Three Types Of Pipe Insulation To Buy

If you're planning to tackle a plumbing job in your home, you'll want to start by visiting a local plumbing supply store. This retailer carries virtually everything you'd need for any plumbing job, whether it's in your bathroom, kitchen, laundry room, or elsewhere. While you'll need to buy a quantity of pipe and a few different fittings, don't overlook also buying some pipe insulation. Commonly gray or black in appearance, this product wraps around the pipes to prevent heat loss. If you haven't previously worked with pipe insulation, here are three types to buy. 

Straight Pieces

You'll need to buy one or more straight pieces of pipe insulation. It's a good idea to estimate how much straight pipe you'll use in your project, and then ensure that you buy enough pipe insulation to cover it all. Pipe insulation is available in several diameters. Once you know the diameter of the pipe that you'll be using, you can buy the right type of straight insulation pieces. Pipe insulation is easy to cut to length with a utility knife, so don't worry about having a little more than you need. It's better to have too much as you can trim it to length, rather than not having enough.

Elbows

Most plumbing projects involve pipe that bends at a 90-degree angle. Think about how many of these bends you'll have in your project so that you can buy the right number of elbow-shaped pipe insulation pieces. While it's theoretically possible to bend a straight piece of pipe insulation to cover a 90-degree directional change in the pipe, the finished product can look a little messy. You'll be a lot more pleased with the appearance of your work when you use elbow-shaped pipe insulation pieces wherever necessary.

T-Joints

Your local plumbing supply store also carries T-joint pipe insulation. This is a short piece of insulation that looks like the letter "T." This is the type of insulation that you'll want to use whenever there's a T-joint in your plumbing. For example, when one piece of pipe joins up with another piece, they meet in a "T" shape. Having a piece of T-joint pipe insulation will allow you to cover this area. This type of insulation can also work well around water shutoff valves, as they protrude from a pipe in a perpendicular direction. Learn more about pipe insulation for your next project by visiting a plumbing supply store.

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