Another way to expand the pvc once you’ve heated it is to slip it down over the neck of an empty wine bottle. Since it’s tapered, you can get pretty much an exact fit with little effort. Drink the wine first.

A absolutely great idea with the holesaw bits for the expansion, this is what I'll be doing, Thank you for this.

I first saw and commented on this demonstration about a year ago. Since then, I've used these techniques to do things with PVC that I would never have realized could be done absent these great tips. There are literally hundreds of things you can do effectively and at little cost with PVC. Many of those ideas are on You Tube.

What a serendipity. Just received a new shopvac hose bib and needed to make adapters for tools. Your suggestion to use hole saw blades for resizing the PVC worked perfectly. Now I can use my hose on two hand sanders and a miter saw. Thanks so much for your very informative video.,

Excellent! Your idea of using holes to size the pieces is brilliant! I will definitely use these methods on my own projects. Thanks for sharing this.

Thank you!! I just ordered a very nice flexible crevice tool to clean my dryer lint trap, and of course it doesn't fit my vacuum hose. I've been racking my brain and KZfaq trying to figure out a solution and hoped I could use pvc and a heat gun, but wasn't sure if it would work. Now I know.

the paint heat gun is good for those small jobs but if you are going to do a lot of custom fittings we used to use engine oil in a pot. vegetable oil also works. fill to the depth you want and dip it in. don't make it too hot otherwise it burns the pipe. the added advantage was it lubricated the fitting as well. we did hundreds of fruit rollers using that method.

Using the holesaw bits is genius thanks for the tip. John County Durham, England.

I have just finished watching ALL of your videos on DesignSpark Mechanical. They are GREAT! Make some more. :)

You are an excellent instructor-teacher! Thanks

Hole saw bits is a really good idea - thanks

Well done your presentation was spot on there are a lot people that go on youtube and ramble on because they like to hear their own voice and show of their toy's that they own, you did not do that that's why your presentation was spot on GOOD LUCK

Great video. After watching I fixed all my connections on my vac system. Some smaller tools have small connections so i use PVC and metal tape. Now I made custom connections. Working great. Thanks

Outstanding demonstration. Very practical and helpful so many thanks!

Just came across this, and wanted to point out some cautionary issues... heating PVC will cause it to degrade. The more you heat it, the more it degrades. 2 things happen with degradation: 1) properties diminish (flex modulus, tensile strength, hardness, etc). So be sure whatever you're trying to make doesn't require critical parameters to function in your application. 2) When PVC degrades, it gives off harmful volatiles, the worst of which is called vinyl chloride monomer - a known carcinogen. Inhaling the fumes of degrading PVC will expose you to VCM, and that can accumulate in tissues and organs. So this work is best done with an approved respirator. IT SHOULD NOT BE DONE, as presented, WITHOUT APPROPRIATE PPE. Finally, if you ever cause PVC to smolder, you will not be able to put it out with water. You'll need to smother it with sand or some other non-combustible. It should be removed to the outside, away from people and pets, and the fire dept. called. The fumes from even small pieces can kill because you're now generating hydrochloric acid. The only reason I know this stuff is because I used to formulate PVC resin compounds in the plastics industry, and was responsible for safety and OSHA compliance. This material should not be taken lightly, and Fab Planet would do well to add some cautions.

Very cool, thanks for sharing!

Just came across this, I'm making a dust collection system for my shop and the roller casters on the new Ridgid shop vac no longer fit the 2" PVC fittings tight, I just used 2" PVC pipe, heated it up and pressed it over the caster fitting, very tight now and I can finish the project! Thanks for the idea!

Thanks. That was really helpful for the greenhouse I am going to build

most excellent how to thanks for a great video ..

Great tips! If the PVC burns you can always sand it down.

I have a old pot full of sand. I heat the sand on a cheapo hot plate. Once it’s hot enough, I dip the pvc into the sand long enough to soften sufficiently,then pull it out and mold it. Uniform softening all the way around and controls overheating.. Remembered that was the way my optometrist used to adjust the earpieces on my glasses.

You can use clear plastic bottles like soda and juice bottle as shrink wrap fittings. Cut collars from the bottles and place over two fittings. Use a heat gun to shrink the plastic.

