Choosing the right pipe bracket spacing
Choosing the right bracket spacing is essential for a safe, reliable and cost-effective pipe installation. While manufacturers provide guidance on maximum support distances, installers often need to balance these recommendations with practical considerations such as pipe material, diameter, weight and installation efficiency. Understanding how bracket spacing affects pipe performance can help prevent issues such as sagging, excessive loading and unnecessary installation costs, ensuring a robust and professional result.
Finding an efficient way of installing pipes
What are the rules to determine the spacing between pipe support brackets? There are no real guidelines or standards in the engineering sector (especially the W-branch). This means that you as an installer have a degree of freedom. A pitfall of this freedom is that the bracket distance is sometimes made too wide. This can mean, especially with plastic pipes, that the pipes start to bend; not something you would want in a waste pipe.
An efficient way of installing is to combine different pipes, in diameter, material or even from another installation in one support bracket. As a rule of thumb the pipes with the shortest bracket distance (by diameter or material) determine the distance used.
But what is the maximum bracket distance?
The maximum bracket distance according to manufacturers
Pipe manufacturers almost always give a maximum permissible pipe bracket (fixing) distance. This distance is determined by a combination of the pipe material and the diameter (larger diameter, stiffer pipe). There are many tables on the internet that illustrate this.
For steel pipes, the bracket spacing is generally permissible up to 6 metres. In practice, you rarely see this. An exception to this rule are long straight sections, because it is not practical to hang up a 6-metre pipe section in one go. The handling by installers/technicians is in this case a factor.
Another major point is that you have to calculate the weight of the 6 metre pipe on the two brackets. This leads to heavy brackets and anchorages, and therefore may not be the most practical solution. In brief, it is difficult to have exact bracket distance recommendations shown in a table due to different requirements of each installation.
Get expert advice for pipe bracket spacing
As an installer, you are ultimately responsible for determining the appropriate bracket distance. You can do this based on your own experience or through reading the manufacturer’s documentation. You can also contact Walraven and consult with our experts.
Together with our experts, you can determine the most efficient and economical fixing method. The final solution is based on your installation requirements and the performance capabilities of the selected materials.
Our experts calculate the ideal pipe bracket spacing for your project. Please contact us for tailored advice.
