Why You Should Properly Purge Your Pipes

Welding is an old and effective method of keeping things together. The earliest recorded instance of a welding occurred around 3,500 B.C, which makes it older than even the earliest forms of plumbing. It’s also an important profession, with 50% of all products made in the United States needing some form of welding.

But it’s not always as straightforward and easy as creating weld on hinges or getting two pieces of metal to stick together by melting them just right. Sometimes you have to do a little extra to make sure everything passes inspection.

That’s where purging equipment for welding — things like purge monitors — come into play.

Purge equipment is used for many things, but especially for food-grade and other sanitary stainless-steel piping. The inside of the weld has to be shiny and clean, or it won’t pass inspection. Non-purged pipes are also difficult to weld, and it can mess up the work and make the job incredibly difficult.

They are also a breeding ground for bacteria, which is why it’s especially important for food-grade piping.

But how do you go about the purging process? What is purging? Why do you need purge equipment?

When you’re purging a pipe, you want to make sure you’re doing it right. You need a diffuser to help purge faster. Purging uses an argon hose, and argon is heavier than air and fills containers like water would. A diffuser lets the argon gas do its job easier by creating an evener flow and displacing oxygen. It pushes it right out of the vent hole. Many modern types of purging equipment have built-in diffusers.

This is another key part of the purge: the vent hole.

The vent hole allows the oxygen to escape, and that’s important. If you can’t relieve the oxygen, you’re going to have pressure in the pipe, and it might also make the purge basically useless as nothing was pushed out.

Additionally, the pressure could blow a hole in the pipe when you close the weld.

Proper purge equipment and guidelines are important to make sure that you get the best possible results and that your work passes inspection. If you have any questions about purging equipment, contact us. We’ll be happy to help.