Tapping an english copper water pipe with an irish 1/2" pipe. What do i need?

Hello all.

I'm about to help installing an outoor tap in a friend's mobile home this weekend, probably by putting a t-junction in a copper pipe bringing the cold feed into the bathroom or somewhere suitable. The pipes we'll be tapping are all likely to be English made, as the mobile home was likely built in the UK. I understand from people who know about this stuff that English and Irish water pipes are very slightly different in size (one metric and one imperial or something??)

I am pretty DIY savvy with electrics, carpentry, etc, but my plumbing experience is limited. Can anyone tell me exactly what kind of T- junction i need to cut a standard English copper pipe and branch an Irish half inch one off of it to run to a half inch outdoor tap? What diameters and gauge differences do i need to be aware of here?

Many thanks!

ibFoxer

Deleted User wrote: »

Hello all.

I'm about to help installing an outoor tap in a friend's mobile home this weekend, probably by putting a t-junction in a copper pipe bringing the cold feed into the bathroom or somewhere suitable. The pipes we'll be tapping are all likely to be English made, as the mobile home was likely built in the UK. I understand from people who know about this stuff that English and Irish water pipes are very slightly different in size (one metric and one imperial or something??)

I am pretty DIY savvy with electrics, carpentry, etc, but my plumbing experience is limited. Can anyone tell me exactly what kind of T- junction i need to cut a standard English copper pipe and branch an Irish half inch one off of it to run to a half inch outdoor tap? What diameters and gauge differences do i need to be aware of here?

Many thanks!

English copper is 15mm, so you will need the tee to be 15mm on the sides you want the English copper. The easiest way is to get a 15mm tee and some nuts & olives for Irish copper. Then replace the English with Irish and your away in a hack.

L1979

Yeah what you want to get is a 15mm equal Tee and a one 1/2 inch olive and one 1/2 inch nut.

Cut existing pipe and rejoin with the Tee, using the supplied 15mm olives and nuts. Then fit your new connection in 1/2 inch with your new 1/2 inch olive and nut.
Make sure to discard of the extra 15mm olive and nut, from Tee, so that you dont inadvertantly use for 1/2 inch in the future.

Great, very clear. Thanks to you both for your help!

Micky Dolenz

An English 15mm fitting will compress on Irish 1/2 (14.7mm)pipe. There really isn't a need to change nuts and rings.

It only becomes a problem when the pipe size increases as so too does the difference.

L1979

Micky Dolenz wrote: »

An English 15mm fitting will compress on Irish 1/2 (14.7mm)pipe. There really isn't a need to change nuts and rings.
.

I agree about the nut, but i would definitely replace the olive to 1/2 inch. Was always taught to match olive to pipe. Just my two cents.