Any info on Copper Lock by ComStar? - no soldering

[tomluoma]

Does anyone have any experience with Copper Lock by ComStar?
It is "superglue" for rigid copper water pipe.

Is it approved by any states for residential use?

http://www.comstarproducts.com/uploads/files/file_633567348201776594.pdf

 

[Gary Swart]

Gimmick. Forget about it. Probably will be Billy May's next product to hawk. If you don't know how to sweat a joint, it will take you 5 minutes to read the instructions that come with a torch and, while your first joint may not be pretty, it will hold.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Miedin]

Its legal in New Hampshire I believe. I see it on the shelves at the plumbing supply store. They have a street 90 glued to a coupling on display and every time I go in there I try to break it lol.

I certainly wouldn't do a whole house with it but for a tight spot where I can't get a torch in or a quick fix somewhere like I would with shark bite or maybe on exposed joints so if it turns out that the stuff is garbage and fails after 2 years...

 

[NHmaster]

I had put away the duc tape helmet for awhile. Looks like I may be needing it again

 

[hj]

glue

IT may hold for a week, a month, or a couple of years, but I would not want to trust it for any joint which was not visible or easily replaced. You have to consider that in order to make a good solder joint the space between the fitting and tubing has to be a very precise, and small, dimension. That means that the "glue" has to be very thin or it will be wiped off as the pieces are inserted. If that happens the only bonding will be at the opening of the fitting and will merely be a thin ring. The only place I have ever seen it used was when a customer had a leak on Sunday, and used it to glue a cap on until I could make the proper repair on Monday.

 

[SewerRatz]

Its legal in New Hampshire I believe. I see it on the shelves at the plumbing supply store. They have a street 90 glued to a coupling on display and every time I go in there I try to break it lol.

I certainly wouldn't do a whole house with it but for a tight spot where I can't get a torch in or a quick fix somewhere like I would with shark bite or maybe on exposed joints so if it turns out that the stuff is garbage and fails after 2 years...

Just because you see a hardware store sell it, does not make it legal to use. I have plumbing supply houses selling AAVs, they are not legal in Illinois. Plumbing code can not tell hardware stores or supply houses what they can and can not sell, but they can tell the plumber what can and can not be used in a plumbing system. They key part of most plumbing codes is they specify what a proper approved joint is in the approved material used.

So to answer your question here in Illinois it is not approved.

 

[tomluoma]

CopperLock

Thanks for the feedback.
As a retired engineer I did a lot of work with cynoacrylate adhesives. They were great at high temps with extremely thin joints -- one project was glueing pole caps on magnets with
water-thin "superglue" and running them at 450 degrees.

However exposing it to water constantly was not a good idea.

But things change and I wanted to see what the current thinking was.

 

[Miedin]

Thanks for the feedback.
As a retired engineer I did a lot of work with cynoacrylate adhesives. They were great at high temps with extremely thin joints -- one project was glueing pole caps on magnets with
water-thin "superglue" and running them at 450 degrees.

However exposing it to water constantly was not a good idea.

But things change and I wanted to see what the current thinking was.

Most plumbers will whine when something is invented that a homeowner could do because it threatens their job security, my boss does this all the time too and you can't really blame them but take this into consideration when you hear a negative opinion about it. They could be right but who knows, this glue could hold better than solder for all we know but the truth is, it will never replace solder just like PVC never completely replaced cast iron, but you know they whined when PVC came out too

hey nhmaster, do you know if this glue is approved in NH? the evening class instructor at Spaulding told us it was last year, just curious to know if he knew what he was talking about.

 

[NHmaster]

Unfortunatly, yes it is. The board seems hell bent on approving every diy invention that comes down the road, which probably has a lot to do with why we keep loosing inspectors. BTW that's my classroom he's teaching out of.

 

[TedL]

I find it interesting that it is advertised to the trade in P&M magazine.

Apparently, the manufacturer does not view it as exclusively a DIY solution.

 

[Jadnashua]

Hey, some fancy cars a glued together! The big thing there though, is that they have a stringent QA/QC set of procedures and trained people or robots to put things together. I think there'd be more leaway on a soldered joint than a glued one, and I'd be surprised if solder wasn't cheaper, except for a one-off.

 

[SewerRatz]

Hey, some fancy cars a glued together! The big thing there though, is that they have a stringent QA/QC set of procedures and trained people or robots to put things together. I think there'd be more leaway on a soldered joint than a glued one, and I'd be surprised if solder wasn't cheaper, except for a one-off.

My local body shop glues body parts on. He told me welding is a thing of the past.

 

[Seaofnames]

My local body shop glues body parts on. He told me welding is a thing of the past.

The only glueing should be for fibreglass parts or saturns vehicles!(those dent resistant doors I saw so much advertising for back in the 90's)

 

[NHmaster]

I find it interesting that it is advertised to the trade in P&M magazine.

Apparently, the manufacturer does not view it as exclusively a DIY solution.

That's because they are WHORES for the industry that could give a crap about anything but advertising dollars.

 

[hj]

of course

quote: I find it interesting that it is advertised to the trade in P&M magazine. Apparently, the manufacturer does not view it as exclusively a DIY solution.

The magazine does not censor the advertisers. As long as they pay their bill it will run the ad. And the manufacturer is only interested in selling the product and doesn't care who buys it. Handymen are a step above DIY, but they may read trade magazines.

 

[Redwood]

Here ya go NH Master....
I was just wrapping on a little more tape in som of those thin spots...