# Odd size pipe.... I think



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Finished this repair on what I thought would be 2 inch steel pipe. It cut and smelled like cast-iron as we were working with it. 

I did a similar repair about a month ago on a 1-1/4 at the same location. I had a similar problem but not near as bad as today. 

I almost never got the coupling onto the old pipe. I had to clean it up quite a bit with a grinder before the coupling would go on. At first I thought it was just rust and dirt buildup. But even after getting it cleaned down to metal, I had to use a hammer and a lot of effort to get the couplings in place.

The pipe did not seem near big enough to be 2-1/2 but the 2" coupling was clearly too small. 

Any thoughts?


----------



## Gettinit (May 9, 2012)

.....it wasn't a floor jack was it....:laughing::jester:


That pic wasn't there when I posted this joke....never mind...


----------



## Gettinit (May 9, 2012)

Never heard of 2" ductile iron, but it would likely have been bigger.


----------



## Widdershins (Feb 5, 2011)

plbgbiz said:


> Finished this repair on what I thought would be 2 inch steel pipe. It cut and smelled like cast-iron as we were working with it.
> 
> I did a similar repair about a month ago on a 1-1/4 at the same location. I had a similar problem but not near as bad as today.
> 
> ...


Sounds like SG iron, a form of ductile iron used for water services in the 40's and 50's.


----------



## johnlewismcleod (Apr 6, 2012)

There is quite a bit of it around College Station, TX...I've not run into it yet in DFW, but I'm sure it's around.

We call it sand cast pipe (some called it sand-spun also). It's thicker than sch80 and the OD falls between 2-1/2" (2.88") and 2" (2.38"). 

You should contact a utility supply house (waterworks)...they'll likely keep dressers on hand in sandcast sizes.


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Widdershins said:


> Sounds like SG iron, a form of ductile iron used for water services in the 40's and 50's.





johnlewismcleod said:


> There is quite a bit of it around College Station, TX...I've not run into it yet in DFW, but I'm sure it's around.
> 
> We call it sand cast pipe (some called it sand-spun also). It's thicker than sch80 and the OD falls between 2-1/2" (2.88") and 2" (2.38").
> 
> You should contact a utility supply house (waterworks)...they'll likely keep dressers on hand in sandcast sizes.


In a previous thread I apparently misidentified the pipe on the first leak as sch80 steel. This SG or Sand Cast pipe sounds more like it. It certainly explains the trouble I had getting the couplings to fit.

These photos are from the first leak. After I clean the 2" up tomorrow I'll post pics of today's leak.


----------



## plumberdad70 (Sep 29, 2012)

That is deff. Sand cast!!


----------



## TX MECH PLUMBER (May 27, 2011)

Cool. I learned a bit. Never heard of San cast. Get this next time. They are made to adjust for diff sizes. A tape to measure the od of the pipe in hundreths of inches helpes !then get the hy max that has a range that your pipe fits in.


----------



## justme (Jul 4, 2012)

plbgbiz said:


> Finished this repair on what I thought would be 2 inch steel pipe. It cut and smelled like cast-iron as we were working with it.
> 
> I did a similar repair about a month ago on a 1-1/4 at the same location. I had a similar problem but not near as bad as today.
> 
> ...


Looks like castiron water pipe , what was the thickness of the pipe wall. I fixed a 3" cast iron water line a couple weeks ago that had a OD of almost 4". Was the pipe smooth or did it have little bumps all over it


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

justme said:


> Looks like castiron water pipe , what was the thickness of the pipe wall. I fixed a 3" cast iron water line a couple weeks ago that had a OD of almost 4". Was the pipe smooth or did it have little bumps all over it


Definitely not smooth. Very uneven surface like old cast iron.


----------



## Airgap (Dec 18, 2008)

This thread is one of the things that makes the PZ great!

:thumbsup:


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Airgap said:


> This thread is one of the things that makes the PZ great!
> 
> :thumbsup:


Exactly!


----------



## DesertOkie (Jul 15, 2011)

Same size as CA pipe?


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

After I cleaned it up the O.D. is 2.5". Side by side in the shop it seems so obvious but in the ditch when we were losing daylight I would have bet the farm it was regular 2" pipe size. Thirty years in and still finding new things to learn. :thumbup:


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

It does not show up perfectly in the pics but there seems to be an inner lining on the pipe. Not the mineral deposits but an actual lining to the pipe itself.

Where the initial leak and crack was, the piece just snapped off while we were cutting the other end of the pipe. The difference between the cut side and the cracked side is clear. The pipe definitely breaks like cast rather than T&C steel.


----------



## Mississippiplum (Sep 30, 2011)

That inner layer looks like that cement coating that Is sprayed on the inside of DI pipe.

Sent from my iPhone 10.5


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Are you talking about the white surface? Under the white there is another thin layer that is clearly separate from the pipe.


----------



## Mississippiplum (Sep 30, 2011)

plbgbiz said:


> Are you talking about the white surface? Under the white there is another thin layer that is clearly separate from the pipe.


Maybe there's not a cement coating if its separate then. 
I haven't seen this cast iron water service pipe before so I'm kinda guessing

Sent from my iPhone 10.5


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

It was installed in 1969.


----------



## U666A (Dec 11, 2010)

Mississippiplum said:


> ... I'm kinda guessing
> 
> Sent from my iPhone 10.5


You don't say... :laughing:


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

...


----------



## Gettinit (May 9, 2012)

That's one hell of a surprise to find after its cut in two. Way to get it done.


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Gettinit said:


> That's one hell of a surprise to find after its cut in two. Way to get it done.


Yeah, it was pretty frustrating having to grind and hammer on pipe that had already cracked.

We got the water on later last night so it's all good.

All's well that ends well I suppose.


----------



## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

So what is the future prognosis for this pipe?

Are they going to have continued failures or is this just one of those repairs that come up from time to time?


----------



## Widdershins (Feb 5, 2011)

plbgbiz said:


> So what is the future prognosis for this pipe?
> 
> Are they going to have continued failures or is this just one of those repairs that come up from time to time?


It's pretty durable stuff. I'm guessing it sheared because of a casting defect.


----------



## justme (Jul 4, 2012)

plbgbiz said:


> It was installed in 1969.


The 3" line I worked on was from about 1965 . It had blew a chunk right out of the top of it.I had to use one of those full circle clamps


----------



## johnlewismcleod (Apr 6, 2012)

plbgbiz said:


> So what is the future prognosis for this pipe?
> 
> Are they going to have continued failures or is this just one of those repairs that come up from time to time?


It's an early version of ductile iron pipe. Like Widder says...extremely durable stuff :thumbsup:


----------



## TerryO (Oct 12, 2012)

Talking about odd sized pipe, today we did a sewerline replacement. Found cast iron in the alley coming off the tap that was the strangest cast I've ever seen. 4" that a no hub clamp was to big for and it was as slick on the outside as stainless yet it definitely was cast. We had to cinch a fernco way down on it to make it work.

Terry Ohlmann / www.ActionAirPlumbing.com


----------

