Larry Lunsford

Rocky Mountain Koi Club

There are a lot of times when being able to work with copper pipe would be a handy skill to have around the Koi pond. A lot of pond keepers seem to think working with copper is an exotic skill that they can’t possibly hope to learn. Well, it’s not all that tough. I’ll show you how to work copper pipe like a pro.

Like any other job, copper plumbing requires the right tools to do the job right. Here’s what you need: Propane, Propane Torch, Torch Lighter (I use matches or a butane candle lighter – spark lighters are a pain in the a**), Flame Shield, Pipe Cutters large & small (spend the extra couple of bucks for the good ones – they work a lot better), Cloth Backed Sand Paper (around 150 – 200 grit), Pipe Cleaning Wire Brushes, Flux, Flux Brush, Solder, Rags, Buckets, Pliers (for handling hot pipe). Plus, you need pipe, fittings, etc. for your particular job. Be sure to get a few extra pieces in case something doesn’t go together quite right the first time or if you need to do a little re-routing.

Plan your pipe routing and double check that you have enough materials. If possible, connect to your existing pipe in an area that is well clear of framing, insulation, wiring, etc. Also, it’s easier to work on a stretch of pipe where you can flex things a bit to piece it together (such as near an elbow).

Before you start, give everyone in the house a change to use the bathroom, get a drink, wash hands, etc. It’s also a good idea to start your job while there’s plenty of time to make an extra run to the hardware store for more supplies.

Put a little water in a bucket for use later. Turn off the water supply. Drain the pipes. Open every faucet in the house to help get the pipes drained. The pipe you’re working on must be absolutely dry in order to form good solder joints.

Cut pipes as necessary. Using the pipe cutter, lightly clamp it onto the pipe at the point where you want to cut. Turn the cutter around the pipe a couple times and then tighten it a bit more. Continue until you’re through the pipe. Be ready to catch water once you cut the pipe. Don’t use other tools (like a hack saw) to cut pipe. The cut end needs to be smooth and round to make a sound joint. Also, don’t use the raw end of new pipe. Cut a little off the end to give you a good end for soldering.

Clean pipe ends and fittings. Using the sand paper and wire brushes, clean all surfaces that will be soldered (outside ends of pipe and insides of fittings). All surfaces that are to be soldered must have a shiny copper appearance. Remove price tags from fittings and from pipe near joints.

Apply flux. Using the flux brush, put flux on all surfaces to be soldered.

Assemble new pipes and fittings. All pipes should bottom out into fittings – don’t try to get by with a pipe that only goes part way into a fitting.

Solder the joints. Have a wet cloth rag handy (you did save a little water in a bucket didn’t you?). If you’re working near material that could be damaged by the torch, use the flame shield to protect sensitive materials. Open the torch gas valve just a little and light the torch. Once lit, set gas valve for a medium sized flame. Position yourself where you will be safe from dripping solder. Make sure you are also safe from solder that may drip and splash off something else (like the ladder you may be standing on). Heat the fitting. You should see two flames on your torch – the outer dark blue flame and an inner bright blue flame. Put the tip of the inner bright blue flame on the fitting. Move the flame around a bit to heat the whole fitting, but keep the flame on the fitting. When the joint starts to heat, you will notice the flux burning off. Once most of the flux has burned off, take the torch away and touch the solder to the joint to see if it’s hot enough. Touch the solder to the end of the fitting so it is touching both the pipe and the fitting. It’s hot enough when the solder freely flows into the joint. The pipe should melt the solder – don’t rely on the torch to melt the solder. Apply a little solder from different sides of the pipe to make sure it flows in completely around the pipe. Keep adding solder until it starts to drip from the joint. Once you’ve soldered all connections on a fitting, turn off the torch and set it aside. Get the wet rag and wipe off the excess solder and flux. Be careful not to burn yourself on the hot pipe or on bits of solder that may wipe off. Keep rotating the rag so that one part is not constantly in contact with the pipe (it will become dry and burned). Don’t move any of the joints while cleaning with the rag. Rotating the pipes in the fittings causes fractured joints which may leak.

Continue with the remaining joints. If you have a couple pieces that are close together, you may want to solder them all at once before stopping to wipe away solder and flux. Once you’re done, flush out the new pipes. You may also want to flush out the rest of your pipes to get rid of the flux vapors.

Remember, when soldering your pipes must be absolutely clean and dry. Dirt and corrosion in your joints will block solder and allow leaks. Any water in the joint will prevent it from getting hot enough to properly flow solder.

Soldering pipe will generate some smoke (from the flux). You might want to open a window to keep the smoke alarms from sounding.

Repair Pipe: In some situations, you just don’t have enough flex in the pipes to get a new fitting in place. To deal with this you can use repair pipe, which is essentially just a very long coupler (12"). To use, cut out a section of pipe long enough for your new fitting plus the piece of repair pipe. Slide the repair pipe completely over the existing pipe. Fit new pieces into place. Slide back repair pipe to meet new pieces. Solder it all together. If you cut the repair pipe, you’ll need to file away the ridge that forms on the inside edge of the cut end so that the repair piece can slide over the pipe.

Freeze Proof Valves: Most areas require freeze proof valves on outdoor hose valves. A FPV has a long pipe attached and the water is shut off at the point furthest from the outside valve. Be sure to disconnect the hose so the FPV can drain.

Vacuum Breakers: Most areas require a vacuum breaker on outside valves to prevent any possibility of dirty water being accidentally siphoned back into the water system. You can get valves with a vacuum breaker built in, or you can get a vacuum breaker that screws onto your hose valve.

Reusing Fittings: I try not to get in a position where I have to reuse a fitting. It’s better to put in a Tee and some elbows on a straight section of pipe than to remove an elbow and replace it with a Tee. You can do it, but it’s difficult. Be doubly sure to clean the used fitting and remove as much solder from old parts as possible to help with piecing things back together. Remove solder by heating the part to get the solder to melt and then wipe the solder away with a damp rag.

Big Stuff: Large items (like valves) can take a lot of heat to get hot enough to solder. Sometimes you can avoid having to solder big stuff by using threaded adapters. Solder threaded adapters onto pipes, screw the adapter & pipe into the item, make additional solder joints on the pipes.

TGROP: You’re almost plumbing experts. There’s one more bit of wisdom you need – The Three Golden Rules Of Plumbing (as passed down to me by my dad). 1 – Hot on the left. 2 – Cold on the right. 3 – S**t runs down hill. You can really get into trouble if you try to break that third rule.

Happy Plumbing.

Koi