I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

"Doobielicious" wrote in message
news:kHddk.3355$7%6.261@edtnps82...
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?


I guess if you didn't have sandpaper, emery cloth, or a wire brush for the
outside of the pipe, you probably didn't clean the inside of the coupling as
well. Get the proper tools and supplies and start over.

"Doobielicious" wrote in message
news:kHddk.3355$7%6.261@edtnps82...
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?



Not using the sandpaper. You must clean both the inside of the coupling and
the outside of the pipe. Where ever the copper is to be joined both pieces
must be very clean and bright.
You can also use some of the Scotchbright pads or steel wool to do the
cleaning. The copper must be bright and grease free.

"Ralph Mowery" wrote in message


Not using the sandpaper. You must clean both the inside of the coupling
and the outside of the pipe. Where ever the copper is to be joined both
pieces must be very clean and bright.
You can also use some of the Scotchbright pads or steel wool to do the
cleaning. The copper must be bright and grease free.



And be sure the joint get hot enough for the solder to flow, not clump. The
new solders with no lead take more heat that the older stuff.

Doobielicious wrote:

I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?
Try using MAP GAS not the stuff in the blue bottle, the stuff in the yellow
bottle.
--
"You can lead them to LINUX
but you can't make them THINK"
Running Mandriva release 2008.0 free-i586 using KDE on i586

In article , evodawg wrote:
Doobielicious wrote:

I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?
Try using MAP GAS not the stuff in the blue bottle, the stuff in the yellow
bottle.

Pffffft. Propane works just fine for 1/2" pipe and fittings. There's no need
for the OP to spend forty bucks on a MAPP torch to solder one joint. Sheesh.

"evodawg" wrote in message
...
Doobielicious wrote:

I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a
good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling
to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?
Try using MAP GAS not the stuff in the blue bottle, the stuff in the
yellow
bottle.
--
"You can lead them to LINUX
but you can't make them THINK"
Running Mandriva release 2008.0 free-i586 using KDE on i586
Propane works just fine on those little 1/2" fittings. Do it all the
time....
The OP should be patient and make sure he heats the fitting and lets the
capillary action draw the solder into the joint, which it will do when it's
hot enough. Practice, practice, practice... Mark

mark wrote:


"evodawg" wrote in message
...
Doobielicious wrote:

I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece
of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a
good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling,
and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end
of the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the
coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up
with clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?
Try using MAP GAS not the stuff in the blue bottle, the stuff in the
yellow
bottle.
--
"You can lead them to LINUX
but you can't make them THINK"
Running Mandriva release 2008.0 free-i586 using KDE on i586
Propane works just fine on those little 1/2" fittings. Do it all the
time....
The OP should be patient and make sure he heats the fitting and lets the
capillary action draw the solder into the joint, which it will do when
it's
hot enough. Practice, practice, practice... Mark

Yeah whatever I do it for a living. And the propane does not get it hot
enough, unless you want to be there for 20 minutes and then you burned all
the flux off the fittings.

--
"You can lead them to LINUX
but you can't make them THINK"
Running Mandriva release 2008.0 free-i586 using KDE on i586

In article , evodawg wrote:

Yeah whatever I do it for a living. And the propane does not get it hot
enough, unless you want to be there for 20 minutes and then you burned all
the flux off the fittings.

Sorry, I just don't believe that you "do it for a living". Anybody who has
done that even casually on a weekend wouldn't claim that you need MAPP to
solder half-inch pipe. Propane works just fine -- as anyone who has ever
*really* done it knows. Sure, MAPP is faster. But the idea that it takes 20
minutes to solder one half-inch joint with propane is just nonsense.

On 7/11/2008 5:48 AM Doug Miller spake thus:

In article , evodawg
wrote:

Yeah whatever I do it for a living. And the propane does not get it
hot enough, unless you want to be there for 20 minutes and then you
burned all the flux off the fittings.

Sorry, I just don't believe that you "do it for a living". Anybody
who has done that even casually on a weekend wouldn't claim that you
need MAPP to solder half-inch pipe. Propane works just fine -- as
anyone who has ever *really* done it knows. Sure, MAPP is faster. But
the idea that it takes 20 minutes to solder one half-inch joint with
propane is just nonsense.

True that. I may not "do it for a living", but have sweated enough 1/2"
copper with a lowly propane torch to know that it only takes a few seconds.

Seems like your general writing demeanor and lack of skill point up just
how authoritative you really are ...


--
"Wikipedia ... it reminds me ... of dogs barking idiotically through
endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it.
It drags itself out of the dark abyss of pish, and crawls insanely up
the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and
doodle. It is balder and dash."

- With apologies to H. L. Mencken

"Doobielicious" wrote in message
news:kHddk.3355$7%6.261@edtnps82...
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

Two things ........... Not getting it hot enough. When it is hot enough,
you will remove the heat, and the lowering temperature will be right to melt
the solder, then the still lowering temp will suck the solder into the
joint. It takes a bit, but it is easy to master. Maybe you know someone
who can show you. If you have a glop, you just plain put too much on there.
Too much flows out. The right amount stays right there after filling the
inside space.

