Pipe & Flange Protection - A Quick Buyer's Guide
6.5
minutes | 04 Feb 2020
For the oil, gas and utilities industry, pipe, flange and thread protection are essential.
It’s not just contamination during and after storage you have to worry about, but damage during manufacturing treatments and transport. Without the right solutions, you could be looking at high costs to repair – even replace – drill and oil-well pipes.
Essentra Components can help you avoid those problems with solutions you need such as flange covers for different types of flanges, various pipe end caps and plugs and plastic ribbed caps.
For example, some of our pipe caps have a valve, or vent holes, to control pressure that builds in a metal pipe fitted with cap protection and loaded onto a container going from a cold shipping port – for instance, Holland – to a hot shipping port, such as Dubai.
We recommend that you try before you buy to ensure you get the perfect pipe thread protector cap, push in plastic pipe plugs or flange protector caps – in short, whatever it is you need. Simply request free samples now.
What are flange protectors?
Flange protectors are designed to provide protection to the entire pipe flange surface but also by closing the pipe completely, you eliminate the risk of contamination. See below for various flange protectors and their benefits.
Raised Face Flange Protectors
The raised machine face on your flange is the critical area that needs protection. The flange protectors will help you maintain optimum condition and prevent leakage in storage or before installation.
FEATURES: Available in three key profiles: Studded, Plug and Adhesive. All are quick and easy to install and stand up to sand blasting
MATERIAL: Durable PE is ozone, weather and petroleum resistant
SPECIFICATION: Protects DIN and ANSI flanges. Solutions available in a range of sizes
PERFECT FOR: Easy fitting face protection
Full Face Flange Protectors
Keep your flanges in top condition for a perfect fit while guarding against corrosion and dirt ingress during transport around the factory and shipyards.
FEATURES: Protects the entire surface of the flange or leaves bolts/bolt holes free to access. Available in five key profiles: Studded, Plug, Adhesive, Push-In and Bolt Hole
MATERIAL: PE protects during finishing, storage and transit. Bolt hole flange protectors’ PP material is cost-effective and offers good chemical and fatigue resistance
SPECIFICATION: Available in a range of sizes to support DIN and ANSI flanges
PERFECT FOR: DIN2627-2638, 150BS5504 and ANSI B16.5
Push-In Full Face Flange Protectors
- Flexible fins for snug fit
- Fasteners not required
- DN 10-300, ANSI ½in – 12in
Types of Pipe Plugs and Caps - what are the benefits?
When pipes are being stored or transported, they are vulnerable to damage, contact with other pipes and corrosion can be caused to threads. That’s where pipe caps and plugs come in. They are vital to sealing pipe ends and providing drill pipe protection.
Pipe Plugs
Eliminate costly downtime by preventing debris from entering the pipe and damaging vital threads.
FEATURES: Ribbed pipe plugs are available in two styles with flexible ribs of different diameters to fit multiple schedules of NPT and drill pipe
MATERIAL: Tough LDPE offers weather and chemical resistance
SPECIFICATION: The straight wall on the plug’s O.D. provides a secure friction fit with the mating pipe’s Inside Diameter for excellent protection against contaminants. Compatible nominal pipe diameters range from .217in – 24.606in (5.5mm – 625mm)
PERFECT FOR: NPT line pipe & drill pipe
- Secure friction fit with mating pipe’s I.D.
- Excellent protection against contaminants
Pipe Caps
Minimise the threat of rust and pollution to the pipe’s contents by preventing the entry of contaminants and foreign objects with a pipe end cap.
