When repairing a pipeline, the main requirement is the tightness of the joints. The functionality and trouble-free operation of plumbing, heating, gas and other systems depend on them. How is tightness achieved?
Most often, when installing and repairing a water supply system, a threaded connection is used - it is inexpensive, fast and practical. With just a hand wrench, the plumber can easily disassemble and assemble the system, replace the failed node. But the thread does not guarantee that the connection will be perfect, some other sealing component is needed.
What sealants does the building materials market offer?
There are several types of sealing materials that differ in cost, convenience and reliability of use:
- FUM tape (fluoroplastic sealing material)
- Sealing thread
- linen thread
Among all the FUM offers, the tape is quite capricious in use, the sealing thread has good qualities, but too expensive, and only linen is an impeccable remedy that has proven itself over many decades.
How to wind flax on a thread?
In order for the connection to be strong and tight, the threaded areas must be cleaned of rust with fine-grained sandpaper. At this stage, it is important not to damage the threads. Then you should check if there are notches on the thread - with them the laid flax threads are fixed and do not move when the parts are connected. If there are no notches, they can be applied with a file or a plumbing wrench.
The correct winding of flax consists of several steps:
- Check the tightness of the connection with a clean, linen-free thread in order to understand how thick the winding should be.
- Take a bunch of flax and separate a strand of sufficient thickness from it to obtain a tight connection. Flax hairs should be of the same length, without lumps, straw and debris.
- Twist from a strand a loose tourniquet of such a thickness that it can fill one groove of the thread.
- Holding the end of the linen tow at the edge of the thread, wind it in the direction opposite to the tightening of the nut. Each subsequent turn should fit snugly to the previous one. It is important here not to overdo it with the number of layers, there should be no more than two, otherwise the connection may burst when twisted or from hot water during operation. If the bundle turned out to be short, the winding should be continued with the next bundle.
- Inspect reverse side winding and make sure there are no bald spots.
- On top of the linen, apply a layer of special paste or silicone and twist the connection until the paste has hardened. The use of a sealing compound contributes to the durability of the connection, prevents rotting of the flax, and helps to easily disassemble the structure in the future. Sealant should not be used as a sealant, such a connection is difficult to disassemble.
Prepare the materials that you will need for work:
- tow,
- plumbing key
- and silicone.
The progress of winding flax on thread:
Remove rust from the elements you plan to connect sandpaper. Do this carefully so as not to damage the threads.
Separate part of the fibers from the flax bundle and straighten them along the length, make sure that the flax is free of lumps, shreds and tears. The fiber layer should not be too thin, but not too thick, otherwise either a leak will form or the junction may burst when the temperature rises.
If the pipeline has a fitting with smooth surface, then use a plumbing wrench to make it a little rough, with notches. Then linen will hold on better.
Take the fiber and attach its end to the edge of the thread. Wind the tow in the direction opposite to that of the nut and so that one turn overlaps the other, pressing it very tightly with you. To prevent dry fibers from unwinding, wet the wound flax with water or pre-lubricate the thread with silicone.
Apply a layer of silicone to the fiber (any other sealing paste can be used). Until the silicone has hardened, which is about 10-15 minutes, connect both parts together.
It does not matter if a small amount of linen comes out of the connection during twisting, the silicone will hold the remaining linen inside well. The fibers on the outside can be set on fire with a lighter.
Photo instruction:
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Combed flax has long enjoyed a well-deserved reputation as one of the best sealants in plumbing work. This type of compactor is the long fibers of the plant, obtained in the process of combing ragged flax stems. Depending on the length of the fibers and their purity, all the material used is divided into grades. Specifications sanitary flax depend on its grade and must comply with GOST 10330-76.
Probably everyone knows about how to use plumbing linen. This is a very simple material that does not require special training of the master. However, an incorrectly made connection will not be tight enough. Therefore, you need to know some tricks, how to wind sanitary flax to avoid leaks and not redo the work several times.
GOST 10330-76 regulates the process of production, processing, and sorting of flax used as a seal.
- Depending on the quality, all flax is divided into numbers from 8 to 24. The higher its number, the lower the content of fires and weed impurities in its composition.
- Putrefactive odor and foreign impurities in the mass of fibers are not allowed.
- Permissible moisture content of the material - no more than 12%.
- The temperature of use of sanitary flax is up to 120 degrees. In the case of using some special types pastes - up to 140 degrees Celsius.
Linen fibers are formed into skeins of various weights and sizes.
Features of the use of flax
Threaded connections of pipelines and connected plumbing equipment are places with a potential risk of depressurization and subsequent leakage. Therefore, during installation, such areas are subjected to additional sealing using various materials such as fum tape, sealing threads, various sealing pastes and sealants. However, there is no material more reliable, moreover, time-tested and more than one generation of plumbers than plumbing linen, or the popular name - plumbing tow.
