Do It Yourself Plumbing Tips - Soldering Copper Pipe

When you are going to do your own plumbing repairs, there are a few things that can make your life a lot easier. Although soldering can be a very fast thing to learn there are things that can cause you a tremendous amount of time and frustration. It is always a good idea to practice on scrap pieces of copper if this is your first attempt, but ultimately the only way to know if you have done the job correct is to do the job and then look for leaks.

To help you alleviate some of the possible problems, use the following tips.

1. Make sure the pipe is clean and free of burrs before you start. Even with new copper pipe, you will want to run a wire brush on the inside of the pipe and a deburring tool then emery cloth on the outside. It is very frustrating if a small burr, or contaminates are stopping you from getting a clean soldered joint.

2. Always apply lead free flux to the pipes. Cover approximately one inch of pipe with the paste and prefit it to make sure the flux gets on both pieces to be soldered. A slight twist will further ensure the flux is spread evenly.

3. Fit the pipe into both fittings that are to be soldered. If you have on end free it will be contaminated by soot, and you will have to clean it again, and re-apply flux. This is annoying when you are working with hot parts, as you will not know if your fresh flux has properly spread on the pipe. It is far easier to have your copper pipes all prefit before you use the torch.

4. A thing called capillary action will occur when you have achieved the proper heat level and solder contact on the joint. Basically, when the pipe and fitting are at optimum heat the solder will be 'sucked' into the joint. You can easily see this action. Once this has happened you can be comfortable that you have a good seal on your joint. A properly soldered joint will have a thin bead of solder around the fitting.

5. Clean off excess solder from the joint. Although it does not affect the seal, it can be a problem if there is a leak. If a joint is not cleaned of extra solder and a leak is present it can cause the water to spray in odd patterns and make it more difficult to pin-point where the leak is.

6. If there is a leak don't just add more solder, take the joint apart, and redo it from step one. Rarely can you get a bad joint to accept more solder and seal properly. You will actually save time by taking it apart, recleaning and soldering again. Also it is very difficult to solder when there is water in the pipes.

Soldering is not a difficult do it yourself plumbing project, but if you skip steps or try to rush, you can create a huge mess. Plan your project, pre-fit all your parts, and follow the six tips and you will have a successful plumbing project.