Buying Guide

NIBCO INC. WORLD HEADQUARTERS • 1516 MIDDLEBURY ST. • ELKHART, IN 46516-4740 • USA • PH: 1.800.234.0227
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TYPES OF JOINTS
Flared Joint — The principle of the flared joint was first developed
for copper tube plumbing in 1928 by NIBCO. The flared type joint is
wholly a mechanical means of joining copper tubes. The tube nut is
placed over the end of the copper tube to be joined; the tube end
then is flared out at an approximate 45 degree angle by a flaring tool.
The flared end is then drawn up by the tube nut so the inside surface
is tightly secured against the ball seat of the fitting. This joint can
be readily dismantled at any time and is, in effect, a type of union
connection. Its use is generally restricted to soft (annealed) copper
tubes since hard drawn tubes would be subject to splitting when
flared (if the ends were not previously annealed). The flared ends of
NIBCO
®
Flared Fittings are produced to the requirements of ASME
B16.26, “Cast Copper Alloy Fittings for Flared Copper Tube.”
Solder Joint — NIBCO pioneered the development of
the solder joint and its application to the field of copper tube
piping. Today the solder joint is widely adopted, as evidenced by
the majority of cities and states that have written codes to include
copper tube and solder joints as desirable for general plumbing,
water lines, vent, stack, waste and drain lines, as well as other uses
in industry. Testing has shown that often the solder joint has greater
strength than the tubes being joined, depending upon the soldering
alloy selected. While the method of preparing a solder joint is an
exacting art to insure a full strength joint, it can be readily mastered
by skilled tradesmen. It is for this reason — to insure the public of
the protection afforded by properly prepared joints — that NIBCO
®
products are marketed through the reputable sources of supply to the
piping trades. Important procedures for preparing a solder joint are
graphically illustrated in this catalog on page 46.
Brazed Joint — This type of joint has long been used wherever and
whenever critical situations have been encountered in copper piping.
The joint itself is completed much in the same manner as the solder
joint; however, considerably more heat and several refinements of
technique require separate procedures that are described further in
this catalog on pages 47-48.
Threaded Ends — To adapt copper tube to equipment having
National Standard Pipe Taper (NPT) threads or to add copper tube to
existing iron pipe installations or other threaded connections, NIBCO
provides fittings having both external and internal NPT threads.
These threaded ends are produced to the requirements of ASME
B1.20.1, “Pipe Threads, General Purpose (Inch).”
Flanges — To adapt copper tube to equipment having flanged
connections, or to add copper tube to flanged pipe installations or
other purposes, NIBCO provides flanges. The flanges are produced in
two standard types widely used in this field where copper tube can
serve — Class 150, comply with ASME B16.24, “Cast Copper Alloy
Pipe Flanges and Flanged Fittings Class 150, 300, 400, 600, 900, 1500
and 2500”; and Class 125, which conform to MSS SP-106, “Cast
Copper Alloy Flanges and Flanged Fittings Class 125, 150 and 300.”
Barbed Insert Fittings for Polybutylene (PB) — NIBCO offers
a complete line of copper barbed insert fittings for joining PB tube.
The insert fittings are produced to the requirements of ASTM F1380.
Along with the insert fittings are copper crimp rings, which, when
properly installed, provide a leak-tight mechanical joint. Transition
fittings are available for adapting to new or existing threaded or
solder joint ends.
Fitting Terms and Abbreviations
C Female solder cup
Ftg Male solder end
F Female NPT thread
M Male NPT thread
Hose Standard hose thread
Hub Female end for soil pipe
Spigot Male end for soil pipe
No Hub Used with mechanical coupling
O.D. Tube Actual tube outside diameter
S Straight thread
SJ Slip joint
FL Flared
Copper
Tube Fittings