When using flax, you need to know the features of its use:
- tow is a very cheap sealant, much cheaper than any other sealing material. However, when buying it, pay attention to the quality. Good varietal flax is sold in the form of braids or coils, light in appearance, without foreign inclusions.
- linen swells when in contact with water. At the same time, its volume increases, blocking any leaks and leaks.
- due to high mechanical resistance, plumbing tow allows you to orient taps, couplings and other elements without loss of tightness. You can tighten the threaded connection until it stops, and then unscrew it half a turn or a turn along the thread without fear of weakening the contact point.
- sealing the connections of pressure water pipelines with this material makes it possible to firmly fix the connected elements due to the possibility of increased tightening forces.
Threaded connection with seal made of sanitary flax
However, when using sanitary flax, you should also know some precautions.
- When joining copper or brass parts, maximum care is required. Too thick winding can lead to cracking of the part and the appearance of a leak.
- It should be remembered that some materials for processing sanitary flax before use will make it difficult to dismantle the connections. The same problem can occur in the joints of steel parts, where improper work using tow leads to rust in the threaded connections.
- Tow is an organic material that rots when exposed to moisture and air. Therefore, when used as a sealing material, it requires impregnation by special means(solid oil, lithol, special pastes and sealants, as well as oil paint).
Water repellents for tow
Due to the resistance of the fibers, sanitary flax cannot be destroyed when twisting plumbing fittings. Thin, long linen fibers are collected in the depths of the threaded channels and, when the parts are connected, they completely fill all the gaps and the slightest leaks. With further use, the fibers closest to the wet area swell, thereby blocking the path for moisture to move out. Connections sealed with sanitary flax are able to withstand temperatures up to 150 degrees Celsius.
The method of winding flax on a thread
Before starting work on winding sanitary flax on a threaded connection, it is necessary to carry out some preparatory work.
The threaded part is prepared for winding flax
Thread preparation
If you decide to seal the connected parts of your water supply in this way, you must first prepare the thread itself. The fact is that flax wound on a regular thread will bunch up with a screwed nut. In the threaded connection itself, it will practically not remain. The work will be done poorly, and such a connection is doomed to leak in the very near future. In order for the flax fibers to be fixed on the threads, it is necessary to make notches on them. Notches on threaded turns can be made by any accessible tool- with a chisel, a sharp screwdriver, a file, or, if the place of work allows, even a hacksaw. The notches are made longitudinally, across the threads on the pipe. The main thing is that the notches have sharp, not smooth edges.
You should also be aware that the top of the thread on the pipe must be rounded. Inch threads pipe connections are cut that way, with a 55-degree angle at the top. If this requirement is not met, then a 60-degree thread will break the winding. Manufacturers of spurs, fittings, taps and other elements carry out threads taking into account all these requirements, in addition, they apply the necessary notches at the production stage. Such products can be considered fully prepared for winding tow.
How to wind
First, we separate a small strand from the entire mass of tow. No need to choose a very thick beam, try to immediately take the optimal amount of material. The winding should not be very thin, such a connection will be loose. However, too thick a layer of flax will bunch up when tightening the nut, which will also lead to marriage.
If there are lumps or other impurities in the strand, they must be removed. Then you can either twist the strand or weave a pigtail out of it. You can completely fluff the bundle of material before winding. When winding flax on a thread, there are some tricks:
- If you twist or weave a pigtail, you can apply the selected sealant to it before use (special sealing paste, lithol, paint, etc.). Or use the tow as is, then the sealant is applied simply to the thread. In the process of work, you will choose the most suitable option for you. This will not affect the final result.
- It is necessary to wind sanitary flax in the direction opposite to the direction of the threads. For example, with a left thread, flax fibers are wound clockwise, and with a right thread, vice versa.
- You need to start work from the point where the thread exits. The strand is taken in right hand(the instruction is given for right-handed people) and applied to the pipe. With the thumb of the left hand, press the edge of the fibers to the place where the thread enters the pipe. Then, with the first turn of the tow, they try to wind the end of the strand to the pipe, making the so-called “lock”. Then, coil to coil, flax is wound on the threaded part. This should be done without gaps between the fibers, as tight as possible, moving towards the start of the thread. Closer to the edge of the pipe, the thickness of the wound tow must be reduced. So the nut will more easily go onto the threaded part.
- When the winding is completed, the excess tow is separated, its tip is glued with sealant, and then the winding is smoothed flush with the thread.
