Pipe spacing calculator is a convenient tool to calculate the minimum spacing between pipes. Spacing can be calculated based on pipe OD and flange OD, between two flange ODs or between two bare pipes. Select the applicable piping configuration from the four options provided to calculate the pipe center to center spacing.
Output
Calculated Piping Gap (Center to Center)
Criteria for spacing between pipes
Spacing to be maintained between pipes depends on several factors. Piping layout should provide adequate space for maintenance, inspection and repair of components. The minimum recommended gap between the outermost periphery of two piping components is 25mm. The flanges or flanged components are usuall staggered so that the spacing between the pipes can be optimized. Such optimization is required specially on pipe racks to minimize the piperack footprint. Occassionally you may run into a situation where you are not able to stagger the flanged components. The calculator provides you the option to select flange on either pipe or just calculating spacing between bare pipes.
The spacing should allow free thermal movement between the pipes without clash. Where large thermal movements are involved, additional spacing shall be provided between the pipes to accomodate the piping thermal movements. There are some cases which tend to get overlooked e.g. full bore ball valves in higher flange ratings, where the valve body may protrude beyond the flange outside diameter. In such cases, the standard spacing will not work and specific calculations are required to be performed by the designer.
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