I am doing an owner build in AZ and I'm wondering if there is a real advantage to heat bending over fittings? Flow vs. repairability? Anyway, any thoughts would be great thanks.
Heat bending Vs. fittings
- Thread starter Airboy
- Start date
I don't think I have ever seen a heat bent installation here on the forum. Very little advantage I can think of......the resistance of the fittings is minor.
Let us know if you bend them and post a pic....would be very interesting to see.
Let us know if you bend them and post a pic....would be very interesting to see.
It takes a fair bit of skill to be able to make good bends that fit in with what you want in a reasonable amount of time. If you plumb a spa every day, it is worth spending the time to learn to do well, and otherwise isn't really worth the effort.
+1 on what Dave and Jason said.
I heat bent two 10' lengths of 1-1/2" PVC for around my pool. It can be done, but in your case, it wouldn't be worth the time it takes. Fittings are cheap in both monetary and flow terms.
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I think all three of us forgot something.......
Welcome to TFP!
I heat bent two 10' lengths of 1-1/2" PVC for around my pool. It can be done, but in your case, it wouldn't be worth the time it takes. Fittings are cheap in both monetary and flow terms.
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I think all three of us forgot something.......
Welcome to TFP!
I'm not bending myself, I have two bids. One heat bends and one doesn't. The difference is a few hundred dollars and I'm trying to figure out the advantage of either. One plumber says flow, the other says repair ability.
For a new pool install, go with the fittings guy. If there are any problems, you would most likely have to change it over to fittings anyway for any repair work.
Be sure to take lots of pics of the plumbing as it goes in, with landmarks in the pics for location purposes should there be any problems. You could also have the plumber put in a "locator wire" along with the pipes for long runs away from the pool.
Be sure to take lots of pics of the plumbing as it goes in, with landmarks in the pics for location purposes should there be any problems. You could also have the plumber put in a "locator wire" along with the pipes for long runs away from the pool.
When we installed a long water line at a scout camp, we tossed all the empty beer cans in the trench to aid finding it in the future!
When we installed a long water line at a scout camp, we tossed all the empty beer cans in the trench to aid finding it in the future!
But that would not give a good locator signal.......
But it would show up on a metal detector. The PVD pipe wouldn't.But that would not give a good locator signal.......
I'm a home brewer so all my beer ends up in 5 gallon kegs. I will ask for the "locator wire" and a room for the "laser" ....Thanks for the help, I'm just getting started.
....Thanks for the help, I'm just getting started.Every glue fitting is a possible leak. Every heat bend isn't. A 2" 90 is the same as adding 8' of pipe to a run if my memory serves me correctly. In the middle of a build right now and heat bent every turn on the ends and even bent the pipes to come up out of the ground at the pad. Personally I would hire the bend guy over the fitting guy. Just my opinion
According to Vinidex, the largest PVC pipe manufacturer in Australia, a 50mm, class 12 (2", actual bore of a class 12 pipe is 53.7mm), 90 degree bend is equivalent to a 2.81m (9.2') section of pipe at a flow rate of 1m/s (3.28 f/s)
As a comparison, 2 x 45 degree bends together are equivalent to 1.79m (5.87') and if you were seperate those two 45 degree bends by at least 4 times the diameter of the pipe (so in this case 200mm or 8"), that drops to only 0.895m (2.93')
A long radius, 90 degree bend (where the ratio of bend radius to pipe diameter is greater than 2) is equivalent to a 1.28m (4.2') section.
Replacing all of your 90s with sweep 90s improves overall efficiency by about 1%, maybe a little more. It does help, but it isn't particularly significant.
For me the efficiency is nothing. Eliminating a glue joint or two is the perk. Every joint you eliminate is a future possible leak deleted. A bell ended pipe joint glued correctly gives you an almost 3" glue joint versus an 1 1/4" joint at a fitting.
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