This is how the correct winding of flax should look like
The ideal option can be considered the case when the maximum force applied to the nut falls on the last 2-3 turns of the thread, and when fully tightened, part of the turns remains outside. If the nut is screwed on by hand, then the winding is made too thin. It is necessary either to add tow on top of it, or to do everything again.
When screwing on the nut, make sure that the tow does not stray to the edge. In some cases, it is better to redo the work.
After the installation work plumbing tow sticking out from under the nuts can be cut or smoothed at the junction. After completion of the installation work, the connections made of ferrous metals must be painted over to protect against corrosion.
Sanitary linen at correct use can provide the most hermetic connection any elements of water pipes for cold and hot water, regardless of their internal pressure and temperature. However, the work should be carried out carefully, and at the slightest suspicion of a marriage, it should be completely redone. This will give you confidence in the durability and reliability of the connections.
Video about packing a threaded connection using sanitary flax
There is nothing difficult in this, so let's try. We wind flax on the thread evenly in the direction of the thread, but there is little nuance, depending on the fitting on which you are winding, and on the one that you will wind.
If you are going to connect an iron pipe, and for example, a steel sleeve, then it is not scary if you wind more flax than necessary, since iron pipe and the steel sleeve are quite powerful fittings, and when you connect them, the extra flax will squeeze out, but if the fittings are weaker, for example, a brass corner, a brass sleeve, then with an excess amount of tow, it can, and even 100 percent, that it will burst, given that the quality of the manufacturer is now lousy.
The quality of brass fittings in the USSR and now differs significantly, not in favor of a modern manufacturer.
How to wind flax on ecoplastic sleeves
Also, do not overdo it when connecting ecoplastic couplings, the internal brass thread can also burst. Before winding the flax on the thread, first just screw these two fittings on top of each other, and count the number of turns for how much they are wound, for example 5. Wind the flax evenly over the entire thread, then I would advise using an investment paste, not a sealant, coat flax paste and connect the fittings together, in this example I recommend twisting the fittings 4 - 4.5 turns. Until the end, i.e. 5 revolutions do not need to be pulled.
There is now such a popular thing as a fum tape, so I would definitely not advise you to make any packing of fittings for it. About 6 years ago I tried to work with this tape a couple of times, and switched back to linen. See the video on winding flax below.
2015-02-18, 19:31
Hello dear DIYers.
Until now, linen has been the best winding for carving. First, I will substantiate this statement, and then we will analyze the execution process piece by piece.
The first alternative to linen is fum tape. There are at least three reasons why it should be abandoned.
1. It is not known who made it, despite what is indicated on the label, which means there are no quality guarantees.
2. It takes a long time to wind it.
3. When tightening the thread, especially when installing valves, it is impossible to correct its position, that is, you can only twist it forward. If you apply a little back, then the connection on the fumka will flow.
The second alternative is the Tangit unilok pipe with a lock. I won’t argue about the lock - it’s dead, but as for the key: consider that they twisted it, and threw the key away, and so you can’t find it.
You can't unscrew it, just cut it.
Linen is a completely different matter. Here are four reasons why you should use it:
1. One hundred percent guarantee against leakage.
2. Speed and accuracy of execution.
3. The ability to adjust any connection back and forth, without the risk of leakage.
4. Easy disassembly, no matter how old it is.
Now how is it done.
Everyone knows that flax is not wound dry. Previously, it was impregnated with paint, but now, thanks to technological progress, silicone has appeared.
If the connection looked very unkempt with paint, and it had to be disassembled with blowtorch, then with silicone is a completely different matter.
The main thing is to use solid silicones. These include: KimTek 101E, Olimp, Macroflex, since, in addition to cushioning, they also have adhesive properties. With other brands, the connection turns out to be too mobile, although it still does not flow.
So, we take a threaded part, a flax pigtail, a syringe with silicone, and separate a small part from the pigtail for winding.
How much to pinch off a pigtail? Each case is different. First you need to try to wrap the folder in the mother. Sometimes it wraps very easily, sometimes it’s tight (everything is like in life), depending on this, the amount of winding is chosen.
And in general, after the first time it will become clear. If it squeezes out too much, then we take less.
First, we apply silicone to the thread, then, leaving a small tail, and pressing it with your thumb to the part, in the direction of the thread, we wind the flax with an interference fit, trying to cover the entire surface with it, that is, so that it does not go with a tourniquet.
If during the winding process you realize that there is already too much linen, just cut off the remnants. The remaining tail is also started in the direction of the thread.
After that, with a finger, we smooth the entire winding so that the hairs do not stick out on the sides, and most importantly, do not block the through hole.
Now we wrap, while it is imperative that part of the winding squeeze out. It is easily removed with a rag, and the more you press the rag against the part, the more accurate the connection will be.
