[jim schmidt]

Obviously, the change needed to happen, but this stuff flows nasty. I'll be replumbing for my new kitchen. Any tips?

(Save your anti-green diatribes for another thread please. They are wasted on me.)

 

[kman458]

I have been looking at thinks other than copper and galvi and think I will go with pec to re-plumb the old house which now has galvi of unknown age that is starting to rust through. It uses crimp on connectors and can be run in 1 piece since it is flexible enough to make bends so no having to use multiple pieces to make a run. It is said to have a 50 year service life. The tool to install the clamps are not real cheap and neither are the fitting if I remember right but it should be alot easier to install since you do not have to cut and fit and solder each connection needed and I thing the rental place in town as a couple of the tools for rent.

 

[jim schmidt]

Cool idea, but I'm just working inside the sink cabinet from the copper stub that comes up through the slab. Doesn't sound worth it for me.

 

[kman458]

Yes a bit extreme for a that then. Sorry have not had to mess with the solder since all the pipes in our house are all galvi and are threaded together and run under the floor in a 2 foot crawl space.

 

[OldSchlPunk]

Find some tin/lead solder? Don't know what else to say. I haven't tried the non-lead because I've heard it works like shit. Maybe if I had the time to work with it some, but I don't...

 

[Baatfam]

We've been working with no lead solder on our circuit boards for years now...
Haven't tried in on pluming yet, still have a bunch of leaded stuff...

Two things....more heat and don't expect it to look like a good joint.
A good lead free joint will look grainy and unwetted. Still a good joint though...

Nature of the beast....

And no, it was not necessary...it is a feel good move that does not help anyone except the manufactures of no lead solder...
(Since it cost 4 times as much....)

 

[beowulf2k]

I just got done installing my own central A/C in the house (old house built in the 50's) and the suggestion was to use "silver solder". I started with the small time flux and lead solder and it didnt hold well.
Also get a good butane torch to heat the PIPES up, not the actual solder.

Youtube actually helped me alot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPMHJOgm76M

 

[prodigal27]

Also get a good butane torch to heat the PIPES up, not the actual solder.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPMHJOgm76M

Just watched the video, that's a damn good idea.

 

[FryDaddy]

Check out the shark bite fittings, you can connect copper to copper (or pvc) without soldering. The SharkBite® Connection System Quick, simple & reusuable.

 

[jim schmidt]

Two things....more heat and don't expect it to look like a good joint.
A good lead free joint will look grainy and unwetted. Still a good joint though...

This is what happened when I capped off these pipes.

And no, it was not necessary...it is a feel good move that does not help anyone except the manufactures of no lead solder...
(Since it cost 4 times as much....)

I don't care to argue but my experience consulting for a childhood lead program leads me to believe otherwise.

 

[chaos14]

its a bit more of a pain but not bad, the big thing is normally you puss heat as soon as its hot enough to melt the solder with the lead free once its hot enough to melt it give it another 3-5 seconds then put your solder on also be liberal with the flux

i do love that plastic shit though, i did a house with that stuff and its so much faster

 

[Baatfam]

I don't care to argue but my experience consulting for a childhood lead program leads me to believe otherwise.

Agreed, not in this thread.
I would give you the benefit of doubt anyway, as my experience is in circuit board assembly, which is a different issue altogether...

Take care,
Bob

 

[bassjones]

I'm a soldering tech for flight controls on military and commercial planes and helicopters. FAA and the US Military won't allow lead free solder to be used on anything that flies if that tells you anything. It doesn't flow well, doesn't wet the joint well and worst of all has a tendency to crack under stress. I wouldn't use it on plumbing in my house, I'll tell you that. Remote controls, cell phones, garage door openers and other non-critical soldering joints lead-free is fine, but on anything that could mean a plane going down or anything like that I wouldn't feel comfortable with it.

 

[jim schmidt]

Of course, they don't allow gay people either, so what they allow or don't hardly has to have any logic attached to it. ;-)

 

[bassjones]

look at a circuit board under a 7X microscope and compare lead-free solder and regular solder and you will see exactly why it's banned from faa use. A bad solder joint on the PCB for your garage door opener means you've got to get out of the car and push the button on the side of the garage. A bad solder joint on the PCB in a flight control unit and a plane ends up crashing...

 

[jim schmidt]

Just pointing out the flaw in your logic, dude. I have no doubt you're an expert circuit board inspector. Thanks for the advice.

 

[bassjones]

technically, I am actually... I have a neat certificate and everything.

Regardless, for your application the lead free is probably the better choice since people actually drink water from those pipes... Only problem would arise if there ever is a leak. With regular solder, just hit it with some flux and the torch and reflow the solder joint. Lead free doesn't reflow as easily, especially after sitting for a while. It looks ugly as hell, but as long as the joint's not leaking water who cares...

 

[jim schmidt]

That's probably the bottom line, but it looks so nasty that I thought I should see if there was something dramatically different about the procedure.

Well, and it does leave me unhappy with the aesthetics of my work.

 

[bassjones]

no, it just looks ugly is all. re check it every so often because it could crack and start leaking at the joints. Probably not, but it is a little more likely.

 

[Scissors]

Duck tape. Problem solved.