(ississauga) wrote:

I am using a propane torch to melt a recently made solder joint
holding together half inch copper plumbing pipes, but the solder won't
melt no matter how long I heat it for. I leaked out the water and
heated once till copper pipe turned red. Is there another way to melt
the solder ?


Doesn't sound right to me. If the pipe was red hot, the solder was
definitely liquid, or possibly you still had water in there. Now,
getting a joint apart can be difficult. You need a thick pair of
gloves, a wet rag, and maybe a pair of pliers. Twisting and pulling
should do it, and keep the torch on there. Even with a hardware store
propane torch it should only take maybe 20 seconds to melt a 1/2"
solder joint. Get yourself an acetylene torch and you can do it in 5
seconds.
---
David Meiland
Oakland, California
http://davidmeiland.com/

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