Pipe flarer

They are used on refrigerant pipework for AirCon, where the pipework has to be kept a lot cleaner and copper oxide free. This may be because appropriate fittings sealed in oxygen-free wrappings are hard to find, but I've never been too clear why the aircon industry uses them and the plumbing industry doesn't.

I think he is on about a tool that expands the copper pipe making it a female section in which the pipe to be mated is inserted. It eliminates the use of sockets, and only one soldered joint. Only a professional could justify the outlay.

"Only a pro" - Just how tight are you? ;-)

Try under 7 quid from BES

(You might be thinking of the more sophisticated devices designed to flare a pipe for use in a manipulative compression fitting - these are more pricy).

It does a range of pipes, appears to pull itself along the pipe so less brute force needed, and can do male and female flaring. One of these would seem easier to carry about under the floor than a box of miscellaneous fittings. The only drawback is it's specified in Olde Worlde measurements and doesn't do 22mm. Though most of my pipe is 15mm.

I know, and so am I.

I think that they tend to be used by gas fitters and the like because they use end feed joints (rather than solder ring). In these circumstances, the separate fitting is worse as you aren't getting the advantage of the solder ring and, with a fitting, you have to do two end feed joints - with a flared pipe you only have to do one (per join) (and it's cheaper). If you are doing water pipes, solder ring fittings are more convenient. I presume the same applies to a/c fitters.

What advantage does solder ring ("Yorkshire"?) have when used with water that it doesn't have when used with gas?

If you're talking about Yorkshire fittings, I used them the first time I converted from compression, but since then I've used end feed joints without integral solder rings and just fed the solder in when hot. I know there's plenty in there then :)

I have and use regularly the monument brand expanders in 15 and 22. They are great and enable using up all those odd bits of pipe. The ones I have are hammered in to the end of the pipe and remove by pulling, they have a sort of slide hammer built in for removal. They were about ten quid each a long time ago and are invaluable for plumbing work. I have used the screw on type for refrigeration piping. I believe the main reason they are used in fridge work is because solder is not used, a special sort of brazing rod (silver solder ?) is used instead.

MrCheerful

You don't want too much in there, though - that can cause problems!

J.B.

I meant that the gas fitters were probably *obliged* to use end feed as (to quote you) "you know there's plenty in there then". I also meant that, for water, there was an advantage in using solder ring over end feed as they are easier to use, not an advantage because it *was* water but because with water there was no obligation to use end feed.

I don't think this CPC tool is what you want. I think it does flares for use in compression-type joints - where the flare is used in place of an olive - as in, for example, brake pipes on cars.

If you want to fit one pipe inside another without using a fitting, the 7 quid tool from BES looks a better bet.

Cheers, Set Square

They may well be, but the last time I read it, the relevent SI stated that "Yorkshire" fittings were acceptable for gas.

Lee

I do both. Yorkshire with a dab of lead free to be sure!

Christian.

Well, I've got them for both 15 and 22mm. They're rather hard work on modern 'hard' copper tube unless you anneal it first.

I'm not sure what the advantage is of a solder ring fitting - they are vastly more expensive and not as tolerant as a capillary one. They also look rather worse, IMHO.

Solder ring fittings require one fewer hand (i.e. only 3 or so :-) when making joints but as you say are expensive - not so bad for common fittings in small sizes, so I tend to go for end-feed in the bigger sizes and odder types of fittings. Incidentally I think both type are properly described as 'capillary', distinguished as 'solder-ring' and 'end-fed'.

Back on topic, anyone know where to get pipe flarers to fit 22mm tube to old 3/4" imperial size, 15 to 1/2" and so on?

I would image that if you flared a 15mm pipe to take another 15mm pipe inside, you could put a 1/2" pipe in instead because they are very similar in OD. They're not the same in ID though because 1/2" pipes had a greater wall thickness, so you probably wouldn't be able to flare one to take a 15mm pipe.

Cheers, Set Square

Think if you could find a 3/4 tool it would work on 22mm tube as it simply stretches it.

Nasty things, they seem more susceptible to oxidising in the bag than plain end-feed fittings, too.

J.B.