What Are Plumbing Fittings?

Plumbing Fittings

People often confuse plumbing fixtures with fittings. Fixtures are devices that receive water and leave waste for sanitary purposes. These include toilets, sinks, bathtubs, and many more. Plumbing fittings are additional devices that are used to control the water flow and direction. Think of these as shower heads for showers, faucets for sinks, and shutoff valves for general control. There are many different types of fittings used in commercial and residential properties. Let’s look at some of them in the next section.

Types of Plumbing Fittings & Their Uses

There are many different types of plumbing fittings. You will see some very often, while others not so much. Let’s go over six of the most commonly used plumbing fittings in this section:

• Tees: A tee pipe fitting has one inlet and two outputs. It has a ninety-degree angle on each side and gets its name from looking like the letter T. It is mainly used to connect and divide the water flow into more pipes.
• Couplings: Couplings connect two pipes with the same diameter. They have different subtypes called adapters and reducers to connect pipes of different sizes or standards.
• Caps: Caps are fittings installed on the outside of the pipe to stop the flow of gas or liquids. They are added to the last part of the pipes where water flow isn’t needed.
• Elbows: Elbow fittings get their name from their looks. They are often 45 to 90-degree angle fittings that help redirect the flow between two pipes and can also be used to connect two pipes.
• Crosses: Cross fittings have four openings. They are often used as one inlet and three outlets or vice versa. They allow water and gas flow to be connected and diverted into different pipes.
• Valves: Valves are very commonly known. They are plumbing fittings used to turn on water or gas flow or completely turn it off. They also help people adjust how much water or gas enters through the system. If you need plumbing repair service, one of the most common activities you will see the technicians do is turn off the valve to ensure a safe working environment.

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