High Tide Aquatics

ABS Bulkhead to PVC "?"

Marc

Guest
Hey All,

Need some advice and or experience from members who have used ABS bulkheads and have glued them to PVC...

1) what glue did you use? I was told by BRS that PVC primer and glue would be fine but I wanted to hear from members here.

2) Did you notice a little play between the ABS bulkhead and the PVC nipple? The two I have seem to have some play. Maybe 1/32 gap - is this an issue?
PVC to PVC fittings don't have any play...always snug.

Thanks!
 
Hey All,

Need some advice and or experience from members who have used ABS bulkheads and have glued them to PVC...

1) what glue did you use? I was told by BRS that PVC primer and glue would be fine but I wanted to hear from members here.

2) Did you notice a little play between the ABS bulkhead and the PVC nipple? The two I have seem to have some play. Maybe 1/32 gap - is this an issue?
PVC to PVC fittings don't have any play...always snug.

Thanks!
use an all purpose glue for PVC and ABS

http://www.cpesupply.com/default.as...emcode=30818&gclid=CMjvtYe79rsCFe1xQgodRDgAgA

http://www.saltwaterpoolparts.com/glue-pt-790.html

Lowes, Home depo , orchard supply or most landscape supply shops should have it.
 
2) Did you notice a little play between the ABS bulkhead and the PVC nipple? The two I have seem to have some play. Maybe 1/32 gap - is this an issue?

Exactly what PVC part are you trying to attach to the BH. I think all PVC nipples are threaded. Pics are always good.

Parts bottom out and still have play?

Odd. I've never experienced fittings with play. Slip fittings have a taper. Any pro plumbers want to chime in?

Are the BHs from BRS?

Perhaps try a different brand of PVC?
 
Parts bottom out and still have play?

Odd. I've never experienced fittings with play. Slip fittings have a taper. Any pro plumbers want to chime in?

Are the BHs from BRS?

Perhaps try a different brand of PVC?

Sorry, when I said nipple, I meant a piece of PVC pipe I cut to be able to glue another fitting like an elbow.

Yes parts bottom out and have play. Yes BHs are from BRS.

Not sure what other brand of PVC pipe to use?...its schedule 80.

Here is a picture, check out the gap between the ABS fitting and PVC pipe. Is this normal to have since its ABS vs PVC?
d68c7eeb-c026-4121-8a15-d42a88589edf_zpsb04b62fa.jpg
 
Doesn't look right to me. Do you have any Sch40 to try?

There is little advantage to using Sch80 pipe w/ ABS BH anyway. The ABS is the weakest link. You'll get a small increase in capacity w/ Sch40 (larger ID) too.
 
Doesn't look right to me. Do you have any Sch40 to try?

There is little advantage to using Sch80 pipe w/ ABS BH anyway. The ABS is the weakest link. You'll get a small increase in capacity w/ Sch40 (larger ID) too.
BINGO! I had a piece of sch 40 and it fits like OJ Simpsons glove - tight!

We redid our filtration system at work so I had some extra sch 80 fittings and pipe - that's why I ended up using it
This is really strange to me...not sure what to make of it. The sch 80 pipe to sch 80 fittings I have fit fine. I have a 5 foot section of pipe i'm working with, might have to reconsider using it.

Can old PVC pipe have shrinkage? I know we just got them for this project too! I'm stumped!

Aqua-nut, thanks for your help! Now I know the bulkhead isn't the problem.
 
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I don't have much experience w/ Sch80. I think it's supposed to be the same OD as Sch40. Could you have some weird metric pipe?

As long as you are not into an 'all grey look', the Sch40 should be just fine. It's paint-able if you still want grey! :)
 
Yeah, I don't know that I'd try to glue it if there's a 1/32 gap. PVC/ABS cement is not gap filling, it needs direct contact to work, IIRC it's more like a solvent than a glue.
 
Yeah, I don't know that I'd try to glue it if there's a 1/32 gap. PVC/ABS cement is not gap filling, it needs direct contact to work, IIRC it's more like a solvent than a glue.
Yeah I ended up not. I'm not sure what was up with that section of pipe but I knew it shouldn't be like that and that's why I asked.


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I used PVC pipes and used threaded connectors to attach to the ABS bulkheads. The ABS bulkheads did not seem to have NPT threads ... meaning the threads did NOT taper so that I had to use pipe thread sealant on it.

V
 
I used PVC pipes and used threaded connectors to attach to the ABS bulkheads. The ABS bulkheads did not seem to have NPT threads ... meaning the threads did NOT taper so that I had to use pipe thread sealant on it.

V
I think in my case, something was not right with the sch80 pipe i was trying to fit into the ABS bulkhead. But when I tried that same sch80 pipe on a sch80 fitting, it fits just fine. I think the real issue here is that you are trying to fit a pvc pipe into ABS, which works, but not really the best way to do it. All these fittings and pipes come from different manufacturers who all have different specs and tolerances on their items, which can really screw things up.

I recently tried to screw in a male pvc adapter to my ABS bulkhead - and just like what happened to you- it thread all the way in. Normally you dont bottom out fittings like that. Whats a little scary is - you can split the BH and not even notice it.
 
^^ Yes, I wrote to BRS about it, they said "use silicon on the threads and no problem!", instead I bought some thread sealant from Home Depot which is made for plastic pipes.

V
 
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