How to Connect Steel Gas Pipes | This Old House
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- čas přidán 17. 03. 2020
- The method to connect steel gas pipes is changing. Pipes used to be cut with a tool that required several steps to make a threaded connection to a fitting. Richard Trethewey goes over the steps with the two plumbing apprentices. Then he shows them the new quicker method, using a fitting with a gasket to seal right into the proper place on the pipe. Using a clamping tool, he can compress the fitting to the pipe for an easy, safe connection.
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Pipe fitting clamping tool manufactured by Viega [www.viega.us/en/homepage.html]
Plumbing apprentices were from Essex Technical High School [essexnorthshore.org/]
Plumbing subcontractor: Bilo Plumbing and Heating [www.biloplumbingandheating.com/]
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How to Connect Steel Gas Pipes | This Old House
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"Because it was cut square, there's no need to de-burr the pipe." Followed by a shot showing the end was cut at a 15 degree angle.
yep and manufacturers still want you to debur the connection to protect the o ring from being damaged during installation. Richard is wrong as usual
@@zack9912000 No need to ream the inside because the o-ring doesn't touch the inside. The emery cloth on the outside is enough to take the edge roughness off.
Lol it was square "enough." But not really square.
Seeing that just made my day, sometimes it’s better to just stick to the old ways lol
No construction job is complete without saying “that ain’t goin’ anywhere”
I plumb in new construction. Definitely don't hear that too often but i agree with you
Got my amusement for the day from Richard with his square cut statement and the followup shot showing how square it is.
I grew up on the old tripod vice and "hand and arm powered" die and ratchet. Built character and you knew you put in a good day's work!!! It must have been the camera angle, but that cut before the press fitting was put on did not look square at all.
Special marker...Sharpies are special, they disappear asoon as i set them down
Ridge Tool Company is a customer of mine; they use our tools to produce their tools. It’s a really neat plant to visit.
Contractor from Europe here. We use press fitting for 20 years. For gas we use stainless steel or copper pipes. No one uses steel gas pipes anymore. So i must say you guys are late for the party but great video as always.
Exactly.
Those compressed fittings on a gas line make me uncomfortable. 🙈
me too that's why we welded ours instead of doing compression fittings on rubber gaskets ; )
the gas pressure coming into your home is only one maybye two psi at most....
It's actually much better, but you can't back it out. Now whether that's a good thing or a bad thing you can decide but I personally like average joe not trying to redo his gas pipes. On the other hand he may take a saw to said pipe and forget to turn off and vent the gas and then..... 🤯🤯🤯
@@workingshlub8861 Its less, home gas comes in 4-7 "Inches of Water" (0.144-0.252 Psi). You can hold the gas down with your hand. There is no major pressure behind it.
@@obviouslyniceduh5521 The gas is not that strong or plentiful for that to happen.
English engineer of 44 years here. Threaded joints will never be beaten by a insert on a black iron pipe. In this quick modern age, they may suffice to do the job, but never equal. Peace be unto you.
Spent quite a bit of time threading pipe, mostly piping heat treat ovens but a few sprinkler systems too.
Once you use this system you will never go back, saves so much time and energy. Expensive to get but makes up for in time.
Done a lot of hand threading in the past, no machines, talk about worn out at the end of the day.
Nice video Mr. Trethewey. I use ProPress systems all the time. When your cut and fit is right, you are correct. It'll be there forever.
Thanks again.
Rich is my hero, just wish he was close by all these years!
Lou Eckert do you love him?
Nice machine you got there Mister ; ) In our house we welded the steel pipes :D The compression tool looks exactly like the one we used to connect our PEX water lines inside the house though.
Same idea as with the Pex, only the pipe is rigid enough not to need a female support under the crimp. Probably the exact same tool.
Corrugated Stainless Steel Tubing: it’s solid tubing similar to old school soft copper but is stronger and much-much faster to install as it only has 2 connections in a run one at each end. Steel pipe needs fittings every 10 feet plus at all direction changes as well as unions to allow easier future changes. CSST can also be run from a manifold. Just as PEX updated plumbing so should CSST. I like the idea of a continual run of gas tubing. CSST also doesn’t require a large initial investment in tools/tooling.
