When it comes to piping and plumbing installations it's easy to get an idea of what you need to get done but the overwhealming part comes with the specifics on what parts you need to get in order to complete your project.
Fittings are used to determine what will happen with whatever is flowing inside each pipe in the piping system. Some fittings direct the flow to specific direction, others close the flow permanently, others allow you to open and close the flow whenever you need to, and so on.
In this article we'll do an overview of the basic fittings there are and the purpose each has in your system.
Elbows
Elbows change the flow direction. They are commonly foun in 45 and 90 degree angles. Piping systems are not only made up of straight lines so telbows allow the system to make turns and reach the desired output.
Couplings
These are used to join two pieces of pipe and continue on a straight line. They can be used to avoid leakage and are generally paired with rubber gaskets to seal the joint.
Union
Used to connect pipes in a straight line. This fitting counts with three parts: the top part, that connects to the first pipe, the nut, which tightens down the joint, and the bottom part, which connects to the second pipe.
These fittings allow you to disconnect the pipes without actually having to turn them, but by disconnecting the seat, which is the part where both connections meet.
Adapters
Used to change the end of non-threaded pipes into male or female threads, depending on what you need.
Fittings to connect pipes of different materials that require different joining methods. Also known as transition fittings because they connect fittings that wouldn't normally be able to connect, i.e. a 1" coupling and a 1/2" nipple.
Valves
These fittings control the flow of the liquid or gas element inside the pipe. They are used to stop or resume the flow in a specific part of the system. There are different types of valves such as ball vales, butterrfly valves, compression valves, sleeve-cartridge valves and so on.
Bushings
Bushings are straigh line fittings that enable two fittings of different sizes to be connected. They are designed with one male and one female end. They can come threaded on one side, plain, threaded on both sides, depending on what you need to join.
Given that these fittings will join parts of different sizes, bushings have two dimensions: the outside dimension and the inside dimension.
Flanges
Used to connect and seal to another flange, pipe or other piece of plumbing equipment. They are usually threaded or welded and two flanges are connected together by bolting them with a gasket between them.
There are different types of flanges such as slip on, weld neck, blind flanges and socket weld flanges.
To learn more about pipe and fittings click here. To learn more about compression fittings click here.
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