My PVC glue is coming apart! helup! someone helup!

[andrewj]

and I used my *tractor* cha-ching new rule ticked punched - to dig the trench. So I used the blue can of rain or shine stuff and one year later, the glue is breaking off at every joint. I used sand paper to prep, no liquid cleaner. I did not bury the PVC. Has anyone else had thisproblem? Thanks.

 

[DieselPower]

I alway's use primer. What type of cement did you use? There are different kinds for different kinds of pipe. There is clear, gray and orange glue. Some for PVC, some for CPVC and the gray stuff is for another kind that escapes me at the moment (I think the gray conduit). Is it possible you used the wrong type of glue?

 

[RonMar]

Well if you had buried it, you wouldn't have this problem Sorry, couldn't resist...

Are the pipes separating, or is this just the excess glue around the joint flaking off? If I recall correctly, the glue is not really glue anyway, it is actually a solvent. that is why there is different types for different PVC pipes. It melts the surface of the two pieces of pipe or pipe and fitting and in an tight/interference fit, the surface material of the two pieces fuse together when they are pressed into contact. The cement itself may not be that UV resistant so where it is exposed to light, it breaks down. the internal joint is probably fine. The same can also be said for white PVC pipe, it will breakdown and get brittle in sunlight. Grab two sections of the pipe and try and twist a joint apart. You might try strap wrenches if you have them for a little extra torque. If they can't be separated, bury it!

 

[Jimbrown]

The blue is just what it says for use when wet when the other stuff will not stick. It ain't ment for permanent everyday use. It would be coming apart even if you buried it. Use primer and then the clear or grey stuff. I have not had much luck with the orange stuff either.

 

[AlanB]

Welcome to Oatey

Rain or shine should have been fine.

My knee jerk thoughts.

Are the joints failing, or is the excess glue flaking off the outside of the pipes?

I would always use the cleaner, but that is me.

Rain or Shine is what I see almost exclusively used by the irrigation guys, and there joints surely last longer then a year.

Have you contacted Oatey?

Was it a new can when you used it?

At least when you have PVC problems, it is relatively cheap to fix.

 

[schmism]

the cleaner preps the PVC surface to be welded together with the glue.

IF you put the cleaner on, and stick your fingernail on the surface of the PVC a few sec later (15-20?) then the surface will be kinda soft and sticky. The solvants in the cleaner have penitrated the PVC and prepaird it for the glue.

Should be easy enough to fix with some new couplings. and a bit of pipe.

 

[dberry]

I had the same problem here not too long ago with the blue stuff.

Bought a fresh can of blue and purple when I bought some pipe at Home Depot. I used the purple primer and made sure the joints where both clean and primed. 3 weeks later, some of the joints just popped free like the hadn't been glued at all.

I had chalked the failures up to cold weather so I reglued them without thinking much about it. Guess I'll get a fresh can next time I'm in town in case they had a bad batch of solvent.

Normally it's one of those products that works so well you don't give it much thought.

 

[texasjohn]

Never had this problem... even unaware that pipes that had held for a good while would simply come apart... will watch this thread to see if it is ever determined what happened and how to avoid. Seems that several folks have had the problem... I've always used the cleaner then the glue... in good weather.

 

[J_J]

and I used my *tractor* cha-ching new rule ticked punched - to dig the trench. So I used the blue can of rain or shine stuff and one year later, the glue is breaking off at every joint. I used sand paper to prep, no liquid cleaner. I did not bury the PVC. Has anyone else had thisproblem? Thanks.

One of your problems is, you don't sand PVC joints. If repairing a joint under water, you can't use the cleaner. If that blue stuff was thick when you used it, it was probably going bad. When you did glue, did you hold the joint for about 20 sec. I have seen the pipes separate if not held. The joint is supposed to be a slip fit, with a little bit of glue to cause a chemical bond. If done properly, I don't think you can twist it apart, and I don't think it will come apart in a couple of years. I use the blue stuff for PVC pipe, and one other reason is that you can see which joints have been completed. I have connected miles and miles of the PVC doing sprinkler systems and have never seen or heard of a similar situation. Did you do the job your self, or have a friend do it for you?

 

[George2615]

I think Ron hit the nail on the head. Most standard PVC and the cement for it are not UV resistant. Exposed to the sun PVC will expand and contract. If the PVC pipe is clamped in place, the joints will come apart if the pipe can't move.