Old timer told me to never weld a cold joint and I blew a 12 inch header last Tuesday

Figured I knew better since it was a small repair and rushed it to get home early, now I'm cutting out a 3 foot section and redoing it tomorrow, anyone else learn this lesson the hard way?

2 comments

2 Comments

emeryr3823d ago

I read something from a retired pipefitter once who said cold joints are like ticking time bombs, you never know when they'll let go. He told me about a 6 inch steam line he saw blow at a plant back in '89 because some guy skipped preheat on a tight deadline. Your situation sounds like a perfect example of why that old timer's advice still holds up.

aaron19723d agoMost Upvoted

Yeah, that 'ticking time bomb' thing hits close to home. I had a job a few years back on a 4 inch chilled water line, and we skipped preheat once just to get out on time. A year later that same joint started weeping, and we had to cut it all out and redo it. Cost us way more time and money than the extra hour of preheat would have. Never again.