What Is the Importance of a Pipe Guide?

So many industries rely on pipe systems to transfer all manner of fluids throughout a facility. To keep their operations running, gas and oil, manufacturing, and other energy-production industries require a solid pipe system, one that isn’t subject to sudden failure. To protect against failure, typically caused by excessive thermal expansion, companies implement several components to redirect expansion harmlessly.

These implements include expansion joints, expansion loops, pipe guides, and more. If you’re wondering what the importance of a pipe guide is, continue reading to learn more about their function.

What Does a Pipe Guide Do?

A pipe system typically includes long lengths of pipe that are especially susceptible to bending and buckling, leading to a burst or cracked pipe. Expansion joints break up these long lengths and afford the system a localized point that handles expansion well. It does so by allowing for axial movement along the pipe while preventing some lateral and angular buckling through its strong corrugations.

Despite expansion joints’ utility, often it’s more practical to combine expansion joints with pipe guides. Though expansion joints handle many forces well, to optimally counteract lateral and angular forces, install pipe guides along the length of your pipe system. These keep pipes straight and unbuckled, guiding axial down-the-pipe expansion either toward an expansion loop or expansion joint. In practice, pipe guides are useful implements for anchoring a pipe system and directing expansion axially rather than allowing that force to distort the pipe system and cause a costly failure.

What Are the Different Kinds of Pipe Guides?

Additionally, different pipe guides take different forms and address different forces. Here are a few of the prominent types. Hangers typically attach to a ceiling and either cushion forces or more rigidly restrict movement. An anchor pipe support is another common option that encapsulates pipes, stopping many different directional forces. Meanwhile, a snubber actively responds to sudden pipe expansion, limiting it through mechanical or hydraulic means. Essentially, there is a different kind of pipe guide dedicated for whatever forces or movement you need to prevent.

If you have more questions about what the importance of a pipe guide is, contact our helpful team at Triad Bellows. We also can supply quality stainless steel bellows and other implements to help stabilize your facility’s pipe system.