Disassembling malleable iron pipe fittings

[Spark plug]

I have a air leak to fix on a 3” BSP pipe system, I need to take about 3 joints apart to get to the problem.

The pipes threads have been sealed with a sealer that had gone quite hard, any tips to get it to bits, other than brute force and ignorance?

 

[8ob]

Hot spanner/OA

Bob

 

[Ruffian]

Hammer both sides at the same time,
Helps brake up corrosion etc on the threads.

 

[Tigman]

Two hammers always a good trick !

If it's galvanised play a bit of heat with a blow lamp but don't melt the zinc

 

[mtt.tr]

Blowtorch softens it up

 

[Spark plug]

Cheers, Ile give that a go

 

[waddycall]

Scaffold tube on your stillsons

 

[awemawson]

2-1/2 BSP galvanised in my Launderettes always used to come loose eventually with a tickle from the o/a torch, and that was usually crouched down behind the machines with no room to swing a big Stilson. (but you did get to scare the customers when you popped up again )

. . oh and the only reliable jointing was Bosswhite and Hemp - forget PTFE tape or various propriety compounds - they ALL developed leaks after a few days / weeks

 

[Spark plug]

A quick warm with some mapp gas sorted it, turned out the threads on the nipple weren’t the best, so new nipples required.

 

[Pete.]

Brute force and ignorance usually does it. If they move a little bit they usually keep going quite easily.