Black iron gas pipe comes in multiple lengths, Oh and can be cut very easy with a pipe cutter. Also it is not wise or in most states it is not code for any type of flexible gas line to be ran hidden within walls or come through floors and ceilings. The good old fashion black iron and with threads are code and work great.
Y YIII: You can spell out building codes limiting it where you are but as far as NY State, upstate anyway, I can’t speak to NYC, CSST is suitable for in closed wall space installations. It does require a special connection for through floor installations wherein it transitions to exposed space. Flexible copper is still also allowed for gas line installations, though it has fallen out of favor. Iron pipe does come in multitude of sizes but requires a lot of fittings and labor to fit. CSST is a product of choice today just as PEX has mostly replaced Copper tubing for water piping. This is a channel targeted at DIYers and CSST is much more DIY friendly not to mention over any large or complicated run is much cheaper.
@@yyiii276 I plan to replace all my existing black iron piping inside my house and upgrade it to CSST. The black iron pipe installation they did in the 70s used pipe diameter that is way too small and there is a ridiculous number of fittings between the meter and my heater/furnace. I counted 35 connections. It will take me much longer to remove the black iron pipes than to install the CSST that will only use two fittings.
I like the old school way, more.
I also like scraping my knuckles against a basement wall.
@@tipperzack, Lol, Me too, and shaving my head with a cheese grater while chewing on tin foil !
What's your point ?
You are welcomed to pay for it.
Well it looks like a good alternative due to the fact that the pipe dope can corrode after time and cause leaks.
@@TheRover1, pipe dope doesn't corrode or degrade the pipes at all.
Although natural gas is only 1/4 PSI in a home, I would still be concerned with the gasket sealing against the black iron pipe. The surface of the pipe is fairly rough even after you sand it down a bit like he showed in the video.
I used one of these when I made sprinkler pipe, cool machine
What's the name of the tool being used
That cut will not seal properly. The cut was at an angle.>3:39
as long as it gets pass seal your fine. threads leak too if the machine isn't set up correctly. dope is just a lubricant
The seal doesn't take place at the end of the pipe. Notice where the O ring is positioned when the pipe is fully inserted into the fitting.
@@danielsoroken9596 Can't see the O ring inside the pipe. So the pipe goes a bit passed the O ring is what is happening?
@@joebrown1382 You got it!
@@danielsoroken9596 Now it's clear thanks.
I’ve turned wrenches many times but this sure beats that. We use them at work
What about using CSST? I can move 100ft with one arm and lay it all down a crawl space within an hour. Black iron takes hours of manpower. Plus less tools, fittings, and comparable prices.
Tipperzack we use flex but the main gas lines are ridged. Cant use flex on rooftops or commercial work
@@fisherman2359 Agree but this is a video for residential work. I also would not violate code.
Wish I had a dollar for every pipe cut and thread I did on one of these Ridgid pipe cutter/threaders in my Hardware Store years. Early to late 1970's. Tnx for the memory! 👍🏻
Not for anything but if it was your store you probably did get a dollar for every pipe you cut and thread....
A $20 fitting v $3 fitting. Threading is still cheaper even with the extra time. What is driving this is the shortage of skilled labor theading and putting threaded pipes together takes skill.
Labor cost is more than the cost of an expensive fitting. Quicker connection, quicker job with less labor. Anyway, I like the old threaded black iron.
all i'm seeing is a headache later on when its time to replace sections.
Should be easy, just cut it and add some fittings ;) probably expensive though
It can be
@@PolymathPete The fittings are not expensive, the tool is expensive. The one shown here is in the range of 2000 Euros (2200 USD)...
@@Marcel_Germann In my experience pressure fittings grow hugely in price with the pipe diameter increase :D I have a few 100$ PEX fittings in my system on the 2" water mains PEX pipe... Madness :D
easier than a threaded connection. Cut, couple back together with a slip coupling.
