3. Piping Connection Alternative
There are a few alternates to the normal methods of doing business discussed above
We talked about elbows as a way to change direction. You can change direction without using elbows. You might do this with a Miter Ell (or Mitre, both spellings are correct). A Miter Ell is where no fitting is used. Miters are normally used in large size/low pressure piping. You fabricate the Miter or change in direction from pipe segments (or pieces) that are cut at specific angles depending on the number of pieces and welds required. This is really effective when really odd angles are required. Two of the pieces are the incoming pipe and the out-going pipe. There may be no middle piece or there may be one (or more) other short middle pieces depending on the angle of the turn. A simple turn of 45° might be made with a two-piece/one weld miter. Other changes in direction might be three piece/two weld miters, three piece/two weld miters and so on. The number of welds is always one less than the number of pieces. Depending on the size and schedule of the pipe a Miter might be cheaper than buying fittings. In small diameter piping the miter is more expensive (labor costs) and there is more pressure drop through a small miter than a small fitting. Miters are also not recommended for high temperature lines because miters are more susceptible to overstressing.