PTFE round olives

[markwm]

Reading a few older threads I often hear people say 'never use PTFE round olives'

Why?

I always do and cannot remember the last time I had a weep. I'll first tighten the joint so the olive compresses the pipe, undo then I apply PTFE round the olive as well as the thread...

Just extra piece of mind imo.

 

[GPlumb]

It looks carp imo. Better off with nothing or some hawk or boss compound. Some plumbers tighten them more than others and i think thats where the whole difference of opinion comes from with regards to compounds and ptfe.

I tend to tighten my joints until the squeal!

 

[seco services]

WHY thats what the olives for to seal it. why add ptfe ?
just use jointing compound.

why do people wrap it alround the thread it just makes the nut harder to get on and tighten.

 

[holty]

have to admit i use plumblue wich is ptfe paste. but in circumstances when none about iv used tape. one wrap round the olive though, as long as its not on the thread i dont see any harm.

 

[garagerob]

I agree with seco services! PTFE (plastic tape for eejits) round the joint looks like an amateur did it or a bodged repair, a quick swipe with jet/boss white/blue plus is far more than adequate on a new connection. IMO

 

[WDIK]

tape in an emergency I suppose

boss white, ok but a carcagenic.

personally i trust slic-tite

plumbers dont usually know of its existence

 

[bengasman]

why no teflon tape?

it looks shoddy.
it shows you don't have confidence in your work.
which is probably the result of lack of training and/or skill
it is done by loads of cowboys for the above reasons.
last but not least, the best reason: there is absolutely no point in doing it.

one possible exception: you find a leaking compression joint and for one reason or the other you can't repair it properly so it will stop leaking until it can be done right.

 

[KeithM]

No need to use PTFE on compression fittings unless it leaks. If a little nipping up of the nut fails to rectify the leak THEN use PTFE but only round the olive NOT the thread. The leak usually weeps along a scratch on the olive or because the olive is deformed due to overtightening.

 

[markwm]

See, the reason I use it is to make sure it never leaks. Then I don't have to worry about putting it on if it does ever leak. It takes seconds and it can only be seen if you lie on the floor looking up at your rad valves. As you say, a tiny scratch in the olive can cause a weep, worsened by the movement in the copper as it heats/cools.

And since you mention it. Why no tape on the thread? I know it's not part of the seal but I use it for the same reason.

What I'm looking for is genuine reasons why it's bad. The ones given so far such as 'you have no confidence in your work'....etc aren't good reasons not to do it imo.

To give an example, if I were fitting new bath taps/iso valves...tape round the olive and the thread and I know it won't ever weep or be green in two months. I know it'll be hard to access in future so may as well be extra sure the first time.

 

[swidders]

Since it's not necessary etc, etc, according to the posts above, why waste time doing it??

 

[Softus]

Reading a few older threads I often hear people say 'never use PTFE round olives'

Why?

That's what people say when they prefer using jointing compound.

I apply PTFE round the olive as well as the thread.

The thread? Of a compression fitting? Why?
__________________________

Better off with nothing or some hawk or boss compound.

Jointing compound is brilliant at making it more difficult to undo fittings. And when it gets really hot it can dry out and shrink, so ensuring future work for the person who applied it.
___________________________

just use jointing compound.

WHY? That's what the olive is for - to seal it. Why add compound?

 

[markwm]

The thread? Of a compression fitting? Why?

in a compression fitting seems to me there's 3 lines of defence. First, the most important is the seal between the top of the olive and the female fitting. If that happens to fail there's 2 other places where water could weep out, where the bottom of the olive meets the nut and then the thread. My logic is to simply cover those bases and reduce the likely hood of any kind of leak.

Seems there's a bit of snobbery regarding use of compounds/ptfe. To all those who advocate using nothing and are in the 'if the joint is done properly you don't need anything' brigade then I assume you've never had a weeping joint? and every time it's perfect?

When I do a fitting I like to make sure it never leaks, EVER, especially if it's being boxed in and hard to get at. It takes seconds to wrap around some PTFE so the argument about wasting time doesn't cut it. It's a lot less than the time it would take to go back and fix a weeping joint.

 

[swbjackson]

A lot of modern olives are badly machined and need a smear of paste or wrap of tape to get a decent seal. Definitely no need ever to put tape on the thread as this is never intended to be a seal. As others have said it just makes it more difficult to tighten and looks carp.

 

[gas4you]

I always use Jet Blue. It is non setting and has never given rise to any problems for me.

The thread of a compression fitting is only the mechanical device to hold/compress the olive, the olive is the seal, so putting tape or Jet Blue around the thread is just unsightly. IMHO

 

[mogget]

When I do a fitting I like to make sure it never leaks, EVER, especially if it's being boxed in and hard to get at.

Personally, I would say that if pipework is being boxed in, the use of compression joints is inappropriate, and that soldered joints should be used instead.