Plumbing glossary: W
WPJ Heating is possibly the most important term to know when you’re in need of a professional plumbing service, but in case you’re looking to take your plumbing knowledge even further, our plumbing glossary covers all of the other important W-words.
WC – Water Closet – toilet
Wall thickness – the thickness of the tubing wall
Waste arm drain – an extension pipe usually used to extend a sink drain into a wall
Waste and overflow drain – an assembly for a bathtub – the outlet at the top removes overflow water during tub filling and the drain at the bottom removes wastewater when the tub is drained
Waste plug – drain stopper on a bathtub drain
Waste shoe – bathtub drain assembly
Waste stack – main vertical pipe in a drainage system, extending one or more stories
Water hammer – loud banging noise caused by hydraulic shock that occurs when water supply is suddenly shut off, resulting in water moving against the side of containing pipe
Water hammer arrestor – device installed near fixture to absorb hydraulic shock of abrupt water shutoff
Water Horse Power (WHP) – calculated horse power produced by pump using formula WHP = head x gpm/3960
Water service pipe – pipe from the water main
Water spot – water surface in the toilet bowl once the flush is completed
Water table – level below the earth’s surface at which the ground becomes saturated with water
Waterway fitting – a channel through which water can flow, connecting water heater to inlet and outlet lines
Wave washer – a washer, common in drain linkages, which provides pressure against a ball or other mechanism even when the nut is not fully tightened
Weak well – application occurs when the pump lowers the water level in the well faster than the well can replenish itself
Weir – long notch with horizontal edge used to measure the quantity of flowing water
Well casing – steel or plastic pipe inserted into a drilled well to prevent dirt and debris from contaminating the water
Well point – pipe fitted with driving point and a fine mesh screen used to remove underground water
Wet vent – drain or waste pipe that also acts for one or more fixtures on the same line
Working pressure – maximum pressure of the operating system permissible
Wrought copper fittings – plumbing fittings used to connect copper tubes made of mechanically worked and toughened copper
Wye – Y-shaped fitting with three openings used to create branch lines and allows one pipe to be joined to another at a 45-degree angle
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