Metal pipes capture a growing segment of the plumbing market, so the question of their service becomes more urgent. It is believed that, if necessary, replacing such pipes need to change the entire pipeline full. But this opinion is erroneous. The product is easy to cut and change of parts without any harm to the common system of water supply or heating. The following describes the how to cut metal pipes.
cutting Methods
There are several ways of cutting, which directly depend on the tool used. First of all, cut the product, you can:
- Knife for efficient cutting of reinforced plastic pipes. The knife in this case must be used with self.
- Hacksaw. The simplest method, which, however, will require the artist a lot of effort and time. In addition, the edges may get torn.
- Scissors.
- Cutter.
If you use some of the tools the cut edges are quite rough and the particles of the material may subsequently cause clogging. The best way is the use of special scissors that cut cleanly, leaving no jagged edges. These objects can be cut with scissors to 40 mm diameter.
Important! No special effort in this case do not have to apply as a tool specially designed to carry out such work and has a special blade. These blades easily cut through the plastic tubes in any location.
For products of larger diameter is best to choose a pipe cutter. Cutters are telescopic and ratchet. The first type is based on the work of the special roller, rolling on the entire circumference. The second type is more like a pair of scissors, as it uses a lever system with two levers.
The cut metal pipes
Metal pipes have several advantages over their competitors. They are much lighter than metal and is much more resistant to oxidation than copper. They are easy to replace and easy to give the necessary form. You can create a line of any shape. Well, the main advantage is the cost. It is much lower than that of copper pipes. And the quality is about the same level.
During operation, it may be necessary to cut the pipe. To do this, it uses a special tool that is designed to work with such material. To improve the effectiveness of the procedure is recommended to properly prepare pipe and instruments before operating. Consider the basic features than metal pipes and to cut them.
Preparation pipe and necessary tool
The instruments used by the cutting device itself, measuring tape, wrenches, seals and some other things. All this should be easily accessible at the time of operation.
Sometimes you need to clean the outside of the reinforced coating to simplify the cutting process in the next stage. Stripping used clutch with a blade that provides a perfect clean cut and get rid of the polymer layer. This is necessary for welding, which are likely to be carried out during installation of the pipeline.
Important! At work it is necessary to cut only as much material as needed for fitting nozzles for plastic products.
Tools for cutting metal pipes
In the process of cutting pipes useful the following tools:
- calibrator;
- bender;
- Adjustable wrench;
- The cloth;
- Scissors.
Master is important to determine in advance what he was going to cut metal pipes. The most important tool in the list is a pair of scissors. Everything else you need for special preparation.
In the process of cutting is not necessary to put a lot of effort. Suffice it to fully control every move. If you do not pay enough attention to control, you can easily cut off any excess.
If in the process of cutting the need to bend the product is not recommended to do it by hand. Since aluminum can be easily damaged layer which is inside. It is better to take professional bender and perform the operation with it.
The use of unsuitable tools when working with one section can affect the entire network, which will lead to higher costs for repairs.
Important! Special scissors are usually found in a set of welding. But they can be purchased separately. The price of this instrument is not so high that it saves.
Before you proceed directly to the cutting, it is necessary to measure very precisely the part where the unit will be divided. To do this, use a tape measure or ruler, as well as a bright marker. Faint pencil can simply not see, especially if there is not enough room lighting. Mark can be done with a knife, leaving a scratch.
During operation, pieces of plastic and aluminum can scatter in different directions. Therefore it is necessary to use protective equipment in the form of points and special clothing.
cutting equipment
Self-cutting can be carried out with the products of diameter from 5 to 30 cm. So, if the product does not fall in these boundaries, it is best to turn to professionals.
In conducting any such manipulation is important to remember the basic rules:
- Plastic products are very sensitive to temperature, so in hot or cold weather may have some problems. Material easily compresses and expands, it difficult to determine true dimensions.
- Plastic as polypropylene pipe, can be cut by any means at hand. But in order to avoid different negative consequences of this is best done by special instruments.
- An excellent tool is a special self-sharpening knife. But if you plan to work on one section is replaced by another, it is better to give up the instrument in favor of the scissors.
- Material is sufficiently brittle. Applying too much effort is fraught with the appearance of specific cracks or deformation. Permissible load can be seen in the product passport, which was issued at the time of water supply installation.
- cutting depends on the type of metal and plastic fraction in the product. If the metal is greater at the cutting friction should be as small as possible. Otherwise, a large proportion of plastics means a greater intensity of work with a lot of friction.
- Before starting work, be sure to make sure that the pipe is not water or gas. It is necessary to shut off all taps and wait a bit.
- After completion of the work must be properly clean the inside part of the debris that can cause clogging or break the specialized equipment.
The use of electronic tools is not considered reasonable for cutting, since the specifics of the material it is not designed. You can cope with hand tools.