Remember when you could just tap a flange with a hammer?

Had to replace a section of 6-inch steam line last month, and the old flanges were rusted solid. Back in the day, a few good hits with a sledge would usually break them free. This time, I spent a full eight hours just on those two flanges. Ended up using a torch, a hydraulic puller, and a whole can of penetrating oil. The new guy thought I was crazy for not just cutting them off, but you try explaining heat cycles to a schedule. Anyone else find that the old 'quick fixes' just don't work on modern pipe anymore?

4 comments

4 Comments

joel_jones1mo agoMost Upvoted

Try explaining that to my rusty home plumbing.

charles_mitchell1mo ago

Modern pipe might as well be welded" seems like a bit of an overstatement to me.

jamie9403d ago

But how often does that actually cause a real problem? Seems like a rare edge case to me.

hernandez.mark1mo ago

Eight hours on just two flanges is insane! That's a whole shift right there. The new guy suggesting you just cut them has clearly never seen what heat stress does to a threaded joint down the line. Modern pipe might as well be welded together from the factory sometimes.