I have the manual pipe threader's. Now that's old school. Add oil and crank
I would rather use the thread method
Unless I missed it previously I'd like to see a video on the solderless copper fittings. I can sweat copper but not a master by any means.
@MW I know what the video was about. I ran a service to a unit heater to my garage. It was just a suggestion about showing Shark Bites for copper. I can find plenty of videos on CZcams I really don't need This Old House.
Slick.
will do the old fashion way. great way to blow up a house if the fittings ever goes. seen a ton of their hvac fittings and water counterparts fail
water is tested at 1 and a half times operating pressure. gas 15psi. less that 1 psi operating pressure through your regulator in some cases. change with the times. most new homes are using pex water supply systems. another type of compression connection
@@luiscontreras71 you clearly dont work with these daily do you? The O-rings fail after a few years and become brittle and leak. I have 50 year old black pipes that never leak. I have had to repair this crap that leaks on 5 year old installs
@@zack9912000 What is Orings? Tell me, please?
@@user-ij7er2uu1e what actually makes the seal with these pressed fittings is a O-ring material that depending on the material make up they can be designed to handle high pressure and or High heat applications. these o rings break down in just a couple of years. I had seen these fittings leak in 5 years and sometimes less if in cold conditions
@@zack9912000 Thanks.
You should have cut and reamed it with the Rigid 300 threader. Also you didn't use the cups to sand the paint off the pipe?
Maybe tech them to cut square with a band saw.
I wonder how much to get those fittings? 🤔
What's the name of the Ridgid tool being used
Never seen a cut so straight. 🙄
And the benefit of this new method versus CSST?
You can use the MegaPress gas fittings on an existing steel gas pipe instead of running CSST. I don't know about your jurisdiction, but where I work you have to pull permits and bond/ground the CSST back to the main electric panel to protect it from lightning strikes. In residential new construction it would obviously be more beneficial to run CSST, but in most of the existing homes where steel gas lines exist, it's a cinch to use this stuff. Not to mention, steel pipe is less susceptible to getting screws and nails punctured through it.
So how much is it and how much do you save?
Would that last saw cut down a basketball pole ? What kind of saw is that ? Thanks. ( reciprocating saw from home depot did not cut the pole hardly at all )
All blades are made of metal but you need one thats actually made to cut METAL ONLY, not those demo blades that cut nail embedded wood.
Portable band saw but you should be able to use the reciprocating saw with the proper blade.
Like Pex fittings which have rubber O-rings, this has some type of plastic O-ring. My question is, how long will this plastic O-ring last before the gas flowing through this pipe damages or deteriorates it, causing it to weaken and eventually fail or leak? This is almost the entire reason I don’t like Pex or these new type of gas fittings.
The yellow O-rings are HNBR (hydrogenated nitrile butadiene rubber) not plastic. They're supposed to be corrosion resistant to the gases for fuel piping. They make regular black EPDM O-rings for water pipe systems, as well. The fitting manufacturer, Viega, guarantees/warranties their ProPress/MegaPress products for 50 years. It lasts just about as long as every other plumbing system material is what I've been told
@@andrewwelch5668 Thanks, Andrew, for that information. But here is the problem as I see it: you wrote, "It lasts just about as long as every other plumbing system material is what I've been told..." This is the problem in a nutshell: these manufacturers virtually ALWAYS make these kind of grandiose claims but without backing these claims up with facts. Have these HNBR o-rings experienced ACTUAL time in the field inside of these gas pipes under all sorts of inclement conditions for 50 years, with extensive field testing to verify the claims? Probably not. They say, "Well, we put them through lab testing that mimics fifty years, etc. blah blah..." Words aren't cheap, they're FREE, but when your life depends of these claims, they need much more than mere words in my book before I would bet my life on them.
for anyone wondering....it’s called MEGAPRESS
I don't know if it is the cheap skate, lazybones, or the need for speed in me to like this. I like this.
Nothing cheap about it. The tool and fittings are $$$
@@ignacio8597 If I can get 2 days of work done in 1 day, and pay for only 1 day then I am cheap, efficient, or lazy
Still love using a pipe machine... that is quick though
Just stick with the old method sure it takes more time but it's done right and you always do the soap test to make sure it does not leak
So basically pex for steel?
