Pressure Testing A Line

[NullQwerty]

Hey folks,

Been searching around for some tutorials on how to pressure test a line (to fully be certain my new lines are good before stone goes on top of them). I bought some parts to turn 1 1/2" threaded male into a threaded male the size of a garden hose. Then I bought a pressure gauge with a garden hose connector on the other end to attach to it.

So I can cap off a line and have a pressure gauge at the end to measure the pressure. But now...How do I pressurize the line and keep it like that so that I can see if the pressure ever drops off?

Or am I approaching this totally the wrong way?

Thanks!

 

[lborne]

You need a T at the end of the pipe. One side has a shut off valve and then the garden hose. The other side can just have the pressure guage. Open the valve, turn on the garden hose and it will pressurize the line. I'd unscrew the pressure guage a bit to let air out so it fills the line as much with water as possible. When water starts coming out of the pressure guage fitting, just tighten it. Turn the shut off valve and then disconnect the hose. You could also probably do this with one of those Y hose fittings used to hook up 2 garden hoses to one spigot and some kind of female-female adaptor.

 

[Bama Rambler]

There are a few ways to do it.
Here's one. Cap one end of the pipe and make up a christmas tree using a reducer from the pipe size to the Hose thread adaptor size. Here are the parts you'll need.

1. A 2" by ½" reducer[/*:m:304j8mii]
2. Make three ½" PVC nipples.[/*:m:304j8mii]
3. Get a ½" PVC Tee[/*:m:304j8mii]
4. A ½" PVC by ¼" threaded adaptor.[/*:m:304j8mii]
5. A ½" ball valve.[/*:m:304j8mii]
6. A ¼" NPT 0-60 PSI gauge[/*:m:304j8mii]
7. A ½" NPT to 3/4" Hose adaptor.[/*:m:304j8mii]
8. A ½" threaded adaptor.[/*:m:304j8mii]

Glue the two of the nipples into the Tee long axis, glue the 2 X ½ reducer on one of the nipples in the tee, glue the ½" valve onto the other nipple in the tee, glue the ½ x ¼ reducer into the perpendicular branch of the tee, thread the pressure gauge into the reducer using t-tape or paste, glue the third nipple into the valve and glue the threaded adaptor onto the nipple, thread the hose adaptor onto the threaded adaptor, glue the whole assembly to the open end of the pipe to be tested.

That way you can use the hose to pressurize the pipe and then shut the valve to maintain pressure in the pipe during the test. Watch the pressure gauge to ensure it's not leaking.

Lborne said it much simpler but I'm posting this anyway!

 

[NullQwerty]

Awesome! Thanks guys!