Home Page link

Solder copper pipes under kitchen sink?

Home| Search | About
Login Password
Register Now! Lost Password?

Home Repair - - If it ain't broken, don't fix it. Otherwise look here. 

Page 1 of 3       1 2 3 > last >> Bookmark this page:  YahooMyWeb Yahoo!  Google Google  Windows Live Favorites Windows Live  del.icio.us del.icio.us  digg digg  Add to Netscape Netscape
Subject Author Date
Solder copper pipes under kitchen sink? Anagram 08-22-2008
If you were  Registered and logged in, you could reply and use other advanced thread options
Posted by Anagram on August 22, 2008, 11:05 pm


Is it common to solder copper pipes under a kitchen sink, or is it almost
universal to use compression connections there? If you found some already
soldered there, and wanted to put new connections in, would you use a torch
to remove the old ones, then use compression connections for the new ones?
Or what?

Especially if pipes come out of a concrete slab foundation, and only stick
up 2 or 3 inches, so there is not much excess pipe length to cut and start
over.

AppliancePartsPros.com, Inc.
Posted by BobK207 on August 23, 2008, 2:01 am


> Is it common to solder copper pipes under a kitchen sink, or is it almost
> universal to use compression connections there? =A0If you found some alre=
ady
> soldered there, and wanted to put new connections in, would you use a tor=
ch
> to remove the old ones, then use compression connections for the new ones=
? =A0
> Or what?
>
> Especially if pipes come out of a concrete slab foundation, and only stic=
k
> up 2 or 3 inches, so there is not much excess pipe length to cut and star=
t
> over.

Take it from an expert....you seem to be way over thinking this (like
I sometimes do)

How does your exsiting plumbing terminate?

If your existing plumbing is soldered & terminates with a threaded
fitting to which the angle stops are attached...just unscrew the old
angle stops & install new ones.

You can plumb your under sink connects just about anyway you want.

Dual outlet angle stops are available to service kitchen sink,
dishwasher & ice maker. Angle stops are hardly ever used so having
the dishwasher share with the sink hot water isn't a huge deal.

I'm not a huge fan of compression fittings but they're quick & easy.

Not being able to see your installation makes it difficult to
determine the best way to go. Some photos or a complete description
fo the existing condition would help.

If your plumbing comes out of the slab, I would not cut any tube
off. I'd use the existing fittings if I could get them to work.
Failing that, I'd sweat off whatever I had to & then use compression
fittings or Shark Bites.

cheers
Bob

Posted by on August 23, 2008, 4:37 am


>
> > Is it common to solder copper pipes under a kitchen sink, or is it almo=
st
> > universal to use compression connections there? =A0If you found some al=
ready
> > soldered there, and wanted to put new connections in, would you use a t=
orch
> > to remove the old ones, then use compression connections for the new on=
es? =A0
> > Or what?
>
> > Especially if pipes come out of a concrete slab foundation, and only st=
ick
> > up 2 or 3 inches, so there is not much excess pipe length to cut and st=
art
> > over.
>
> Take it from an expert....you seem to be way over thinking this (like
> I sometimes do)
>
> How does your exsiting plumbing terminate?
>
> If your existing plumbing is soldered & terminates with a threaded
> fitting to which the angle stops are attached...just unscrew the old
> angle stops & install new ones.
>
> You can plumb your under sink connects just about anyway you want.
>
> Dual outlet angle stops are available to service kitchen sink,
> dishwasher & ice maker. =A0Angle stops are hardly ever used so having
> the dishwasher share with the sink hot water isn't a huge deal.
>
> I'm not a huge fan of compression fittings but they're quick & easy.
>
> Not being able to see your installation makes it difficult to
> determine the best way to go. =A0Some photos or a complete description
> fo the existing condition would help.
>
> If your plumbing comes out of the slab, I would not cut any tube
> off. =A0 I'd use the existing fittings if I could get them to work.
> Failing that, I'd sweat off whatever I had to & then use compression
> fittings or Shark Bites.
>
> cheers
> Bob

It's very common to solder copper pipes under kitchen sinks to do
plumbing up to the angle stops, re-route pipes, etc.

