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Plumbing Fittings and Trim
Fittings are used in pipe and plumbing systems to connect straight pipe or tubing sections, to adapt to different sizes or shapes, and to regulate fluid flow, for example. Fittings, especially non-common types, can be expensive, and require time, materials, and tools to install, so they are a non-trivial part of piping and plumbing systems. The 'bodies' of fittings for pipe and tubing are most often of the same base material as the pipe or tubing being connected, e.g., copper, steel, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or other plastic. The common fittings for plumbing systems are as follows: Closet flange The closet flange is the drain pipe flange to which a 'water closet' (toilet) is attached. Clean-outs Clean-outs are fittings that allow access to drains without removing plumbing fixtures. They are used for allowing an 'auger' or 'plumber's snake' to 'clean out' a plugged drain. Clean-outs should be placed in accessible locations through out a drainage system, and outside the building as these augers have limited length. The minimum is typically at the end of each branch, just ahead of each water closet, at the base of each stack, and both inside and outside the building in the building drain/sewer. Clean-outs normally have screwed-on caps.