Old pipe shenanigans

Today’s victim is a 30” riveted steel line from 1922. It needs to connect the new pipe that’s replacing it.

So let’s make a weldneck. Mark one line down the length of the pipe and another around its circumference.

Mark ordinates

Measure cut backs for the cope

Connect the dots la la lala

Chop along the lines and do a hack job throwing a bevel on there.

Not to shabby eh?

Flip it around and hang a flange. Usually I’d do this part first, but I didn’t have the flange yet.

Inside welded

Outside welded. Yes I know it’s not instagram pretty welds. it’s not gonna leak or fall off either

Made a couple spools too

Pretty good material. When 104 years old you reach. Look this good you will not.

Root and hot pass in

Reinforcing pad fit

And welded

Bolting up

Kinda hard to see but these guys are doing a hot tap. Basically a big hole saw that reaches through the valve and cuts a hole in the main

Making an offset because the new pipe is 4ft lower

Chopping up some ears to restrain the mechanical joint.

Tacked up level

ooh fancy slag peel… it really just means you aren’t terrible at welding

There were two more flanges that I didn’t have time to get pics of. Just repeats of the first. Now it’s all installed.

And the bottom connection

Protective coating and corrosion work finished

Backfilling. Maybe a little easier to see what we built with no shoring in the way.

And nobody alive now will ever see it again.

Bonus fat cat pic