| In the past, plumbing pipes were often iron or lead. | | | | supported during the pro¬cess or it will kink. Smaller |
| Each has its advantages and disadvantages - lead, for | | | | diameters can be bent by hand with the aid of a |
| example, is easy to bend but it requires skill to join, it | | | | bending spring. This is a stiff metal coil of nearly the |
| is expensive and lead plumbing systems have been a | | | | same diameter as the inside of the pipe. It is pushed |
| contributory factor towards lead poisoning in soft | | | | into the pipe around the point where the bend is to |
| water areas. Nowadays, most plumbing pipes are | | | | be made and supports the pipe during bending. The |
| copper, though stainless steel and rigid and flexible | | | | spring should be compressed a little - by turning it - |
| plastics are sometimes used. Plastic pipe is becoming | | | | before attempting to with¬draw it. You need one |
| more common for the cold water service pipe in new | | | | for each size of copper pipe. Pipe can also be bent |
| houses. | | | | using a bending machine. |
| Copper pipe | | | | For most small plumbing jobs, bending springs are |
| Copper pipe is generally easily available and fairly easy | | | | probably all that you need -with these you can make |
| to work with. It comes in various sizes and is sized | | | | bends of dif¬ferent radii, make bends near the end |
| by its outside diameter - 15mm, 22mm and 28mm | | | | of a length of pipe (but with difficulty) and bend |
| are the most common sizes. Main runs and pipes | | | | pipes up to and including those of 22mm diameter. |
| feeding bath taps and the hot water cylinder are | | | | They are also inex¬pensive to buy, but require |
| usually 22mm pipe. Pipes to all other taps are usually | | | | effort to use. |
| 15mm in diameter. The 28mm size might be used for | | | | For large plumbing jobs involving a lot of bending, a |
| some boiler pipes and sometimes for feeding the hot | | | | machine is worth having they are very expensive to |
| water cylinder (instead of 22mm pipe). | | | | buy but can be hired. A machine takes most of the |
| Copper pipe can be cut with a fine-toothed hacksaw | | | | effort out of bending any size of pipe but the radius |
| or with a special pipe ¬cutting tool. Care must be | | | | of the bend is fixed, and it requires practice to get |
| taken when using a hacksaw to cut the end of the | | | | the bend in the right place. |
| pipe exactly square, and the cut must be filed | | | | You can get corrugated hand-bendable pipe in lengths |
| smooth both inside and out. A pipe cutter tends to | | | | up to 550mm. This is easy to bend and is ideal for |
| leave a burr on the inside of the pipe - this should be | | | | use in awkward situations - such as making the final |
| filed off or removed with the pointed reamer on the | | | | connections to bath taps. Some hand-bendable pipes |
| pipe cutter. | | | | come with a tap connector already fitted. |
| Copper pipe can be bent fairly readily but it must be | | | | |