Any one else terrified of Copper plumbing

I hate putting it together as i cant...always leaks....i hate anything to do with it...even removing it.



I hate how it seems really weak.
And any time a pipe freezes and explodes it seems always to be copper....

I am converting all my plumbing from 1/2 copper to 3/4 galvanized......so far we are loving the amazing water pressure


Anyone else feel the same about copper or should i just get over my fear and hate.

Also, am I asking for trouble by connecting a 3/4 galvinized to a 1/2 copper? too much pressure at adapter maybe?

87vertgt said:

I hate putting it together as i cant...always leaks....i hate anything to do with it...even removing it.



I hate how it seems really weak.
And any time a pipe freezes and explodes it seems always to be copper....

I am converting all my plumbing from 1/2 copper to 3/4 galvanized......so far we are loving the amazing water pressure


Anyone else feel the same about copper or should i just get over my fear and hate.

Also, am I asking for trouble by connecting a 3/4 galvinized to a 1/2 copper? too much pressure at adapter maybe?

Click to expand...

If you are in Chicago don't worry about pressure. The max working pressure I have seen in Chicago is 40 PSI the normal PSI is around 35. From your comments about copper pipe I take it you are not a plumber. Any plumber that works in the Chicago land area can sweat a copper pipe with out leaks. As for freezing I seen galvanized pipe split as well due to improper freeze protection.

One other note, I know Chicago allows Type M copper for water pipes, but personally I only use Type L.

I love copper.

I'd buy everything in copper if I could.

This was my latest copper purchase:



In fact, the only thing I love more than copper is brass!

You can't be serious about removing copper and putting in galvanized - right?

That would be an enormous undertaking, having to cut and thread all those joints. Eventually, galvanized will rust from inside and become increasingly occluded.

I went through a similar phase. I used to love sweating copper joints and was very confident. Then, I went through a period where it seemed like I couldn't sweat a leak-free joint so lost my nerve. From this very forum I learned what I was doing wrong. In every case it boiled down to having water in the line interfere with the joint being sweated. Even a stray drop of water hitting a joint you are in the process of soldering can spoil the joint. I learned to really, really make sure there was no more water in the line. For one thing, it's smart to open up every faucet and flush every toilet, to get the water out of all the pipes upstream of the joint you are working on.

The other thing I was doing wrong was soldering on a closed system. If you are soldering a joint and there is no open faucet or other way for the hot air/water vapor to escape, it will escape through the joint you are sweating, leaving you with a leak. Solution to that is easy - always have an opening somewhere in the line on which you are working.

If you do these things, and properly clean and flux your joints, and don't overheat them, you will do just fine. I'm back in the saddle and again feel like I can almost always solder a leak-proof joint.

terrified of what???

I am much more scared of pex pipe over copper....

those fittings are ticking time bombs.
just waiting to go off.


Copper is great, no problems at all.....


type M Copper pipe in our area has to with
stand pressures above 140psi..in many areas of town

and on average it is above about 95 everywhere.....



40 psi, thats nothing
you got it easy in Chicago...I would also guess that things
like water heaters dont wear out too quickly there either.....

Properly sanded, fluxed etc copper is great, all in the prep & soldering
I don't want Pex...ever
And have you SEEN galvy corrosion ??
You want to drink from that

In your other post, you mentioned putting in some boilers. When you refer here to copper, are you talking about HEAT, which maybe you could justify galv. in a closed system. You CAN'T be talking about domestic water service? Switching from copper back to galv. would be like trading your Dodge Ram in on a Diamond/Reo.

Come on guys I seen 1000's of homes with Galvanized pipe and it flow perfectly fine. All depends on water quality I guess. I have gone in homes that are 80+ years old and cut and thread old 3/4" galvanized pipes with out any issues.

But what I can not see is someone taking out copper to install galvanized pipes. That is a whole lot of work cutting and threading the hot and cold piping in a home.

Sweating copper is not rocket science for God's sake! A few basic principals have to be observed, but they are so simple anyone can do it. Deburr the cut ends, sand the end of the pipe and inside of the fitting, flux, heat the fitting until solder flows, remove the heat, run the solder around the fitting, wipe with a damp cloth, and allow the joint to cool before moving. If working with pipes that have water, all water must be removed before soldering. Do those thing on every joint and you will never have a leak. As far as freezing, you have to prevent pipes of any kind from freezing.

pipes

If you cannot solder a few joints without getting leaks, maybe you should not be doing plumbing, especially if you think using larger pipes is going to increase pressure on the adapters.

jimbo said:

In your other post, you mentioned putting in some boilers. When you refer here to copper, are you talking about HEAT, which maybe you could justify galv. in a closed system. You CAN'T be talking about domestic water service? Switching from copper back to galv. would be like trading your Dodge Ram in on a Diamond/Reo.

Click to expand...

nah...am talking bout boiler to sink plumbing etc

not sure what a Diamond Reo is but am assuming it's a inferior vehicle

Ian Gills said:

I love copper.

I'd buy everything in copper if I could.

This was my latest copper purchase:

In fact, the only thing I love more than copper is brass!

Click to expand...

i hear ya...i love copper that has been aged......

like I said I cant connect them pipes for chit!

Just think Ian...you can solder all your copper into 1 big pile...and even the brass will solder...

?

Diamond Reo an inferior product? I hope you never say that to a big rig driver who owns one.

You guys do know that you're being scammed right?

What he said...

nhmaster said:

You guys do know that you're being scammed right?

Click to expand...

So - he's trying to sell us galvanized pipe and fittings?

No, he's trying to start an argument.