Jeez more oil on those threads!
yeah that die is well on it's way to being ruined
Do they have the same kind of system for galvanized water pipes?
Who uses galvanized anymore for new work?
@@bmanwpg I have an old house that has a supply from the street that is galvanized pipe. I have to replace a shut off.
We have some of those for our stainless I saw some for copper too, not sure if galvanized is smooth enough to seal properly would have to ask at a plumbing store
@@timewithchaplainken3916 they sell mega press threaded adapters as well. galvanizes is just the coating on the pipe. it's still steel. thread the pipe and use a brass adapter to connect the shut off.
stopped using galvanized water lines years ago..
I LIKE THE OLD WAY
Might be wrong here, but I don’t think in the UK it is allowed to use a “gasket” (I assume o-ring?) for gas?
If so, is the USA ahead now after being quite sluggish with PEX and pushfit (sharkbite) for so long?
Genuinely don’t know 🤷🏻♂️
You see pex going to homes and some apartment type buildings, there's still a huge push back from using push fittings. There is a lot of propress and mega press going in now
Frankly I would have enjoyed a more technical last 20 seconds than "magic new tech"
So a 4 minute commercial for RIDGID....gotcha.
Hey slick, you going to clean the metal shaving off those threads or you just like sloppy work?
I swear you read my mind...
Wonder where I can get one of those “special markers?”
homedepot
its just a regular metallic silver sharpie bought anywhere
At the special marker store, duh.
Ted shut up ted dont be a jerk
Still prefer the old way with threads
But we’re not done yet
Here come all of the “pros” that know absolutely nothing about gas pipe fitting, here to tell us that the “old way is better”...
The old way is better. Back in my day, we used Horse snot to lubricant the cutter
Add long ad you can personally detail the technical comparison by the numbers than you shouldn't care
@@jwd215 And no fancy waste-of-money pipe dope either, just wrenched the pipes solid like a weld. All you needed was guts and balls and a lot of them!
The only problem I can see with this is if you need to replace a pipe or fitting, you have to cut the pipe far enough for you to put a new crimped butt fitting versus unscrewing it and replacing a whole length
Nope, not from me. I am one of your old timers (63). I purchased the complete system when it came out as i do alot of gas piping.
This system is great and knock on wood as of today not 1 issue with leaks.
The tool and parts are very expensive. Learn to cut and thread pipe.
Pro Press has been around for over twenty years now in several applications. They said the tool and fittings would come down in price once it became more common place, but they haven't. The fittings alone are as much as three times the cost of a regular thread fitting. Although they are easy to use, that tool is heavy especially doing overhead pipe. It is also very difficult to keep the pipe strait and sometimes requires a second set of hands, so there gose you labor savings. I will stick with soldering and threading.
OR .... Just use CSST?
Where’s your safety glasses?! Worked at a company where someone was threading a 3/4” pipe and a piece of hot metal shot out into the individuals eye. He was blind from one eye from there on, and the construction supervisor would send us home if we were caught using the gas machine with no safety glasses. Big lesson learned that day.
That rigid 300 threading machine requires a foot pedal switch to run it. In case of a emergency take your foot off the pedal the machine stops
Old way is better
No one's talking about how much the Megapress fittings cost, that elbow list over $20.00 U.S.
It's the labor costs that offset it. It's the right tool to use. As is the other one. It's just not always the right tool for the job.
Sqwizi thingi really getting off.
Wow SharkBite for gas line.
Not exactly. Sharkbite is push-fit which requires no tools at all...this requires a hydraulic press tool that has to be re-calibrated every 42,000 cycles.
Time is money but MONEY is money too. How much does a 1.5" press-fitting cost? How does it compare to a dope threaded fitting? And just welding?
$3,000 press tool, $150 jaws(each), $33 for an 1 1/2" mega press g 90, and about 1-2 minutes VS $4,000 for a power threader, $7 1 1/2" thread gas fitting, $5 pipe dope, 4-8 minutes for a thread fitting
So what happens when you need to repair
Cut, union, and replace lost material
You don't. You buy a whole new unit. Disposable society my friend.
