Soldering Copper Pipe

[Master Plumber Mark]

Thar rule is bogus....lay it on thick and wipe off the excess

The "rule" of a 1/2" fitting using 1/2" of solder may work for 1/2 and 3/4" pipe but I would like to see someone solder 1 side of a 1.5" copper coupling with 1.5" of solder

Cass----
I would like to hang the fellow who thought up that rule
by his short hairs...........

you would not believe how many times I have had to
follow around my employees and relaitves and fix their leaks
only hours after they have done the job....


and they argue with me about this stupid rule too...


I tell them that the solder is much, much cheaper than the
35 mile one way trip back out to the home at 9pm the very
same night.....(which I always end up doing)


All this rule does is insure that you will not completely fill up the copper joint...

Soldering something just barely good enough to
last 5 hours is truely a special skill that ....cannot be taught

its actually some sort of " half--assed " -- "three stooges " talent.....

you could not make a "timed released " leak happen
so your boss would have to go back out that night.
even if you wanted to......

and it seems that the dumb-asses I deal with every
day fall back on that rule when they create a leak....



I say ......
lay on the solder thick, let it drip once or twice
onto a rag ....then wipe off the excess solder with a rag ....


you will never fail if you use plenty of solder

and you use Oatey #5 tinning flux........

its much cheaper than the trip back out
and the ire of your boss

....

.

 

[Construct30]

I have tried saying to lay on the solder and people start talking about novices some how filling the pipe with solder. I tried to get solder to "fill" a pipe once just for fun and it dripped out and never went into the pipe until I finally burned the fitting to the point solder wouldn't go in any more. I was tought to use the drip method also. If for some reason though you shove six inches of solder into a pipe without the drip, maybe something is wrong. I guess maybe the solder goes into the pipe if the pipe is not into the fitting right?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Master Plumber Mark]

the only way that they will learn...

I suppose it really is my fault ...

the nly way that they are going to learn is
to make them go back ...off the clock...on theri own time
and make the repairs to their time-delayed screw-ups.
rubbing their noses in it, I guess is the only way they will learn....


as far as throwing 6 inches of solder against a fitting,..

if that is what it takes to make me feel comfortable about
the joint I am soldering, then 6 inches is what the jiont gets...

 

[Construct30]

as far as throwing 6 inches of solder against a fitting,..

if that is what it takes to make me feel comfortable about
the joint I am soldering, then 6 inches is what the jiont gets...

Have you ever tested the myth of filling a pipe with solder?

 

[Master Plumber Mark]

no I havent

Have you ever tested the myth of filling a pipe with solder?

that is an urban legend and cant be done.....


I supppose if you had an elbow on a 45 degree verticle angle to where the solder could actually fill up the
joint it could in theory be possible...

that would take a lot of solder to accomplish

perhaps in a normal situation, you might be able to put a little in a horizontal pipe on the bottom of the joint.
but it is irrelevent.....

in either case, .it wont cause any flow restrictions...


lay it on thick

 

[Master Plumber Mark]

no I havent

lay it on thick

 

[Frenchie]

Speaking as a non-plumber, just a guy who takes apart other people's work a lot...

I've never seen buildup, or a drip, or anything, on the inside of a pipe.

Near as i can tell, solder doesn't really get into the pipe, beyond where you've applied flux.

Filling the pipe is a total myth.

 

[GrumpyPlumber]

Speaking as a non-plumber, just a guy who takes apart other people's work a lot...

I've never seen buildup, or a drip, or anything, on the inside of a pipe.

Near as i can tell, solder doesn't really get into the pipe, beyond where you've applied flux.

Filling the pipe is a total myth.

True, the excess drips out externally.
The rule of using the same length as the diameter is to ensure minimum solder for a joint.

 

[Seaneys]

I noticed that one of the big box stores had solder rings. It looked like the rings were intended to be inserted inside of fittings before it was fluxed, assembled, and heated.

