Can you bend rigid copper

Dense materials packed inside the copper pipe produce an effect much like pipe bending springs. They prevent any single area from receiving all of the bending force. Instead, the force is distributed along the entire length of the curve. Fine sand and salt can be used. Like sand and salt, water is another dense material that can be used to fill a copper pipe for bending. Even though water is denser in its fluid state than as ice, freezing the water helps to better contain it in the copper pipe.

A pipe bender is a small, inexpensive, dedicated tool that does only one thing but does it very well. It bends various sizes of copper and other soft metal pipes to a set radius, usually about 2 or 3 inches.

Shaped like a set of pliers, a pipe bender allows for the insertion of pipes down the middle. A marked gauge indicates the angle of the bend, from 0 up to 90 degrees. The secret of pipe benders is that the top part of the tool—the shoe—travels along with the bend, ensuring a smooth curve. For anyone who needs to bend copper pipes frequently, a pipe bender is a good investment. Actively scan device characteristics for identification.

Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Tips For Bending Copper Pipe Pipe Support : Supporting the copper pipe along the entire length of its bend is key to a consistent shape.

Support can either be inside or outside of the pipe. Bend Slowly : Bending the copper pipe quickly might still crimp it, even if it is properly supported. You have been brainwashed. He was not referring to the copper coming out of the floor, he meant the horizontal runs in the basement. Why would my horizontal runs look like crap? Those are hard copper, straight, square and level. Could you be more specific about your technique? What do you use to heat the tube and for how long? What is the maximum bend then possible?

Will the annealed portion be strong enough to resist bending from pounds of external force? Search for plumbing parts on our sponsor's site:. Special thanks to our sponsor:. Over , strictly plumbing related posts. How to Show Images. Bending Hard-drawn L Copper Pipe. Author: george Bending hard-drawn pipe is prohibited in our plumbing code and yet I come across it all the time. Post Reply. Author: shacko MD Even though it was a no-no I and others have bent it for years by heating, the only thing I see wrong is not flushing it out when you're done; heat creates a slag type of deposit on the inside.

Author: packy MA well, if it's a code violation to bend tubing, then there must be millions of violations with chrome risers for toilets and lavs. Author: LemonPlumber FL no way dude. I have done it many times. Author: Shoemaker2 MA And with a wheeler bender you need not heat it. Author: hj AZ They are not annealed copper tubing pieces. Author: hj AZ Copper is drawn, not rolled, so there is no seam. I never heated galvanized pipe to bend it.

Author: hj AZ I thought that was why they made regular and street 45's. Author: hj AZ As long as you keep the bender in contact with the tubing it works, but if you even let it move away a little bit, the tubing will kink. Either a tool called a bending spring is used or a proprietary plumbers pipe bender is used. If you attempt to bend copper pipe without either of these tools it will kink.

Kinks in pipes of any kind reduce the diameter of a pipe and if the diameter is reduced, the flow is reduced and the whole system becomes less effective as well as being more prone to blockage.

This is one of the reasons plumbers bend pipes rather than simply cut the pipe and put a bend fitting like an elbow into the run to change direction.

Pipe fittings change direction very quickly to allow tight corners to be formed but the very tightness of these corners can reduce the effectiveness of the pipe run. As the water flows down the "straight" all of a sudden it encounters a tight, right angled bend.

Because the bend is so tight the water simply hits the side of the fitting before going round the corner. This turbulence in the water can cause air bubbles which, if allowed to collect, can cause air locks. Air locks, at best, can be a nuisance in a water system. At worst they can damage the system altogether. Pipe benders come in a variety of sizes catering for copper pipes from 6mm to 38mm and are operated by hand. Mechanical benders deal with pipes bigger than this.

The multi bender, as the name suggests, will take many different sizes of pipe, while the mini bender will take the smaller diameter pipes. Bending copper pipes also reduces the number of fittings used and although this probably would not make a great deal of difference to the DIY enthusiast as the cost of a pipe bender for 2 days is probably more than the cost of the appropriate fittings, it is important to a plumber who probably saves over fittings in the course of a year.

Also, as with any other system in a house which contains many parts, the greater the number of pieces involved, the more there is to go wrong. If a pipe can be bent to do the job, it is impossible for it to leak. If it has fittings in the run; it can! Pipe springs are just that. Springs which go in pipes. Putting a spring into a pipe before applying pressure to bend it, will stop the pipe kinking.

You will not see many plumbers using springs however as it is very hard to keep the bend neat and to the correct diameter. Pipe springs can be used in pipes up to 22mm diameter but bending a 22mm pipe with a spring is a herculean task which none of us would attempt.