When I do it, I watch for a certain "color" in the copper. It doesn't
really change color, but gets a look that's recognizable. Always keep the
heat on the thicker piece and in from an edge. Keep the heat moving, but
focus it mainly on the thickest parts. Have your solder wound out to about
a six inch tail. You can touch the joint lightly with the end of the tail
to check for hotness. Do this at a crack, or just back on the tube about
1/8" from the gap. What you want is to see the solder melt instantly and
flow like water. At this time, the torch should have been removed from the
heat and be pointing another direction. If it does flow, withdraw solder
and wave the torch over the thick stuff for a couple of more seconds,
withdraw flame, and stick the solder in the gap, going slow enough not to
end up with it running out, but fast enough to not run out of hot metal
that's melting the solder. If that happens, you won't have enough solder in
the joint, and you have to do it all over again, but this time with the
solder in there and making it much more difficult. Touch the joint slightly
away from the opening with the solder, on the tubing.

It's easy once you've done about twenty of them right. Might even be worth
buying a contractor pack of connectors and a stick of copper. Unless you
just have some laying around.

HTH

Steve

I add to my previous post: clean it really good and make sure it's dry.
Others said it too because it's that important.

Steve

Doobielicious wrote:
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?


One thing to add to what the others have said.
Your pipe must be bone dry inside. If not the water caries the heat away
too fast to let the solder melt properly.
Kevin

Why mess about! Go get an oxy set or a surefire mapp gas burner and some 8%
silver solder and braze the connection, If its for water it will never leak
if you do it properly. % minutes practise and you can do it like a pro.

"Doobielicious" wrote in message
news:kHddk.3355$7%6.261@edtnps82...
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

In article kHddk.3355$7%6.261@edtnps82, "Doobielicious" wrote:
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper)

How hard would it have been to go buy some?

and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe.

But, evidently, didn't clean it first, since you didn't have any sandpaper.

I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

Is this by any chance the first time you've ever tried to sweat-solder copper
pipe? If so... spend a few bucks on some spare fittings, and practice on a few
joints first.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

Improper cleaning of the pipe and fitting didn't help you at all, but it
sounds like the biggest problem is most likely that you:
a) didn't get the fitting hot enough before applying the solder, AND
b) tried to solder directly in the flame.

Take the joint apart. Clean everything properly this time (with a wire brush
or sandpaper). Flux both parts, making sure that you're using the right type
of flux for your solder. Then try again. Heat only the fitting, and apply the
solder to the pipe, directly opposite from the flame.

Not hard at all, but I posted this at 10:35 last night. Stores were closed.


"Doug Miller" wrote in message
...
In article kHddk.3355$7%6.261@edtnps82, "Doobielicious"
wrote:
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a
good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper)

How hard would it have been to go buy some?

and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe.

But, evidently, didn't clean it first, since you didn't have any
sandpaper.

I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling
to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

Is this by any chance the first time you've ever tried to sweat-solder
copper
pipe? If so... spend a few bucks on some spare fittings, and practice on a
few
joints first.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

Improper cleaning of the pipe and fitting didn't help you at all, but it
sounds like the biggest problem is most likely that you:
a) didn't get the fitting hot enough before applying the solder, AND
b) tried to solder directly in the flame.

Take the joint apart. Clean everything properly this time (with a wire
brush
or sandpaper). Flux both parts, making sure that you're using the right
type
of flux for your solder. Then try again. Heat only the fitting, and apply
the
solder to the pipe, directly opposite from the flame.

"Doobielicious" wrote in message
news:QMxdk.3331$1o6.1146@edtnps83...
Not hard at all, but I posted this at 10:35 last night. Stores were
closed.


"Doug Miller" wrote in message
...
In article kHddk.3355$7%6.261@edtnps82, "Doobielicious"
wrote:
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece
of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a
good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper)

How hard would it have been to go buy some?

and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe.

But, evidently, didn't clean it first, since you didn't have any
sandpaper.

I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end
of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling
to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up
with
clumps of solder in one spot.

Is this by any chance the first time you've ever tried to sweat-solder
copper
pipe? If so... spend a few bucks on some spare fittings, and practice on
a
few
joints first.

What the heck am I doing wrong?

Improper cleaning of the pipe and fitting didn't help you at all, but it
sounds like the biggest problem is most likely that you:
a) didn't get the fitting hot enough before applying the solder, AND
b) tried to solder directly in the flame.

Take the joint apart. Clean everything properly this time (with a wire
brush
or sandpaper). Flux both parts, making sure that you're using the right
type
of flux for your solder. Then try again. Heat only the fitting, and apply
the
solder to the pipe, directly opposite from the flame.



The only thing not covered by other posters is that it is possible to get
the copper too hot as well as not hot enough. A little practice will teach
you the difference. If the solder melts when you apply it to the copper but
does not flow out and coat it evenly the copper is either not clean or is
too hot.

The requirements are cleanliness, flux and the proper temperature.

Don Young

On Thu, 10 Jul 2008 01:35:12 GMT, "Doobielicious"
wrote:

I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?


I'm trying to imagine cleaning a round pipe with a file. Wouldn't
that put a flat spot on it? Get some sandpaper and steel wool and
remove the oxidation.

Doobielicious wrote:
I just tried to solder a 1/2 inch copper coupling to a 1/2 inch piece of
pipe. I put soldering paste inside the coupling, gave the 1/2 pipe a good
going over with a file (i didn't have sandpaper) and also put soldering
paste on the 1/2 inch pipe. I inserted the pipe inside the coupling, and
heated the couplign up with a torch. I tried to put solder on the end of
the coupling and the pipe, but the solder didn't go around the coupling to
form a seal. In fact the solder made a complete mess adn I ended up with
clumps of solder in one spot.

What the heck am I doing wrong?



You can go to youtube.com and enter solder pipe in the search box.