How to solder plastic pipes by hand - detailed instructions

If you made the decision on your own to make a water supply for your house, then know that the best material for this will be plastic pipes. In order to connect the pipes into a single system, you need to imagine how the welding of the plastic is done. However, do not be intimidated by this, because the process of soldering plastic pipes is not particularly complicated and does not require a large number of special tools.

For welding you will need:

• tape measure;
• marker;
• building level;
• scissors for cutting plastic pipes;
• welding device for plastic pipes.

All tools, except the last one, are available in almost any skilled man. The latter may be required only once in your life, so it is much more expedient not to buy it, but to borrow or hire it.

Briefly about the welding machine

Before starting soldering, you should briefly get acquainted with the device that you are going to use.

An important element of the welding machine is a sole equipped with heating elements. The convenience of work is ensured by the fact that there are holes on the sole that allow fixing special soldering tips. The temperature is adjusted by means of a thermostat located on the housing.

Soldering process for

When soldering, the device must be installed in the correct position and the nozzles of a suitable size fixed on it. Using the thermostat, set the required temperature:

• 260 ° C for polypropylene pipes;
• 220 ° C for polyethylene pipes.

Allow the unit to warm up for 10-20 minutes until the indicator goes out.

When carrying out soldering, the following data must be taken into account:

Soldering process is reduced to the following operations:

• Using specialscissors, cut off a pipe of the necessary length, with the help of an alcohol solution, cleanse the dirt and grease of the joints;
• Pipe and return flare in the nozzle and warm up for the time specified in the table;
• Heat the heated elements together by inserting the pipe into the socket. This operation should be performed within the time, named in the table by the technological pause;
• After completing the operation, check the quality of the welded joint obtained, which will be noticeable in the form of plastic rings.

Recommendations for correct soldering

We just outlined the essence of the soldering process. However, to ensure the reliability of the pipeline, the following details should be noted:

• The first welding operation should be performed after five minutes after the soldering iron warms up.
• If necessary, weld the reinforced pipes, use a special tool called a shaver to remove aluminum and polypropylene forming the two upper layers from the pipe. After this, the pipes are mated according to the method already described.
• Welding work must be carried out only when the ambient temperature is above zero.
• After welding, allow the connected pipes to cool, preventing them from scrolling or moving together. In the event that the connecting seam has turned out to be of poor quality, the unit must be cut and the welding process must be performed anew.

Working with the welding machine, certain precautions must be observed, non-observance of which can affect the quality of welded joints. In particular, it is necessary to remember that the nozzles have a Teflon coating, which prevents the formation of carbon deposits. At the end of each operation, the melted residues must be removed from them using a wooden spatula. It is strictly forbidden to remove residual material after cooling the nozzles, as this can damage the coating and cause a malfunction of the whole apparatus.