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Cherne Industries’ Test-Ball Plug
Some clever inventions are stunning in their simplicity. A great example is
the pneumatic Test-Ball® Plug developed in 1952 by Lloyd Cherne.
He was on a job in northern Michigan when, much to his dismay, the cast iron
mechanical plug he was using (the only plug available at that time) to
conduct the stack test would not fit through the cleanout tee. So he
purchased a rubber playground ball from a Woolworth store, vulcanized a stem
on it and came up with a crude pneumatic test plug.
Returning to his home base in Minnesota weeks later, Lloyd began
experimenting with his idea and within six months began making Test-Balls
similar in design to the same style Cherne Industries makes today, bringing
them to market in 1953.
The Cherne invention simplified the steps taken to test plumbing in a
building, and greatly contributed to the now universally accepted practice
of mandatory testing. The plumber now had a test plug that could be used in
all common pipe I.D.s, that could conform to out-of-round pipe, that was
guaranteed to handle common test pressures and, best of all, was much safer
when used with an extension hose than cast iron mechanical plugs.
Initially produced in sizes 1-1/4 inches through 6 inches and catering only
to the plumbing trade, the company eventually developed pneumatic plugs up
to 120 inches in diameter, serving virtually any pipeline need throughout
the world.The T-DRILL System
The T-DRILL System of mechanically formed tee connection was invented in
1967 in Finland by a plumber/engineer named Leo Larikka.
Mechanical formation of tee connections had been around for many years, but
Larikka developed a more sophisticated method that became the most widely
adapted system of its kind in the world. In fact, in Scandinavia they do not
put in tees- they put in "Larikkas," just as we use "Kleenex" tissues and
"Xerox" documents. Patents were not pursued until the early 1970s, though
the second- and third-generation T-DRILLS have since been patented.
As plumbing wholesalers are few and far between in Finland, Larikka
developed his invention out of necessity. Lacking the right size tee
fitting, he came up with a way to create what he needed out of the tube
itself.
Before this method of installation could be widely used in North America,
national, state and local codes had to be rewritten after suitable testing.
Now, 15 years after introduction here, most plumbing codes are complied with
and the method is in compliance with ANSI B 31.5 (ASME code for pressure
piping) and being used by over 5,000 plumbing, mechanical and sprinkler
firms.
The fast-track installation afforded also necessitated special inclusion in
labor calculator manuals. According to the company, three out of the four
major plumbing and mechanical cost data books now reference the Mechanically
Formed Tee Connection.
Wirsbo PEX Tubing
In 1968, Thomas Engel invented a process for producing chemically
cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) tubing. Considered impossible by many
heating industry experts, Wirsbo Co. used Engle’s technology to develop a
practical manufacturing process for PEX tubing. The cross-linked tubing was
introduced to the European floor heating market in 1972 and potable water
market in 1973.
PEX tubing solved a number of problems that occurred with metal pipes and
some other types of plastic tubing. PEX will not corrode or erode, and is
immune to the many problems associated with poor water quality that can
damage metal pipes. The tubing is rated at 180 degrees F., 100 psi. Wirsbo
tubing also has the highest polymer oxygen diffusion barrier of any tubing
in the world, according to the company.
The growth of cross-linked polyethylene tubing has been dramatic in the
European market. Today about 10 percent of all plumbing installations are
made with PEX tubing, and in some countries over 50 percent. In Europe,
where radiant floor heating is installed in over 50 percent of all new
construction, PEX tubing goes into approximately 70 percent of all jobs.
Wirsbo-PEX was introduced to the U.S. plumbing market in 1985 by Tomas
Lenman. Now director of technology at Wirsbo Co. in Apple Valley, Minn.,
Lenman was a leading member of the engineering team that developed the
product in the early 1970s. Today, PEX tubing products are used for floor
heating and other heating applications.
Powers‘ Pressure Balancing
Initiatives
In 1964, the Powers Regulator Co., now known as Powers Process Controls,
patented and formally introduced their Hydroguard 410 Pressure Balancing
Valve, which protected bathers from steamy blasts or icy busts by keeping
water pressure equalized to the tub or shower.
The 410 utilized a unique diaphragm-actuated pressure equalizing chamber to
sense and correct any change in the water supply. Failure of the cold water
supply shut off hot water delivery to protect the bather.
Rugged construction made the valve well-suited for high-use shower
applications in hotels, apartment buildings and schools. Powers advertised
the Series 410 as a great way to "shower a welcome" on hotel and motel
guests … and keep apartment tenants singing as they soap up!
The concept of controlling water temperature through pressure control dates
back to 1887, when company founder William Penn Powers equipped his new
three-story heating/plumbing business building with Wisconsin’s first
central water heating plant.
To eliminate boil-over, he developed a process of controlling the system
based on the relative boiling points of water under different pressures. He
achieved it via a closed-end, water-filled pipe in the boiler, the other end
of which was attached to a diaphragm that controlled a damper.
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