I am trying to remove some galvanized steel pipe in my house and replace with PEX. There is an area where I have a 3/4 inch steel pipe that meets another 3/4 inch steel pipe at a 90deg elbow. I am trying to remove the one and start the PEX from there; however, the pipe won't budge! I disconnected the other end, and tried to move it with a pipe wrench which did not work. I tried oil, then vinegar, then a blow torch, and still it won't move one bit. What can I do to get the one pipe out?
Why not just cut it out with a sawsall and replace all of it instead of just making a connection there?
That cracked us up, oil and vinager, what were you planing on making a salad? That will do nothing to loosen it up.
A longer pipe wrench will get it disconnected.
Heat the 90 with a good torch and crank on it with a good ol 24" pipewrench.
Once you get it lose you might as well remove the 90 from the other pipe and reseal it while youre at it
Hi,Take your pipe wrench and tighten it in the area to get the most leverage .Then take a 3 or 4 foot piece of metal pipe the diameter has to be big enough to fit over the handle of the pipe wrench.Then slide the pipe over the handle of the wrench,then try to loosen the joint .The pipe will allow you to get alot more leverage and should loosen the joint .Good luck ,let me know how you make out
Thanks for your time
Juan:whistling2:
If you need to save the threads on the pipe, either a hack saw or sawsall and cut the elbow in line with the pipe just short of the threads on the pipe spread cut with screw driver blade and it willl turn off. Large elbow cut both sides of elbow.
I will try again with the pipe wrench, but I am not sure I will get anywhere. I think there is a lot of mineral build-up in there that is not helping things (plus it is at least 50 years old). I have some more questions about cutting. Would I be cutting the 90deg joint or the pipe I want to replace? Once I cut (either) how would that help me remove what is needed to make the connection?
PS - The vinegar removed the buildup outside near the joint and the oil applied later to loosen the joint. It was not together and not like a salad dressing...
I'm wondering that too. If you look at the pictures, I get the impression that there's 2 90's with an vertical offset he's trying to spin out :huh: May one picture is upside down...
Here is another pictures. I am 180 lbs and I was literally hanging from both pipe wrenches and it did not move in the slightest. The cut is a ways down, so that is why you cannot see it. You should be able to in this pictures.
Can you grab onto the pipe that's cut and try to leverage against that to make one of the other joints loosen up?
:huh:
Edit :
Your pipe wrenches are kinda far apart.
You get the most leverage by putting them right next to one another.
You get more leverage by decreasing the angle between the pipe wrenches. Start with a really small angle between them in order to break the threads. Once it starts turning you can increase the angle to get more rotation for each "bite" with the wrench.
Never came across one I couldn’t break. Cut that pipe closer to the break point, quoting Alan “you grab onto the pipe that's cut and try to leverage against that to make one of the other joints loosen up?” if you over heat the 90 you can actually soften it to the point that you oval it with the pipe wrench when you crank on it ,then you’ll really will have a heck of a time getting it apart. :wink:
Be carefull with using a cheater pipe on something suspended from a ceiling like that,anybody whos ever had a bunch of hangers fail will know what Im talking about! :laughing::laughing:
I remember way back when I was 13-14 me and my dad were trying to bust the lugnuts loose on a big ol 69 dodge 2t tow truck.
We had a 3/4" drive breaker bar and a 10' long piece of conduit with both of of pushing/pulling/jumping on the stupid thing
Come to find out after an hour of fighting with it dodge used left handed threads on the lugs on left side of their trucks back in the day,we spent all that time tightening the stupid things! :laughing::laughing:
Hey everyone. I got it!! I went to Home Depot, got a nice think PCV pipe for only like $3 and it helped give the extra torque to my 10" pipe wrench. Fantastic. Thanks for your help!!!!!!!!
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