Pipes for supplying cold and hot water are an indispensable attribute of comfortable housing, but the risk of flood when breaking such a pipeline becomes a payment for comfort. To be able to quickly eliminate leaks, everyone in the house must have clamps. This useful connecting element will also help to install watering hoses, repair the car and solve many other tasks.
How is the clamp arranged?
During operation, any fistula sooner or later appears on any pipe - a hole or a crack. The cause of this trouble is corrosion processes, as well as mechanical failure due to the "fatigue" of the material or the deforming load. Since water is supplied to residential buildings under pressure, even a microscopic hole can flood if it is not detected in time.
Welding (for a metal pipe) or soldering (if the pipeline is assembled from polymer elements) helps to eliminate leakage. But it is far from always possible to immediately begin such repairs or to invite plumbing. A temporary solution to the problem is the clamp. This is a metal strip consisting of two semicircles, or an integral tape with a clamping mechanism.
To eliminate the leak, the hole is closed with a rubber gasket, on which a clamping element is put on and tightened with a fixing device. Firmly pressing the rubber to the place of the fistula, the device does not allow water to find the way out of the pipe. Such repairs will not preclude the replacement of the damaged element, but will allow you to use water for several days.
What clamps are on sale?
First of all, it is worth distinguishing between repair and installation varieties. The first type is designed to eliminate leaks in pipelines. It is more massive and has reliable locks. The mounting variant is intended for connecting pipes to hoses, hanging the pipeline to the ceiling or attaching to the wall. For a home “alarm case”, a stock of repair clamps is needed.
This variety has several design options:
- Metal plates bent in a circle, the ends of which are pulled together by a bolt and nut. They provide reliable fixation of the patch, but in some cases it can be difficult to tighten the bolt.
- Worm variety. The tape of such a device is provided with notches (or is cut through). A screw is installed at one end, the thread of which engages with the notches according to the principle of a worm gear. By turning the screw, you can tighten or release the tape.
- A kind of two half rings. Elements of this design can be hinged at one end or have eyelets for screws on both sides.
Most clamp designs do not include a rubber gasket.It is cut separately for each case. Therefore, in addition to fixing devices, you need to have a piece of rubber in stock, from which you can cut the gasket. For example, an elastic bandage is suitable.
For home plumbing, the best option is a worm clamp. It is easy to tighten and creates enough force to secure the patch. Other varieties should be used on larger pipelines.
How to choose the clamps?
On the counter of the store with sanitary goods, as a rule, you can see 10-15 varieties of clamps that differ in design, diameter and workmanship.
We will figure out what to look for when buying a worm clamp for repairing a home water supply system.
- Quality metal. It is better to choose stainless steel products (they have a slightly yellowish tint). This alloy is more viscous, which facilitates the work of the tensioning mechanism. Galvanized steel (it gives a shade of blue), although cheaper, wears out faster.
It is best if the clamp and the tightening screw are both made of stainless steel. If the color of these parts is different, the two elements may form a corrosive pair. This will lead to faster destruction.
- The way to finish. Worm gear notches must not be cut through. In this case, the metal of the tape and the quality of the finish will be quite high. This allows us to hope that the notches will not be erased at the first use and the clamp will hold water well.
- Quality of fastening for the screw.As a rule, it consists of two ends of the plate, bent around the screw. Optimally, if the edges of the two ends are connected by spot welding.
A quality clamp will cost a little more, but in this case, savings are inappropriate. If the clamp breaks during repair, you will have to immediately run to the store for a new one.
Repair technology: eliminate the leak yourself
First of all, it is necessary to shut off the water supply. Having closed the valve, it is necessary to carefully wipe the pipe, find a fistula and determine its size. If the length of the fistula is more than 1 cm, it has a complex shape or deviates from the pipe axis by more than 3 °, it is not advisable to put the clamp. Also, such a repair should not be started if clamps are already standing on this stretch of the water supply.
If a decision is made to put a clamp, put on an elastic band on a pipe. Then it is covered with a band of clamp and insert its end into the lock. It remains to gently tighten the screw until the gasket fits snugly against the pipe.
Although the clamp is not able to replace a full pipe repair, it allows you to win extra time. Therefore, such simple devices are needed in every home.