Seven reasons to use Swagelok tube adapter fittings

Swagelok tube adapters can help you shrink assembly size, fitting inventory, installation time and labor costs as you simplify installation and eliminate difficult alignment problems and potential leak points.

If you are looking for ways to simplify installation, save time, and reduce costs and potential leak points, check out Swagelok's catalog of tube adapter fittings. If you've seen the catalog before, but not recently, it's time for a return visit.

It's included in our Swagelok Northern California Tube Fittings Resource Collection (pictured), which also has the latest Pocket Guide, the Tube Fitter's Manual, the Tubing Data Sheet, Tube Fitting Wall Chart, and more.

#1: Reduce inventory

Swagelok tube adapters can be used with any Swagelok tube fitting in the Swagelok Tube Fittings and Adapter Fittings catalog. If you stock union elbows and union tees in various sizes and materials, along with commonly used Swagelok adapters, you'll eliminate the need to stock special fittings that might have long lead times. Swagelok tube adapter fittings are available in a wide variety of configurations, so you can easily adapt from many different threads to tubing or reduce your tubing size with only one Swagelok tube adapter or reducer fitting.

#2: Solve alignment problems

When installing pipe elbows or tees, it is often difficult to align the fitting with the desired run. Here are four tips:

	In this example, the installation requires connecting tubing to a female end connection.
	When the pipe connection is tightened, the male elbow points in the wrong direction for the desired run. Loosening the pipe connection could mean leakage at the pipe thread. And over tightening could result in damage to the pipe thread.
	So, instead, tighten the pipe connection of a Swagelok male adapter into the female end connection.
	Connect a Swagelok union elbow or tee to the adapter by tightening the Swagelok tube fitting with a wrench, while holding the elbow or tee in the desired direction. Insert the tubing into the other end of the Swagelok elbow or tee and install the fitting.

Here's even more guidance:

The Swagelok Tube Adapter complements the Swagelok tube fitting and allows fitting-to-fitting connections. Swagelok tube adapters can help eliminate difficult alignment problems and reduce inventories. This clip shows assembly of tube adapters that are 1" or smaller.

Swagelok tube adapters are to be used ONLY in Swagelok tube fittings. Use in fittings made by other manufacturers may result in leakage or slippage.

#3: Save space by reducing the size of your assembly

#4, 5, & 6: Speed up and simplify installation, save time, and lower labor costs

#7 Remove potential leak points

Swagelok tube adapters will reduce the size of your assembly. Fittings, valves, and other fluid system components can be closely coupled by using tube adapters. Using them will also speed up installation because you'll need fewer connections. That also means fewer potential leak points. This will save you time and labor costs.

Here is an example:  

The top assembly doesn't use Swagelok tube fittings with tube adapters. The bottom assembly does. The bottom assembly has three fewer connections, which reduces installation time and cost, shrinks the footprint of the assembly, and removes potential leak points. Imagine this being done in a much larger assembly or system wide, and you can see many ways to leverage the benefits of Swagelok adapter fittings.

“Before I worked here, I wasn’t aware of the existence of this product though I wished it existed frequently. I employed many different methods to try to accomplish similar things with varying degrees of success and frustration. Now I’m able to frequently employ these adapter fittings in applications where space is critical and the number of connections needs to be minimized.” - Former Engineer, Swagelok Northern California

Adapter elbows and tees

Swagelok Northern California stocks a variety of Swagelok adapter elbows and tees.

Download the Swagelok Tube Fitting and Adapter Fittings Catalog and also get An Installer's Pocket Guide for Swagelok Tube Fittings, the handy Swagelok Tube Fitting Wall Chart and the bonus catalog "Adapter Elbows and Tees, here":

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