hidden behind the walls of the house. While this is good from a visual perspective, it quickly becomes a negative if a pipe starts leaking or, god forbid, actually bursts inside a wall. Leaks lead to rot and mold problems that can effect the health of you family. A burst pipe leads to flooding, new carpets, rebuilt walls and large bills.

When evaluating the water pipes in a home, keep in mind the following issues.

1. Copper – The best piping material for water pipes is copper. It will last forever and is resistant to hard deposit build ups which can impact the amount of water flowing through the pipes. Copper pipes are also the sign of a quality construction effort as they tend to be more expensive than alternatives.

2. PVC – If you see PVC water pipes anywhere other than on the sprinkler system or from the main street line to the house, red flags should wave before your eyes. The presence of PVC piping is an indication of an owner doing the piping themselves, as most construction companies will not use PVC. In a majority of locations, such use of PVC is outright illegal. Do not buy a home with PVC piping in the walls! Ever!

3. Iron Piping – For a long time, iron piping was pretty much the standard in home construction. There is nothing particularly wrong with using such piping with one exception. Iron piping is susceptible to water and will rust over time. If you find this grey, metal piping in the home, find out when it was put in and check for rust. Iron piping should last roughly 30 years without any major problems. If replacements must be made, go with copper.

The pipes moving water around the interior of a home may seem uninteresting. Your attitude, however, will change if one of them bursts in the middle of the night.

Raynor James is with the FSBO site - http://www.fsboamerica.org - FSBO homes for sale by owner. Visit our home buying page - http://www.fsboamerica.org/buyer.cfm - to view and buy homes, houses, condos, land and real estate.

Burst Underground Water Pipes

During cold weather, not only can inside water pipes freeze up and burst, so can underground water pipes. For some projects, this means you either need open cut repair work done or horizontal directional drilling. Or course with either method, or even if you want to try to repair damage yourself, you need to call ahead and have utilities mark the ground before you dig, to avoid cutting utility lines: electricity, cable, phone, and other companies.

Open Cut Repairs

Open cut repair work is the old fashioned way; dig a whole, mess up the yard and landscaping, complete the repairs, fill in the hole and go. For this type work, you would need to call general contractors by seeking referrals from neighbors and friends, looking in the Yellow Pages or other advertising materials you have locally, or check with your local hardware for recommendations.

Gather bids from a couple of different sources to compare. And check their credentials, references and previous work by following up with phone calls before hiring.

Horizontal Directional Drilling

To avoid so much damage to your property and landscaping, you may want to check into horizontal directional drilling (HDD) contractors in your area. With HDD, the repair equipment sits stationary off to the side of your work area, while long, horizontal piping drills head on into the area for repair work, similar to a surgeon using tools to operate. Results are repairs with little to no damage to the outside are surrounding the project.

To see if this horizontal type of drilling would work for your own situation, contractors would check the following information:

• They would need to know the required slope of the project and could work with your local contact to determine this.
• They would need to know if the area’s geotechnical situation or condition was right for the project and would know how to check this out.
• They would need to make sure your municipality permitted this type of work, and would know who to contact to find out.
• They would need to know if this work would interfere with any municipal services or utilities that are already existing and would also know how to find this information out.

So before you dive in to repair burst underground water pipes, even if you know how, call all utilities first to get ground marked. And if you do need help, get some!

John Mayer owns FloodCheck USA which can help you prevent water damage should your pipes ever burst. You can see a full line of home protection for burst water pipes

Hose Pipes - Different Uses

The Hose Pipes are one of the widely used items in the Modern days. These are used in all the fields from Agriculture to Aeronautics. The Hose Pipes help in transporting fluids from one place to another and they make the fluids themselves work in a particular way in a range of applications where they are installed. Without the Hose Pipes, it may not have been possible to have different types of Machineries and their use to the Human beings.

The advancements in the manufacturing processes along with the formulation of a range of Plastic, PVC and other Polymer based materials have made it possible for the manufacture of specialized Hose Pipes that can be used in highly specialized Applications.

The Hose Pipes are manufactured in various sizes, shapes, types and out of different Materials. The flexibility of the Hose Pipes makes them ideal connecting material between different parts of Machinery with moving parts. These take a variety material from one part of the machine to another and become a part of the Machinery itself controlling, allowing redirecting and stopping the flow of the materials through them.

The Hose Pipes are usually light in weight, and can be repaired very easily with minimum time, effort and materials. They can be repaired at any place virtually by anybody even by Persons who do not have much experience to do so. The Hose Pipes are manufactured by blending various materials like, Nylon, PVC, Rubber Polymers etc so that it is possible to make them as per specific requirements.

The Hose pipes come in different types depending on the use they are made for. They take a variety of materials from one place to another like Air, Water, Chemicals, Oil and all other types of fluids. Now the Hose Pipes are made for high Pressure uses as well as for the materials that are highly corrosive like Acids and Chemicals.

Some of the different types of Applications include in Automotive field like, Air Brake Hoses, Air Hoses for all types of Pneumatics applications, Automotive Hose Pipes where the Hose Pipes are used in the Automobile Engines and other parts of the Automobiles, Radiator Hoses in the Automobiles which are heat and fire resistant in nature.

We have different types of Hoses for the Chemicals that are corrosive in nature. The Corrosive Metallic flexible Hoses are used for materials that are corrosive in nature. Flexible Hoses, Fuel line Hoses, Garden Hoses, HDPE Hoses and Heater Hoses are some of the other Hoses widely in use.

John Gibb is the owner of hosepipe resources , For more information on hospipes check out http://www.Hose-Pipe-Information.info

Burst Pipes Repair

Pressure burst pipes, frozen pipes that burst and any type of burst pipes repair can be done without too much difficulty if you have the right tools and know-how. Here are some basic repair steps and tips.

Site Prep

Begin by shutting off your water at faucets, stopcock, valves and water heating unit. Empty / drain out any excess water.

Then find the burst area or hole. Especially if the pipes are in a slanted position, the hole may not be right over top the water leakage puddle, as the water may have been running downhill from a break further up. So take time to thoroughly investigate the entire pipe.

If the burst is a tiny puncture or splice, you may be able to repair the damage with lengths of copper pipe that are threaded at the ends called proprietary slip on couplers. These can be found at store with plumbing supplies, so call ahead to make sure they have them first.

After you have your couplers, focus on the burst section once again. Go there and cut away the area with the burst or hole in it with a pipe slice, a pipe cutter or a hacksaw. Cut back until you reach a good rounded piping area once again to connect to with your new piece. You don’t want to leave any of the misshapen damaged area behind or it will be weak in that spot in the future.

Once you’ve cut away the bad area, smooth areas left on the remaining good piping. Then slide olives over the ends on the coupling and compress them (tuning the bolts and nuts in place) to seal the section.

If the burst area is larger, you may need to use a couple of small compression couplers, one on each side of the new area.

Push Fit

You could choose to use a push fit for your repair work instead. Check with your local plumbing supply center for this type push and fit package that works similar to the method above but is easier.

Resources

For more help, head to your local hardware center that also sell plumbing supplies. Also check with library books on burst pipes repair and check on Amazon.com, an online bookstore. Ebay, the largest online auction site, also offers a lot of plumbing supplies and books about burst pipes repair, so add them to your list.

Joh Mayer owns FloodCheck USA which can help you prevent water damage should your pipes ever burst. You can see a full line of home protection at http://www.floodcheckusa.com