Compressed air piping: Fitting question

Yes. Copper works well for this.

Or learn to sweat them. Except for the connectors, of course. Really easy, and a lot cheaper. On 1", probably a lot cheaper.

Steve

Solder ring fittings are almost idiot proof, as long as clean beforehand, and a little bit of flux smeared on.

1" copper? You need that much CFM?? Compression is fine, solder would be better, cheaper. Greg

Into the storm!!! Copper is NOT for air lines! DON'T DO IT!!! My insurance inspector, fire inspector, and building inspector all go into siezures at the mention of copper air lines. It's illegal here, probably for a reason. If you're going to use copper, why not PVC? 1"??? What are you're needs for that much air? Please use black pipe, PLEASE!!!

Elaborate, please?

Here, where?

Into the storm indeed!

Jim

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PVC flies into shards for little reason. Copper (as long as you don't use it to connect to vibrating machinary) works well.

Yes, I knew this thread would arrive here sooner or later.

I "plummed" my shop with 1/2" air hose. It may be a crime or a sin, but it seems to me that's what the stuff is made for. Cheapest/quickest solution I could find. Has been working great for 10 years now. It still looks like new, but if it were to fray, bulge, or rot, I could re-do the whole system in half a day.

Why would you do anything else?

Chuckle..in California, its not only legal, but recommended.

However..I still install black pipe in customers sites, even though its more expensive.

Gunner

That rifle hanging on the wall of the working-class flat or labourer's cottage is the symbol of democracy. It is our job to see that it stays there. - George Orwell

I have been considering this. Right now I have 1" PVC. I knew, when putting it up, that it would need to be replaced. I needed air in a hurry and the PVC was fastest. I worked in a shop where the PVC blew up on a regular basis. But if I use air hose it will need to be at least 1". Any smaller entrains too much moisture. ERS

Evidently the anti-copper poster was way too far into the trade union dogma, and too lightly into practical experience in an industrial or shop environment.

Copper is easy to install with soldered fittings, even in complex installations, and can withstand moderately high air pressures without the risk of fragmentation posed by alternative materials. I've personally had PVC dryer assemblies burst (explode), and it was a a very loud noise and a very ugly scene. Fortunately no one was in the area at the time, because the fragmentation damage to the area was extensive (this was on a system involving only 90 PSI air supply).

To this I will only add, never use PVC or black iron pipe, becuase both can fragmentate under pressure excursions (which do happen from time-time-to time). By contrast, copper will generally just burst a seam (although in over 30 years I've never seen this happen with compressed air). Black iron pipe is primarily sold ONLY for low pressure gas lines.)

If you're dealing with very high pressures, say between 400 and 6,000 psi, seamless stainless steel tubing is the only reliable choice, but generally with air lines, most of us are not dealing with those kinds of pressures.

Harry C.

Copper joined with Sil-Phos seems to be fairly standard with A/C piping (at least, here on the eastern side of the pond :-). A/C duty is more severe than compressed air duty. I can't see why Tom would be so upset about copper for home workshop use. I will be plumbing in the new workshop about September, and have no particular bias towards iron or copper (or Admiralty brass for that matter), so please help me make up my mind folks.

Mark Rand RTFM

FWIW at my plant the standard for nearly all the process gasses (and this includes 120 psi compressed air) is copper joined with sil-phos.

The only ones not done that way are clean boil-off nitrogen, which is run in specially de-greased seamless stainless steel tubing.

Jim

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I think of all the black pipe I have had to run over the years and all the cutting, threading, lifting, screwing and wrenching I have had to do any along comes ...copper? Why shouldn't EVERYONE have to suffer the back-breaking work that I have had to do? Why should THEY get away with an easy job? (ok, I have copper at home) But I stick to my guns about NO PVC!

Yup. Same experience here. My 1/2" copper air lines have been in service for close to 10 years and have never had a problem or failure.

As long as you use a loop of rubber tubing between the compressor and copper lines to absorb vibration, a copper air line system will probably outlive your need for it.

Tim

All I know is that my 20 hp Quincy compressor states in the manual to NEVER use soldered fittings on copper pipe used for compressed air.. ONLY flared or compression fittings for copper pipe BTW they plumb the whole machine with compression fittings and copper pipe. I would also like to hear about the exploding black iron pipe??

William...

Aahh. I can live with that reasoning! Would copper be all right if I tie bricks to the pipe while fitting it to make it heavy and make the brackets out of hand carved phosphor bronze blocks

Regards Mark Rand RTFM

Not just your plant. Most of Silicon Valley uses copper for non corrosive/non ultrpure gasses.

THAT'S the spirit!!! You are a man, you must suffer!