What are the types of grooved pipe fittings?

As an advanced pipeline connection method, the grooved pipe fitting connection can be either exposed or buried. There are steel joints and flexible joints. Therefore, it has a wide range of applications. 

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What are grooved pipe fittings

Before the appearance of grooved couplings, the flexible couplings of metal pipes experienced coupling methods such as welding, threaded couplings, and flanged couplings. Grooved pipe fittings are quick and convenient to install, so they are widely used. Before installing the grooved pipe fittings, it is necessary to use a professional rolling groove machine to make grooves at the pipe ports, and then use a clamp to connect the two ports with grooves. Of course, roll grooving is only performed at the ends of straight pipes. For pipe joints such as elbows, tees, and crosses, grooves have been made during casting. Therefore, grooved products can also be divided into grooved connectors, that is, clamps and grooved pipe fittings. 

Grooved Coupling

Grooved pipe fittings

Types of grooved fittings

Grooved pipe fittings are mainly divided into the following categories:

Elbow categories: including 90° elbow, 45° elbow, 22.5° elbow, 11.25° elbow and other angle elbows;

Tee type: including regular tee, groove reducing tee, thread reducing tee, medium and large tee, etc.;

Four-way type: including positive cross, groove reducing cross, thread reducing cross, etc.;

Mechanical tee: including grooved mechanical tee, threaded mechanical tee, grooved mechanical tee, wire-connected mechanical tee, machine three lower piece, U-shaped wire-connected mechanical tee, etc.;

Reducer: including groove concentric, thread concentric, groove eccentric thread eccentric, etc.;

Flanges: including single-piece flanges (also called flange pipe clips, split flanges, flange sheets, etc.), short-pipe flanges (also called conversion flanges, grooved short pipes, high-neck flanges, etc.);

Pipe plugs: including blind sheets (also called pipe plugs, blind plates, etc.).

Grooved pipe joints: mainly rigid pipe joints, flexible pipe joints, etc.

Apron difference of grooved pipe fittings

The sealing ring used in the grooved pipe joint realizes the sealing performance of the system by increasing the pressure. From the perspective of cross section, it belongs to "C" type design. The higher the pressure, the better the sealing performance. The material used for the sealing ring can be determined according to the medium conveyed by the pipeline, and different materials have different letter codes on the sealing ring. For example, EPDM rubber (code E, black) is usually used in fire protection systems; silicone rubber for drinking water (code S, pressure cooker seal material, milky white); nitrile rubber (code D, orange); natural rubber (code N, black). Therefore, in fire engineering, black EPDM rings must be used.

Fire fittings with black EPDM seals

Where to go to import grooved pipe fittings

First, you need to confirm which country you are importing from. The question is simple, China is the best choice. Although the manufacturing history of grooved pipe fittings in China is not long, the manufacturing industry of grooved pipe fittings has developed rapidly in China and has formed a complete manufacturing industry chain. Grooved pipe fittings imported from China are of good quality on the one hand and relatively cheap on the other hand. After determining the importing country, which company should import grooved pipe fittings from?

CNG contains other products and information you need, so please check it out.

I would like you to recommend Hebei Jianzhi Group. Jianzhi Group was founded in and is considered a very old enterprise in China. Jianzhi Group has full-process grooved pipe fittings casting capabilities. In summary, Jianzhi Group has the following advantages:

1. Good quality

a. Excellent quality

Compared with the national standard products, the quality of Jianzhi products is the heaviest, obviously heavier than the national standard products of any manufacturer in China.

b. beautiful appearance

Due to years of molding casting experience and leading technical advantages, Jianzhi products have the best appearance finish in China. Because the molding sand is fine and dense, there are no traces of large sunken sand holes on the surface.

c. Most accurate thread

As mentioned in the thread process above, the pipe thread standard for construction is the most stringent in the industry, and the length and precision of pipe threads are strictly implemented in accordance with national standards. The installation is simple and trouble-free, and the sealing performance is good.

2. The types and specifications of malleable grooved pipe fittings are complete. 

We have a good cooperative relationship with many brother factories that produce stainless steel pipe fittings and valves, which can fully meet the needs of customers for one-stop procurement.

3. Sufficient production capacity and stable supply.

The annual production capacity of Jianzhi Group has reached 400,000 tons, and it is the only company in China that can still produce at full capacity without being affected by the national environmental protection policy. Therefore, the products of Jianzhi Group can provide customers with a guaranteed production cycle and delivery cycle, so that customers can avoid the pain of shortage.

If you want to know more, please click the video link below:

https://www.youtube.com/@pipefittings/featured 

Posted on September 23,

Grooved mechanical coupling systems are the most versatile, economical, and reliable grooved pipe joining system available today. Benefits of grooved pipe connectors to contractors include safer job sites, reduced total installed costs, and ease and speed of installation.

What is a Grooved Pipe Joint?

A grooved pipe joint consists of four elements

1. the grooved pipe
2. the gasket
3. the coupling housings
4. the nuts & bolts.

