Plumbing - Can you overheat a solder ring joint

tiana_h

It may not sound like it from the question, but I have done a reasonable bit of DIY plumbing in my house using ring solder joints and have been sucessful to date (ie, not had one leak yet). However, the one I'm about to do is causing me some concern. I need to put in an elbow joint on the gound floor of our house under the floor boards. It being the ground floor is relevant in that the joint is tucked down between a brick wall and a brick sleeper row.

There's about 2 cm clearance between the pipework and the bricks but I can only apply the flame from the top of the joint. With all the joints I've done to date, I've only applied the flame until I see the solder wick around the joint. In this case, I have not got as good a visibility of the joint to be able to check the point at which the solder has wicked. So what I'm thinking of doing is applying the flame for a lot longer than I would normally to ensure that the solder has sealed the joint.

Which leads on to the question for you experts out there - can you apply too much heat to a solder ring joint and will the joint somehow detiriorate if the flame is applied for too long?

By the way, although this is in an awkward position, it's not hazardous. The pipework is surrounded on three sides with a brickwall, a brick sleeper, and the earth on which the sleeper row sits.

wallbash

Interesting question, as most of us just heat until we see the solder, never tried to 'overheat'

Take it you cant get a compression fitting there, my first choice as you can always have second ( or third) attempt.

Thought about push fit?
Mirror??

MX5huggy

Yes you can over heat it, the solder will just all run out leaving a dry joint that will leak. If you can see the one side of the joint just heat it in the middle until the side you can see is made then you can presume the other side is made.

Could you make the joint or (put a bend in) out of position then fit it.

tiana_h

Thanks guys.

wallbash wrote: »

Interesting question, as most of us just heat until we see the solder, never tried to 'overheat'

Take it you cant get a compression fitting there, my first choice as you can always have second ( or third) attempt.

Thought about push fit?
Mirror??

Compression is definitely out of the question I'm afraid. And pushfit seems to go against the grain (it just doesn't feel right that a joint with a rubber seal on a hot pipe is going to last - perhaps rubber doesn't age like it used to!) - it could be an option though.

MX5huggy wrote: »

Yes you can over heat it, the solder will just all run out leaving a dry joint that will leak. If you can see the one side of the joint just heat it in the middle until the side you can see is made then you can presume the other side is made.

Could you make the joint or (put a bend in) out of position then fit it.

Unfortunately, the pipe that I'm connecting to is coming through the wall and is angled downwards so it's not possible to pre-make the joint.

I suspected that overheating it could be a problem. The elbow is pointing downwards so if the solder did run out of the joint it will run inside into the bottom of the elbow so, even with a mirror under the joint, I don't think I will be able to detect the point when it starts to run.

The pipes I'm connecting to are already all plumbed in so if it goes wrong I'll have to redo those. I think I'll get some old bricks and set up a type of test rig and give it a try first. I'd rather waste a couple elbows and a bit of pipe rather than attempt it from cold (if you pardon the inverse pun).

wallbash

And pushfit seems to go against the grain (it just doesn't feel right that a joint with a rubber seal on a hot pipe is going to last - perhaps rubber doesn't age like it used to!)

Move with the times!

More and more work is being done with plastic, I know a lot of plumbers are reluctant to change, they have worked with copper for too many years. But those that have moved on , are very enthusiastic.

Ruski

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncY4G6ltHfg&index=10&list=UUhwPs1xVLtSl6FCMU4i3I_Q


You'd be very unlucky to do worse than this!!


HTH


Russ