I must admit that it looked rather intriguing. I tend to overheat my connections and find it is easy to use too much solder.

Steve

 

[Redwood]

I noticed that one of the big box stores had solder rings. It looked like the rings were intended to be inserted inside of fittings before it was fluxed, assembled, and heated.

I must admit that it looked rather intriguing. I tend to overheat my connections and find it is easy to use too much solder.

Steve

Avoid gimminks! They seldom work well and they take your money! There is no substitute for the rightway! Learn it!

 

[Construct30]

Waste a couple of fittings and a few short pieces of pipe and practice, practice practice. Solder them and tear them apart and check that the solder covered the inside of the fitting and outside of the pipe with no bare spots.

Sand or wire brush the inside of the fittings and sand the outside of the pipe, buy good emery or cleaning cloth from the plumbing supply, cleaning the pipe and fittings is important.

Solder open pipe, a friend of mine was trying to solder a pipe above his hotwater tank and couldn't get it. I went there and he had water in the line and no valves close by open, that will never work. If the pipes are wet I dry them and then use plumber's bread if there is any moisture in the area I can't get out.

I'm glad I'm not alone in calling filling the pipe with solder a myth. "MYTH BUSTED"

 

[Redwood]

I have seen some occluded joints from excessive solder but it would take extrordinary measures to block one I too say its a myth.

 

[GrumpyPlumber]

Avoid gimminks! They seldom work well and they take your money! There is no substitute for the rightway! Learn it!

Those HD fittings have much less contact surface area with the cavity that holds the solder, I wouldn't use 'em.
Products like this are marketed for people who don't realize it's not that difficult to get the solder into the seam.

I'm glad I'm not alone in calling filling the pipe with solder a myth. "MYTH BUSTED"

Which one are you..Adam, or Jamie?

 

[Construct30]

Which one are you..Adam, or Jamie?

I'm not star material, I would just have to be an intern.

 

[Cwhyu2]

I had ahelper that went to a plumbing trade show & brought back a
sample of flux with solder.I tried it on some clean scrap & looked OK.
But Isaid do not use it on the job.He did anyway & at presure test they
leaked Ihad redo it all the right way.He went back to printing 6mo later

 

[Herk]

I had a helper that went to a plumbing trade show & brought back a
sample of flux with solder.

That stuff works, but you still have to add solder to it. In addition, I found that the burned flux can leak through the joint and cause a lower joint to leak, and reversed my usual procedure of starting at the bottom - instead I started at the top and then soldered the bottom. That solved the problem. Normally, I heat from the lowest joint and move upwards.

As already mentioned, it's best to avoid gimmicks.

 

[Construct30]

Any of the instruction I've read on those presoldered fittings said you still had to add solder. A stupid concept in my opinion.

I like the tinning flux. I've never had a problem with it. It won't work on any of the older solders, 50/50, but no one should be using that unhealthy stuff unless you want to be tarred and feathered. It is designed for use with silver solder.

 

[Cwhyu2]

This was in the early 90s and I remember it saying on the can no
solder neccesary.I guess the jokes on me.

 

[Redwood]

I actually use 2 different fluxes.

For new work where there is no water present and the work is clean and easy. I use NOKORODE® Aqua Flux™. http://www.rectorseal.com/index.php?site_id=1&product_id=240

For repair work which is what I do most often where I'm fighting the water and other factors. I use NOKORODE® Regular Paste Flux.http://www.rectorseal.com/index.php?site_id=1&product_id=239

 

[Construct30]

I actually use 2 different fluxes.

For new work where there is no water present and the work is clean and easy. I use NOKORODE® Aqua Flux™. http://www.rectorseal.com/index.php?site_id=1&product_id=240

For repair work which is what I do most often where I'm fighting the water and other factors. I use NOKORODE® Regular Paste Flux.http://www.rectorseal.com/index.php?site_id=1&product_id=239

I love the stuff.