Posted by Anagram on August 23, 2008, 6:56 am


Thanks for the answers. The pipes from the foundation are terminated
with seemingly-soldered adaptors to provide compression threads. One
chromed faucet pipe is stuck in one of those, with the compression nut
unscrewed. The other chromed faucet pipe has been removed by me (easily)
and replaced with a hose designed for connecting to the faucet, and is
now leak-free. Except I still might want to connect other stuff to it.

The lower end of that faucet hose has compression hardware built-in, to
connect directly to the compression threads mentioned above. Is that
kind of hose-end connection reusable? Or does the first-time compression
of it cause it to become significantly less reliable the 2nd time you
compress it? In other words, can you unscrew it, put a valve or tee or
something like that in between, then screw it back, and not expect it to
leak?

As for the stuck pipe, if I cut it and bend it, can I "unscrew" it,
causing it to become unstuck by lots of turning? Or is there a better
way to remove it? It seems like it has something inside catching on the
soldered compression adaptor. And I can't put a lot of force on it to
remove it, because anything I use as a fulcrum to get leverage, just
bends the floor of the under-sink cabinet.

I don't want to destroy the stuck pipe till I'm sure I know how to remove
it, because, presently, even though it has a very minor leak, it's
working, when I put the compression nut back on. And I have to turn off
all the water in the house to work on it, because there is presently no
stop valve there. So, if I cut it and bend it, to try to unscrew it,
we're stuck with no water till I finish the job.

Posted by EXT on August 23, 2008, 11:43 am



> Thanks for the answers. The pipes from the foundation are terminated
> with seemingly-soldered adaptors to provide compression threads. One
> chromed faucet pipe is stuck in one of those, with the compression nut
> unscrewed. The other chromed faucet pipe has been removed by me (easily)
> and replaced with a hose designed for connecting to the faucet, and is
> now leak-free. Except I still might want to connect other stuff to it.
>
> The lower end of that faucet hose has compression hardware built-in, to
> connect directly to the compression threads mentioned above. Is that
> kind of hose-end connection reusable? Or does the first-time compression
> of it cause it to become significantly less reliable the 2nd time you
> compress it? In other words, can you unscrew it, put a valve or tee or
> something like that in between, then screw it back, and not expect it to
> leak?
>
> As for the stuck pipe, if I cut it and bend it, can I "unscrew" it,
> causing it to become unstuck by lots of turning? Or is there a better
> way to remove it? It seems like it has something inside catching on the
> soldered compression adaptor. And I can't put a lot of force on it to
> remove it, because anything I use as a fulcrum to get leverage, just
> bends the floor of the under-sink cabinet.
>
> I don't want to destroy the stuck pipe till I'm sure I know how to remove
> it, because, presently, even though it has a very minor leak, it's
> working, when I put the compression nut back on. And I have to turn off
> all the water in the house to work on it, because there is presently no
> stop valve there. So, if I cut it and bend it, to try to unscrew it,
> we're stuck with no water till I finish the job.

I am confused. It is important to know that compression fittings use a
different threading than threaded pipe fittings. Don't try to mix them or
you will destroy both sets of threads. If you are talking about compression
fittings that use a brass ring on the pipe, they usually cannot reliably be
reused, often leaking. This is why I don't like to use compression fittings
on standard copper pipe such as you have sticking out of the concrete
because the only cure for the crushed copper is to cut it back, which you
don't want to do. I would use only soldered fittings on the pipe with
conversion fittings to adapt to the supply tube and/or valves that you
should install.


Page 1 of 3       1 2 3 > last >>
Similar ThreadsPosted
Solder vs. epoxy for copper pipes? March 4, 2007, 10:05 pm
Silver solder good enough from water & radiator pipes? November 19, 2006, 11:12 am
HD's copper pipe fittings with solder already in them??!! February 13, 2005, 10:54 pm
Which solder paste for water copper pipe? May 18, 2006, 11:40 am
putting some solder on a copper pin hole --- flux or not? June 15, 2008, 9:48 pm
copper water pipe underground solder connections June 16, 2005, 5:29 pm
Does coating stranded copper wire with solder cause any issues or break any codes? February 1, 2006, 3:56 pm
Re: Does coating stranded copper wire with solder cause any issues or break any codes? February 5, 2006, 10:20 am
Gluing copper pipes May 25, 2006, 8:14 pm
Soldering Copper Pipes July 31, 2006, 1:29 pm

Contact Us | Privacy Policy

XML SitemapXML Sitemap