@@t.regnerus301 Time is money . Removing and reusing black pipe takes a lot of time.
That looks good sounds perfect but still not 100% would wait couple years to star using it.. just to see if something it’s wrong with those fittings
It's already been out for a couple years there guy
Guys don’t worry they have pex for gas now.. don’t need to do all these steps
Pipe not cut square and you must ALWAYS deburr and clean the inside and outside of the pipe.
Richard, let's go over some of the shortcomings in this video.#1 Safety First,. Let's start using some of that PPE for all those involved.#2 A square cut is required by all the megapress fitting manufacturers ( this prevents a dog leg situation and proper stab depth marking).#3 don't be lazy with that emery cloth ( burrs are the number one cause of o-ring damage).#4 you failed to mention the different types of megapress fittings ( gas and water, plus the color code markings ).#5 failed to mention, converting the pipes back to threads for all component tie-ins ( this is required for drip legs & equipment connections ). No HVAC contractor wants to replace a gas valve by cutting a pipe ( equipment manufacturers still require a threaded drip leg and a union for component change out & unit connection).
My expertise comes from 35 years in the gas industry and over 10,000 emergency call responses.
Prove it or it never happened.
@@t.regnerus301 , it was just a dream and on those 40 degree below wind chill nights, it was just a nightmare.
You should never just let the screwing machine stop while cutting the thread always loosen the dies 1st.
This isn't new.. Pressure fittings have been around for decades. It seems like everything that has been around for decades upon decades in other countries take years to be introduced into the US for some reason. In EU these have been used for a really long time and are used more often then soldering because it is faster and cheaper in the long run and they perform just as good as soldering does and it doesn't involve adding toxic materials into the water pipes like flux.
You guys dont use copper for gas ?? We stopped using steel decades ago.
The substance used to give Natural Gas it's odor corrodes copper pipe in the U.S. unless you use lined copper pipe.
My gas pipes are yellow plastic. No theading needed.
Why not just thread the piece it goes on in place? would take just about the same time but would last forever, not like that crimp thing
Yea, no thanks. Sooner or later some Chinese company will take a short cut on those rubber seals and have a 40% failure rate after 5 years.
they already have some, also try to get buyer in the trade show. no one instead
Why not just use copper as we do in UK?
Copper pipe for gas?
In the netherlands same
@@tizben yes, seems to be much less work involved than using steel. Not sure why practice is different in the US?
@@smurfman691 maybe it's more expensive.
tizben in Europe we use copper for gas and plastic for water
I doubt it will pass NYC code. Nothing does.
You never reverse turn the pipe on the treads. You can break the die treads.
Hope you where not expecting much life out of that threader. No oil! We have dies that are upward of 30 years old (3/4 to 3") because we use oil for EVERY thread.
sow dares no smack ,smoke
That pipe was not cut Square!! You would have cut better in the Pipe Threader!!
5-10 minutes to thread a pipe and put a fitting on?
This video was catering to the "slow" people.
"Physically" slow...
@@DragonAurora i guess so lol
no safety glasses for the apprentices?????????? boooooooooooooooooooo
Great. Another obscenely overpriced power tool meant for only one single rare application. Brilliant investment! If you're using schedule 40 steel pipe in 2020, you're doing it wrong. It has no business in any residential application, including gas.
first
More "faster ways to do plumbing" and put more men out of work
change with the times. that gun is about 3 thousand for the whole set up. nobodies outa work. been around since the 80's we use in hospitals all the time. same thing was said when no hub bands were used.
@@luiscontreras71 it takes the skill out of the trade. Don't have to be a "skilled" plumber to use this. If you own your business this is a good investment but if you're just a worker it isn't good. It was better when crotons were screw joints and copper was only soldered or brazed
That cut was about as square as trump is honest.
@bigtx77 well said 👌
moran
You must be feeling the burn! Commie
See you in twenty twenty Kevin,