A pipe groove can either be cold formed or machine formed. A gasket encompassed by the coupling housing is wrapped around the two pipe ends, and the coupling housing key sections engage the grooves. The pipe coupling&#;s bolts and nuts are tightened with a socket wrench or impact wrench. In the installed state, the mechanical pipe coupling housing encases the gasket and engages the grooves around the circumference of the pipe to create a leak-tight seal in a self-restrained pipe joint.

Grooved pipe couplings can employ one of two basic styles: flexible or rigid. There are benefits to both styles. To read more on the differences between flexible and rigid grooved pipe couplings and when to use them, check out this blog post.

Top Five Benefits of Grooved Pipe Joints

1. Safer Jobsites

Not only do benefits of grooved pipe couplings include being fast and easy to install, but it&#;s also safer than any other pipe joining method. Grooved mechanical coupling systems are installed without the need for flame, eliminating the fire hazards typically associated with welding/brazing or soldering.  Welding is one of the most dangerous industrial activities; its hazards include fire risk, electric shock, compressed gases, and toxic fumes. As such, welding requires personal protection for the eyes, hands, feet, and body. Welding activities also require a fire watch during and following the work, which can slow the construction schedule and increase costs.

The safety of installers on the job site is of the utmost importance; however, it becomes even more critical during expansion and/or retrofit projects where buildings such as hospitals and schools may remain open and operational during construction. The benefits of grooved mechanical couplings can decrease the risks to workers and in the projects mentioned above, building tenants. The grooved pipe joining method is the hands-down winner in a side-by-side safety comparison to welding, one of the most dangerous industrial activities.

2. Accommodating Piping System Expansion and Contraction

When accommodating thermal expansion and contraction in a piping system, the grooved pipe joining method conforms to industry practices. Simultaneously, it provides design flexibility, reduces stress on the mechanical piping system and provides a more compact, easy-to-inspect, and productive method of installation over other pipe joining methods.

Grooved mechanical couplings allow for movement of the pipe due to the design of their components. The dimensions of the pipe coupling housing key are narrower than the pipe groove allowing room for the pipe coupling housing key to move in the pipe groove. Additionally, the width of the pipe coupling housing allows for pipe end separation which in turn allows the grooved pipe joint to accommodate linear and angular movement. The mechanical coupling provides a self-restrained joint, and the unique pressure-responsive design of the pipe connector enables positive sealing even under deflection and linear pipe movement.

3. Less Downtime

In retrofit projects, avoiding disruption to building occupants while minimizing cost overruns associated with night and weekend work can be a challenge. Grooved mechanical pipe joining systems can address these issues as a reliable alternative to welding and flanging. The widely-accepted flame-free technology is fast and easy to install and maintain, providing compatibility between new system design and existing systems.

In many cases, existing piping systems can be rerouted and kept in operation while work is performed on old systems or while new systems are installed. The grooved system eliminates the need for complete system shutdowns because there is no need to drain and dry the system, and an arc or flame is not required to disassemble or reassemble the joint. As a result, buildings can return to full operating capacity very quickly. The benefits of grooved in this situation are simple: avoid downtime. To access a piping system joined with grooved components, a worker simply disassembles two couplings to drop out a pipe section. To complete the job, the grooved couplings are easily placed back on the pipe, and the nuts are tightened.

4. Reduced Total Installed Costs

Although there might be a higher upfront materials cost than with welding, the benefits of grooved are found in the reduction of labor time and labor costs. Based on the elimination of welding, and the need for highly skilled and relatively expensive labor, the assembly of mechanical coupling systems reduces labor man-hours as well as the labor rate. This contributes to an overall reduction in piping system costs, known as total installed costs. Victaulic estimates that jobs requiring welding applications demand up to 45 percent more man-hours on average over grooved piping solutions, and at a much higher labor rate.

5. Ease and Speed of Installation

Grooved mechanical piping is inherently faster to install than any other pipe joining method because the gasket and coupling housings simply need to be positioned onto the grooved pipe ends. The bolts and nuts are tightened with standard hand tools. Following installation, most grooved systems can be visually inspected. Metal-to-metal bolt pad contact confirms that the pipe coupling has been properly installed and secured into place. Welding, on the other hand, often requires X-ray inspections to ensure a sound joint. The benefits of grooved pipe couplings are demonstrated in the ease and speed of installation savings. Victaulic&#;s Installation-Ready&#; mechanical pipe couplings can be installed up to ten times faster than welding and six times faster than flanging.

It&#;s easy to see the benefits of grooved piping systems and how it is quickly becoming the standard on commercial building job sites. With the ability to improve job site safety, speed and simplify installation, reduce total installed costs, and ease maintenance and expansion, grooved mechanical piping will long hold a place in contractors&#; toolkits. When you add the engineering benefits to the mix&#;design versatility; accommodation of thermal expansion and contraction, deflection and seismic movement; and noise and vibration attenuation&#;grooved piping is in a class of its own.

Check out some of our case studies to see the benefits of grooved in action.