10 Types of Pipe Fittings and their Uses
Pipe fittings are widely required for all plumbing and other piping systems used for industrial and commercial purposes. Fittings allow you to connect or install the pipe in the appropriate location and block or close the pipe, if necessary.
Fittings come in a variety of shapes and sizes. It can be expensive and time-consuming; also, different materials and tools are used to install them. But they are an integral part of the plumbing and other piping systems.
Thousands of special fittings are available out there. Each type of pipe or tube requires its type of fitting, but in general, all fittings have some common features.
In this guide, you will find some of the pipe fittings along with their uses.
What are Pipe Fittings?
Pipe Fittings or adapters are used in pipe systems to connect pipes or straight sections of ducts, adapt to different sizes and shapes, adjust (or measure) the fluid flow, etc. These fittings control the movement of water, gas, or liquid waste in a home or commercial environment within a pipe or pipe system.
Pipe fittings require money, time, materials, and tools to install and are a significant part of plumbing and piping systems.
Types of Pipe Fittings and their Uses
Plastic Pipe Fittings such as PPRC, HDPE, Tube well, or UPVC Pipe Fittings offer a variety of fittings and plastic pipe accessories. These fittings are applicable in everyday life applications such as petroleum, chemical industry, urban construction, shipbuilding, water supply, and drainage.
1. Barb
Barbs are commonly applicable from connecting tubes to PVC Pipe Fittings. It is necessary to have a male junction at one end and on the other terminal has a barbed tube, i.e., ridged and tapered cone.
Besides, Plastic thorns carry cold water, and brass barbs hold hot water.
2. Coupling
Coupling chiefly connects two PVC Pipe Fittings of the same diameter. In addition, it fixes pile leaks and broken issues. There are two main types of Couplings, known as compression Couplings and slip Couplings. Compression couplings primarily connect two pipes and prevent leakage by placing seals or rubber seals on both sides. Otherwise, we can use glue.
The slip clutch has two tubes, one placed inside the other. The inner tube slides to a certain length. Therefore, using a slip clutch can solve the problem of damage to long pipes.
3. Double Tapped Bushing
A double-threaded socket is a kind of nipple in itself, but it requires threads both inside and outside. It converts a single tank or pipe opening to two smaller threaded holes from the top and bottom. There is only one feminine ending.
Double Tapped Bushing is best in reducing the tank or pipe opening thread size.
4. Elbow
Commonly used to change the direction of PVC Pipe Fittings, Elbows are available in various angles of 22.5°, 45° and 90°.
The Regular Elbows are best for pipes of the same diameter. In addition, reduced elbows make detours to pipes of different diameters of different materials. Elbows are usually available with female threads. Experts can mount them by butt or socket welds.
The elbow is applicable from simple to demanding movements such as lifting heavy weights. Moreover, it combine, divert or reduce the flow of the water supply.
5. Mechanical Sleeve
Mechanical pipe sleeves connect two plastic pipe fittings with screws or other fasteners. Since Rubber material produces mechanical sleeves, this arrangement simplifies patches and repairs resulting in stainless steel clamp. In addition to its property, the rubber inside is compressed and sealed when tightened.
Insulation applications of Mechanical sleeves are the straightforward, quickest & neatest method to extend pipe lengths. Moreover, they are easy to cover and protect radiator pipes.
6. Cross-Type
Cross-shaped PVC Pipe Fittings have four openings or openings in all four directions and are perpendicular to each other. This type of fitting is applicable when four pipes meet at the mutual location.
These tube fittings need to be made of durable material, as they need to withstand more loads. These tensions arise from the fact that all four pipes connect from different directions. These pipe fittings are primarily applicable in sprinkler systems.
7. Adapters
Adapters stretch pipe strings of the same or different diameters forward. You can connect two dislike pipes on the same course by using an adapter. The adapter is similar to pipe coupling, except that it connects different types of pipes, such as IPS (Iron Pipe Size).
It can have female or male IPS or threads on one end of the opposite sex on the other end, which needs to be welded or soldered to a smaller pipe. Adapters is appropriate for various utilities but are typically used to connect different tubes to appliances.
8. Nipple
It is the most valuable pipe fastener in plumbing systems where PVC Pipe Fittings are widely pertinent. The nipples do not connect two pipes, but they do connect the two pipe fittings.
It is a small pipe joint of metal (copper, brass, steel, or chlorinated polyvinyl chloride), which comes in different lengths.
Nipples are widely available with male threads that make a watertight seal when connecting piping to thread fittings, valves or equipment.
9. Reducer
Fittings that reduces a larger flow area are reducers. There are two types of concentric reducers. One connects two pipes on the same axis, and the other, the eccentric reducer, combines pipes of different diameters. The concentric reducer is almost conical, but the eccentric reducer looks like a bell with an offset centerline as it prevents air bubbles in the pipe. Professional uses reducers to lessen the PVC Pipe Fittings size from a larger bore to a smaller bore (inner diameter).
10. Tee
With a “T” letter shape, Tee has an entrance and an exit point. T-pieces come in a variety of sizes and stable forms than cross fitting. A pipe has adjacent outlets and connects pipes at a 90° angle. PPRC Pipe fittings mostly requires tee shaped fittings. Diverter type tees fit in heating systems that use water to combine or divide the fluid flow.
Other include Union, Valve, Wye, Cap, Olet, Plug, Bush, Expansion Joint, Steam Traps, Long Radius Bend, Flanges, etc.
The bottom Line
Whatever your fitting problem is, you can find a fitting that will help you deal with it. However, we would like to emphasize again that this guide provides some basic information on few pipe fittings.
Besides, we recommend that contact a professional plumber who will take care of your fitting problem in order to have the best results and avoid risks.
