Pipe Covering.—Pipe covering is another important branch of plumbing. A few years ago heating pipes were the only pipes that it was thought necessary to cover. The ever-increasing demands made by the public keep the wideawake plumber continually solving problems. The water running down a waste pipe, for instance, will annoy some people, and provision must be made to avoid this noise or to silence it. This is one of the many problems that the plumber must solve by the use of pipe covering.

Pipes that Need Covering.—First of all, the covering must be put on properly to be of high service. Hot-water circulating pipes need covering to reduce the amount of heat loss. If the pipes and the tank are not covered, considerable more fuel will be needed to supply the necessary amount of hot water than if the pipes and tank were covered with a good covering. Cold-water pipes need covering in places to keep them from freezing. They also need covering under some conditions to keep them from sweating. They are covered also to prevent the material which surrounds them from coming into direct contact with the pipe. Waste pipes need covering to prevent them from freezing and to silence the noise caused by the rush of water through them. Ice-water pipes are covered to prevent the water from rising in temperature and to prevent any condensation forming on the pipe. There is need for such a variety of covering that I have listed below some of them and the methods employed for putting them on the pipe.

Magnesia, asbestos air cell, molded asbestos, wool felt, waterproof paper and wool felt, cork, hair felt. These coverings come in the form of pipe covering with a cloth jacket. They also come in the shape of fittings as well as in blocks and rolls of paper, and in powdered form. Any thickness that is desired may be had. The pipe covering is readily put on the pipe. The cloth jacket is pulled back a short distance and the covering will open like a book. It can then be clamped on the pipe and the jacket pulled back and pasted into place. Brass bands, 1 inch wide, come with the pipe covering. These are put on and the pipe covering is then held securely in place. Practically all the coverings are applied in this manner and are made up in 3-foot lengths to fit any size pipe. To cover the fittings and valves, the same kind of sectional covering can be obtained and applied in the same manner as the pipe covering. Plastic covering is often applied to the fittings and molded into the shape of the fitting. The plastic covering comes in bags and is dry. It is mixed with warm water to the consistency of thick cement and applied with a trowel. When the covering is put on the pipes and fittings, it should be done thoroughly to get satisfactory results. Each section of the covering has on one end an extra length of the jacket. This is to allow a lap over on the next section to make a tight joint. If the sections need fitting, a saw can be used and the covering cut to any desired length.