How to solder pipes

In many houses you can find pipes made of polypropylene. This material has long overtaken cast iron in its qualities. Therefore, many seek to replace the iron. But not everyone is ready to call the master to conduct this procedure. Therefore, the question arises: how to solder pipes made of polypropylene for heating?

Pipes made of polypropylene can withstand temperatures up to 140 degrees.

First of all, I would like to mention a few points regarding this material. Despite the fact that the manufacturer indicates the maximum operating temperature of 95 ° C, in fact, this figure reaches 140 ° C. But this does not mean that water should be at this value all the time. This will cause the pipe to start to deform, losing its hardness. Therefore, if in winter, when opening a hot water tap, you observe steam, it is better to choose copper or galvanized pipes. In other cases, polypropylene is suitable.

Polypropylene pipe reinforcement

The scheme of reinforcement pipes made of polypropylene.

Pipes made of polypropylene have one feature: strong heat affects their linear dimensions. For example, if such a pipe is located on a long straight section, then with time, under the influence of high temperatures, it will become wavy and begin to sag.

Also in the case of a thick riser made of such material, made from slab to slab or bounded by thick fittings, troubles arise under the resulting stress.

To solve such problems, experts recommend acting in one of the following ways:

1. To increase strength, you can use the method of reinforcement. This will help reduce the "stretching" of polypropylene by about 5 times. Moreover, this “improvement” allows not to be afraid of great pressure.
2. It is possible to use compensators, which are U-shaped bends made from a straight pipe segment. Despite the fact that the material will be lengthened, its shape will remain straight, as the shape legs themselves will begin to converge.

The best solution to the problem would be if both methods were applied to the heating system.

Pipe connection by soldering.

How to reinforce pipes made of polypropylene? Since reinforcement is an additional iron layer, this will in many respects influence the soldering of such heating pipes. It also becomes important how the pipeline was reinforced.

If fiberglass was used for this purpose, it would not cause any special difficulties, since the installation technology will remain the same as that of an ordinary pipe.

But if the system has aluminum reinforcement, then, before starting to solder the elements, it is necessary to carry out a stripping operation. To do this, use the shaver. When it comes to heating, the question of reinforcing pipes should not even arise.

Tools that you need for soldering pipes

We need a soldering iron of a special modification (a soldering iron for pipes made of polypropylene).

The device is a soldering iron for propylene pipes.

The simplest type has a power of 800 watts, which is enough for homework. Such an indicator does not affect the soldering in any way; it only depends on how quickly the tool warms up. The standard set has nozzles with a cross section of 20, 25 and 32 mm. That's enough to make a home plumbing.

In addition to the soldering iron, you should purchase:

• measuring tape;
• pencil or marker;
• hacksaw for metal work;
• sharp knife.

Additional but optional tools may be:

1. Pipe cutter scissors for polypropylene. With their help it is easy to make a pipe cut at 90 °. By the way, if there is no soldering iron at home and you have to buy it, then some low-cost soldering irons already have the above mentioned tool in their build.
2. Shaver No need to purchase an expensive model.

Technology of soldering heating pipes made of polypropylene

The stages of work are as follows:

For pipe cutting, manual pipe cutters and pipe shears are needed.

1. Initially, the pipe is laid out on the required lengths. But here it is necessary to remember about the fittings, so 1.4-2.5 cm is added to each segment. Then they are cut into blanks.
2. The soldering iron is equipped with the necessary nozzle and turned on for heating. This may take a few minutes. If a specialized soldering iron is used, then there is no need to adjust the temperature. But if this is a universal model, then to solder polypropylene, you need a temperature of 260-280 ° C.
3. While the soldering iron is being heated, preparatory work is being carried out on the pipes. For this, the outer side is chamfered. With this work the master will cope. If the pipe has an outer layer of aluminum, then it is simply inserted into the stripping device and scrolled several times. If the reinforcement is internal, the stripping is pressed to one side of the pipe and, with application of force, is again scrolled.
4. After the blanks are processed, they are alternately equipped with fittings. They are worn on the side where the end is narrower. The wide end of the tubes connects to the nozzle. Immediately it should be noted that if thick-walled fittings were purchased, the heating process will be longer. As soon as the surface begins to melt, the pipe of future heating is inserted into the coupling and keeps motionless for 10 seconds.

Connection for heating is ready. Thus, all segments are soldered, creating the necessary construction.

Some practical tips

A beginner needs to know a few tips that are recommended to follow:

Technical parameters of soldering polypropylene pipes.

1. Chamfering is required. If you do not get rid of it, then at the moment of connecting the pipe and fitting, the softened plastic will be damaged, losing its integrity. And this, in turn, is fraught with leaks in the system, besides the pipe will lose its strength.
2. The pipe is inserted into the sleeve, and not screwed. Polypropylene becomes soft when heated, and any unnecessary defects will lead to the fact that its surface becomes wavy. This adversely affects the reliability of the connection.
3. Work with both the fitting and the pipe should be up to the stop. If you leave gaps, the soldering will be superficial, and the end of the pipe itself must be soldered to the coupling. This rule should not be neglected when it comes to heating pipes made of polypropylene with aluminum reinforcement from the inside.
4. After the soldering work is finished, the soldering iron tip should be cleaned. Many try to remove the remaining polypropylene with metallic materials. In no case can this be done. For this purpose, you can use a piece of coarse fabric. It should be remembered about the high temperature of the tip, otherwise you can get burned.
5. If pipes used for heating have a diameter of more than 40 mm, then you should make a 45 ° bevel at the end. This is done in order to avoid a bully in the process of joining the blanks.

Before starting the main work, you should prepare.

First, the pipes need to be cleaned of any pollution, because they were stored in the warehouse, which means they are covered with dust, and maybe even dirt. It is also desirable to degrease the surface, for which you can use special tools.

Secondly, all cutting tools must have good sharpness. For this you can use unnecessary material. If a pair of scissors or a hacksaw is left on the cutting edge of a burr, then you should take care of sharpening. Otherwise, such a defect may affect the quality of the connections.

In general, spike pipes made of polypropylene for heating should not cause any particular problems. Need to adhere to the process technology.