FEATURES: Flexible pipe caps offer a tight fit while recessed caps protect coatings, bevels and internal walls from damage during clamping by crane hooks
MATERIAL: Flexible pipe caps made of PE material are strong, durable and lightweight. Recessed pipe caps are made of LDPE for excellent chemical resistance to acids, alcohols, bases and esters
SPECIFICATION: Flexible pipe caps fit nominal pipe diameters, ranging from 2.374in – 64in (60.3mm – 1625.6mm). Recessed Caps are compatible with nominal pipe diameters that range from ½in – 48in (12.7mm – 1219.20mm)
PERFECT FOR: Pipes transported by crane hooks
- Made of flexible, yet rigid, LDPE
- Internal ribs ensure tight fit and release after pressure build up
- Also available with Vent Hole
Tapered Caps & Plugs – Standard
- Made of flexible, yet rigid, LDPE
- Caps multiple O.D.s and plugs multiple I.D.s
Tapered Caps & Plugs - Heavy-Duty
- Made of flexible, yet rigid, LDPE
- Rugged wall and seal rings for maximum protection
- Caps multiple O.D.s and plugs multiple I.D.s
Tapered Caps & Plugs - Wide Flange
- Made of flexible, yet rigid, LDPE; designed as both tapered round plugs with flange as well as pipe flange caps
- Added protection on bearing surfaces
- Wider flange keeps plug from being pushed down through mating part
Types of Flange Covers - what are the benefits?
Flange Covers
Perfect for protecting internally coated flanges, giving easy-to-fit, all-round flange protection.
FEATURES: Suitable for all flange face types due to a durable and flexible nature. Also provides protection of bolt holes
MATERIAL: Available in flexible yellow Polyethylene
SPECIFICATION: Covers ANSI ½in – 30in
PERFECT FOR: Tight fitting flange protection
Pipe & Flange Terms Explained
To help you, we’ve put together a table to explain some of the most commonly used terms and abbreviations you’re likely to hear regarding pipes and flanges:
| ANSI | American National Standards. The organisation which sets the specifications for standard pipe |
| ASME | American Society of Mechanical Engineers. ASME refers to their standards |
| BEARING LOAD | A compressive load supported by a member, usually a tube or collar, along a line where contact is made with a pin, rivet, axle or shaft |
| BEVEL | The angle formed between the prepared edge of the end of the pipe and a plane perpendicular to the surface. The bevel used for standard line pipe is 30˚ |
| BEVELLED END | Pipe with its ends cut at an angle to facilitate the weld joint used to join separate lengths of pipe |
| BUSHING | A pipe fitting, threaded on both the inside and outside, used for joining pipes with different diameters |
| DIN | Deutsches Institut für Normung. In English: the German Institute for Standardisation, which holds its own standards |
| DN | The metric equivalent of Nominal Pipe Size (NPS), conforming to the International Standards Organisation (ISO) |
| FITTING | Any device used for connecting elements in fluid lines, including elbows, unions and flanges |
| I.D. | Inside diameter |
| IPS | Iron Pipe Size |
| KSI | K equals 1,000, thus the term is actually K (1,000) psi. The P has been dropped, and KSI is the new term (i.e. 50 KSI = 50,000 psi) |
| LGTH | Length or joint of pipe |
| MPT | Male pipe threads |
| NPT | National Pipe Thread (American standard thread) |
| O.D. | Outside Diameter |
| RUN | That portion of a fitting that goes in a straight line in the direction of the flow of the pieces of pipe to which it is connected |
| TAPER | A gradual change in the outside diameter of threads on pipe where the diameter at the ends of the pipe is the least |
| TOLERANCE(S) | Permissible variations or deviation from a dimension |
| UNION | A fitting with three parts, two threaded ends with a nut between them, used to join two pieces of pipe such that they may be easily disconnected |
| WALL THICKNESS | A given size and schedule of the thickness of the pipe, which is fixed and defined in the ASME standard |
| Y | A fitting that joins three sections of pipe sometimes called WYE |
Download free CADs and try before you buy
Free CADs are available for most solutions, which you can download for free. You can also request free samples to ensure the solutions you’ve chosen are exactly what you need. If you’re not quite sure which product will work best for your application, our experts are always happy to advise you.
Request your free samples or download free CADs now.
