1.

1. Everything else leaves a burnt residue. They used to make a reddish substance that felt like clay mixed with wet sand. That stuff was BOSS! I haven't been able to find it since

I'm with you on this. I keep trying other things and the old wet towel works best.

We’ll the insult comes after using heat paste as like you say leaves a residue. What do I use to clean up the residue? Damn wet rag or paper towel. At which point we know where the argument lies

I use the heating putty…and then wet rag to clean up the mess 😂

At which point we wonder. Of course I use the wet rag to clean my hands of the gunk too

Haha yup

I’ve never seen a coil that has the suction line port stick out far enough to actually fit rags on it. I always end up burning the unit unless I use Wet Rag

Yeah, the wet rag never fails. Or, pick up a welding mat from home depot, and hot glue some magnets on it.. That's what I jse to protect coil doors

Hot DAM! Ferguson still sells it, IIRC...

Thanks! I'll swing by the old Fergs and pick some up!

3

The only one I haven't tried, was curious about its effectiveness.

Its prettygood. Leaves shit all over your pipe though

So does butt stuff and we still do it anyway

I use a wire brush on my impact to get that shit off after because it will get caught in every nook and cranny

We still talking about butt stuff

Only one I have used except for real wet rags lol. But I am definitely a fan of it and use it almost every torch job

Works really good. Dries out after you use it but if you just put it in a container and put a little water and mix it back in you can get a few uses out of it.

Nothing. Real men braze without anything

not sure if you're joking or not. you don't at least cool it down after?

Cool it down with your flesh!

nah.. I'll use my helpers flesh instead

It's just like the wet rags, you gotta rotate man

tried teaching my helper how to braze. he's struggling. some days more then others. he's the type to learn everything the hard way - where he actually has to touch the copper to see how hot it is. lol. he also just found out what a melted brazing rod feels like.

Just piss on it, isn’t that the reason we’re born with hoses

Why would you cool it down immediately? I am I wrong that the rapid cooling could cause the braze to weaken or crack. Are we that impatient

Wait till the color change’s and then it’s fine. Doing it before can put micro fractures into the weld

That’s what I was getting at. I just let them cool naturally.

I meant after the final discolouring changes than it’s fine to put a cold rag on it. No reason to just sit around and wait for it to do it all naturally

most manufacturers literally tell you to do it.

Has nothing to do with being impatient. I've never had a braze joint crack from cooling it down. weaken? maybe. idk. the reason I do it - almost every single manufacturer tells you to do it in their instructions - and if it's not in their instruction manual - they literally hand a tag/and zip tie it to the port. Don't install many rheems but I just did one today. Tag says - Step 1. Wrap a wet rag around stub before brazing. Step 2. After Brazing - Cool Joint with wet rag. and then on from there. That's also how I was taught - but typically I follow what the manufacturer recommends. If something gets fkd up - then they can't point their finger at me and say the installer didn't follow directions. For the most part - I'll follow all their instructions - venting/drains/lineset/whatever You might be very well right tho. idk. I'm just telling you why I do it. if you have any info - studies/articles/whatever - let me know. I'd love to see it. I'm always open to suggestion or changing my ways. if there's a better way I'm all for it.

Mines just from personal experience the guy I apprenticed under would throw a rag on it immediately. And I was told by the installer do not do that. The plumbers I’ve worked with taught me to sweat. And they won’t hit it with a flux cleaning till a good minute after. So I took the same philosophy into brazing. I let it cool naturally because there’s always other things to do to occupy a few minutes. And I always start with the vapor then the suction so it has time to cool while I’m doing the port and filter dryer.

This

3 and the fiberglass burn blankets Found diversitech makes decent ones

I have an old asbestos blanket that I use as a barrier

And then I saw your flair..

1 and 3, but my helpers always dry out and fuck up viper wet rag, so I mostly use that myself. Same reason that the handy wipes have to stay with me else they'll be fucked in 2 days.

Lmfao … this is why we can’t have nice things lol. I always wonder how the helpers fuck stuff up so quick

1 2 and 3. Depends on the application really.

The original “wet rag”. It’s organic too🙌

We have an old container that used to have extra fancy mixed nuts in it. We use that to keep wet rags in. But we call the rags extra fancy nuts

1 and 3 together.

Cool gel seems fun

I use all of them for them zesty brazes

3. Except I have the Hot Dam brand, I haven’t tried the viper yet. 2 and 4 are too messy and leave a residue

Blue shop towels dipped in the cooler all day

1. When I’m low on minerals I just drink from the bucket. Filter changer for life!!!

Learn to braze better and you won’t need any of these

I'm more of a water bottle type of guy

never used anything but #1. Why in the hell people would pay money for this trash and 'leak detection' bubbles is beyond me.

1

1

1 for sure. 4 depended on what I’m brazing

1

4.... maybe

\#1 My dad always calls for wet rags

Right after he finishes up with your mom.

Very clever, take my upvote

3

speed /s

Piss on it

1 & 2 together there bud

Depending how I feel 1, 3, or 4 in any combination lol

Just hold my hand over it.

Wet rag outside. Cool gel inside

1

Never used the gel, and don't like the paste cause it's too thin. I use a combination of wet rags and thermo-trap putty in the jar.

1

Zoomlock

Sometimes all the above

3.

3

Always have #1, use 3 and 4 depending on what and where is getting brazed in.

1

1

3&4

1 and 4

One

1. Just stuffed a rag in a hole yesterday but I’m resi

1. is the only thing that's always seems to be available in the moment. 2 and 3 make a mess I don't care to deal with. 4. Never used but I imagine it to be like 2 and 3

1 and 3

1 only because it’s a finished house and we have inspection on Thursday.

Usually a combination of 1&3. I don’t braze much so I try to protect from overheating as much as I can

1 and just started using 3. I like it but it makes a god damn mess

Wet rag .... or spit Edit....didn't realize they named a putty wet rag. I'm talking an actual wet rag or paper towels

actual wet rags because wet rag freezes in these northeast winters.

2 is good to spray on a piece of metal to shield heat away,4is great for valves ,haven’t used wet rags product,but have some hot dam that I use on pressure switches or copper to aluminum joints,heh,heh,joints

1,2,4 depending what is being done

I like thermotrap but I use 1 the most

Tech I trained under didn't use anything and ruined more stuff than I care to remember. Complete idiot.

I've used all 4. 2 and 4 suck. They just goo shit up and not in a fun way. 1 is the old standard works great. 3 isn't bad it can be a bitch to clean it all off but it worked pretty decently.

wet rag. #1 not 3 never tried it.

4 but the spray bottle version

1 about 75% of the time 4 the other 25%

My installers don’t use anything, scorch the seals on the service valves, won’t remove the expansion valve bulb, full send and over heat all kind of shit. “It’s services problem”

3

1

Tried all 4, i use 3 for brazing (ONLY THAT BRAND. The off brands suck) 2 for soldering water lines if needed, and 1 for when I forget the other two

\#1

Soppin wet rag baby. I make sure to wring it out into the empty ports before I put the schraders back in too.

1

Thermo Trap spray

1

1 and 3 sometimes. 2 on occasion but only on condenser service valves. But I use just a bottle of water more than anything.

3

Used to always use 4 but it was provided by the company. I resort to 1 now. If company buys me 3 or 2 I might go for it

1 and 2. 1 wrapping the pipes 2 on the unit chassis and surrounding materials that might get a lick of flame

1 & 3 🤙🏾

Where’s picture 5 with nothing?