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Author:
sum (FL)
The hard copper pipes comes in type L and type M. Type L is thicker and has the blue markings.
How about soft copper do they come in different thicknesses as well or only one kind?
I had a tubing cutter and to cut a piece of 1/2" copper type L it takes me around 10-12 complete turns. The 1/2" soft copper cuts in 3-4 turns.
So...is soft copper less durable then hard copper?
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Author:
waukeshaplumbing (WI)
i find soft copper MUCH less durable....every time i see it used its always got holes in it or corroded....it doesnt hold up nearly as well
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Author:
jimmy-o (CA)
Soft copper is most commonly sold in L, but I K and M are available.
Do you change your cutter wheels now and then??
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Author:
m & m (MD)
I quit using soft copper decades ago for potable water. It pinholed in very short time and after too many failures, I just used plastic instead.
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Author:
vic (CA)
In theory soft ("annealed" and hard ("tempered" copper have the same composition.
I've found that it does matter who makes the pipe as in the past I was aware of some copper pipe failures with soft pipe when soft in theory ought to last the same as hard.
Be careful to not kink the soft copper or make it go out of shape as to do so can create more turbulence inside which make the copper not last as long.
Hard only comes in M (as in M only comes in hard).
Hard and soft both come in L and K. K is rarely being used in residential work and most likely you won't find it in many home centers.
Personally for above ground I like to use type M and oversize one size. It makes for slower velocity inside the pipe. My bias is probably due to having replaced thousands of feet of type K (hard) pipe.
I started my apprenticeship in "commercial" (government) work and so for those years mostly worked with type K hard copper however did do some work with type L. I'm sharing that as I've replaced a LOT of hard type K copper and feel that IF the conditions of the water or electrical grounding, etc aren't "perfect" no matter what thickness of copper you have you will eventually get leaks.
More than that, if the conditions are such that the copper will eventually leak/erode from the inside that means that whomever is drinking that water from that copper pipe source may be getting copper toxicity.
[en.wikipedia.org]
Should you decide to use soft copper try to buy American made if at all possible.
Vic
Edited 1 times.
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Author:
hj (AZ)
quote; I quit using soft copper decades ago for potable water. It pinholed in very short time and after too many failures
MILLIONS of homes built on slabs have soft type "L" copper looped under the floors and relatively few of them have problems, and when they do it is usually an installation error, not the tubing, which causes it. Soft "plumbing" tubing only comes in type "L" and "K", which is even thicker. You may have used ACR refrigeration tubing which is MUCH thinner than type "L", and may even be thinner than type "M" hard copper. If the roll was 60' long it was a plumbing tubing, but if it was 50', then it was the "improper" refrigeration, or utility, tubing.
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Author:
hj (AZ)
quote; Hard only comes in M.
I think you mean "M" only comes in hard, because hard copper comes in DWV, K, L, M, ACR, to name a few.
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Author:
hj (AZ)
Decades ago, Canadian copper was made by a different process of drawing it out and had a lot of problems with "seam" failures.
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Author:
Plumbum (Canada)
OUCH!
Canuck= poor Cu?
We installed lots of that. Still going strong
USA= Orangeburg?
hj You hit my patriotic button!
;-D
We all can mess up
I'd rather buy materials on this continent than.....
Well you know those places
In Jest
Plumb
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Author:
hj (AZ)
quote;; Canuck= poor Cu?
We installed lots of that. Still going strong
It was only for a couple of years, but while it was happening it was a real pain because it did not fail immediately.
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Author:
sum (FL)
The one I have I don't know what type.
On the pipe itself it has a very faint etched label saying:
1/2" TYPE LKV/CP MADE IN U.S.A.
So made in USA is good. What is type LKV/CP?
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Author:
hj (AZ)
quote; What is type LKV/CP?
I have absolutely no idea. I have never heard of the designation and cannot figure out what it could stand for.
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Author:
bernabeu (SC)
Types K, L and M utility copper tubing must be marked to show tube type, manufacturer and the country of origin. This information must be incised into the tube and hard tubes must also print the information on the tube in a color that distinguishes it from the other tube types. Type K markings are green, Type L are blue and Type M are red.
==============================================
"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638
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