Luckily I own a lathe, so I am able to turn wooden parts to help reshape and resize PVC parts to fit various sizes just perfectly. I have made wooden "moulds" to reduce and expand 2" PVC into all sorts of adapters for my shop vacuum and tools. I even made a wooden mould to shape 4" PVC into gutter downspout connections to steer water away from my house. A heat gun is the essential tool.

Thanks for your ideas and suggestions.

great video! thanks

This is pretty cool.

great video, thank you sir

top job, thx 4 sharing

Good tutorial just save a big headache, thank you

I happen to use spark plug sockets for 1/2" and 3/4" a size 1/8" larger and you can clue them up.

Thx!

Great idea! Will get me a heat gun tomorrow. Drive screw through it to hold hose in place

Excellent idea and demo. Thank you! If you use a plastic form to set the shape of the PVC, do you risk melting them together? I have a new Craftsman vacuum and I’m trying to build a dust extraction cart with a dustopper on top of the shop vac using 2” PVC. I want to attach the PVC to the accessory holders over the casters in the base of the shop-vac to a panel I can drop the 5 gallon bucket into. The size and shape of the accessory holders are a bit unique so standard 2” pipe doesn’t quite fit. I’d like to use your technique to match that custom shape but I’m thinking hot PVC could actually melt the plastic of the accessory holders. Any thoughts on this?

Have you ever tried coating the hole saw with a lubricant to aid in getting it out of the PVC?

Increasing the diameter is pretty easy as I see it from your video, when you are using standard fittings that have a little thickness to them... What are the chances of taking a 4" Sewer and Drain pipe (4" ID and 4-3/16" OD) (much Thinner than Schedule 40) from it's Current OD, to it's Current ID? (Shrinking it.) From 4-3/16" OD to 4" OD.. What do you think, with a wall thickness less than 1/16"? If I could shrink it that much, I could slide the Flexible hose over it and clamp it. It is for a 4" dust collector system. The hose slips over a tapered fitting on tools/fittings (and proprietary Fittings=$$$$$) that tapers from less than 4" to about 4-1/8" I want to build my own blast gates (Turn vacuum of/on) and use the pipe or something as a fitting I can hook onto the Sewer pipe above and below the Blast Gate have something that is 4" in OD... I don't have any 3" fittings to measure to see what might be available there. Does not matter what I come out of the blast gate with, as long as I can get to a 4" OD with something I could hook a hose to, that would stand some moving around.. Not much, but, could get kicked, or moved, etc.. I just checked a 2ltr pepsi bottle... It is right at 4". Might be able to heat/stretch it, slide it over the OD of the 4" Sewer Pipe, but, I'm not sure about shrinking it over the top of the hose. I need to get a piece to test. Might be too hot for it. Hmm... Do you know the hoses? 4" Dust Collection Hose.. Usually a coil of stainless steel wire with a thin PVC Coating over it. Would rather stick with plastic if I could. Steel Pipe, I think is OD (too heavy), Tubing is ID if I remember correctly(too large in OD). Did I give you any ideas?? Ha..Ha.. Considering that, the Flex Hose fits in the 45's/Sleeves/22-1/2 degree fittings very, very tight.. I guess I could heat/stretch them just a tiny bit with something the right OD and put some Silicone or some sort of Urethane adhesive Caulk on the end of the hose, push it in and let it cure.. Weight/strength wise, it would be the better option.. Figured it out then,, if you don't have a better idea.. Ha.. Maybe something with sheet metal wrapped and riveted inside of the hose.. Hmm.. Stove pipe? I wonder if I have some to measure... Ha..ha.. BTW.. Thanks for the video.. I have been scratching my head since I watched it.. I think I feel a bald spot coming up.. Ha..Ha.. Have a great day!!

I agree with the analysis...but why did they delay the hearing, apparently, more than necessary?

how often does reheating numerous times affect it's mechanical properties? i like it for no-load projects, how about a design that needs those parameters straight form the manufacturer? will it still work after applying heat to the pvc? thnx, still a good vid to learn the basics of pvc forging>

Is there an odor from the melted Pvc that is harmful to breathe?

What about contraction, how to do that with pvc ?

I highly recommend not doing this. Hot enough to bend the pipe is hot enough to release hydrogen chloride gas, which is poisonous.

You spent way too much time telling about things not fitting. We know about or we would not be here. Waste of time.