DIY advice... soldering copper pipes.

[Globalti]

Ummmm..... no matter how much you file them down the joints will always be fatter than the pipe and will hinder the clean movement of the curtain rings to some extent. The bend will also be too sharp to allow a smooth sweep. I'd be inclined to use two lengths of pipe joined in the middle where you'll have a bracket then do gentle curves round to the sides bending the pipe around my knee, and finishing with a 90 degree fitting taking the poles to the wall, which will prevent the rings from getting pulled off the ends by vigorous tuggers.

If you place your outboard brackets near the ends of the poles, fit the outermost curtain ring outboard of the bracket to prevent the curtains from travelling inwards when you draw them.

Plastic curtain rings will slide more smoothly and quietly than metal.

 

[MontyVeda]

All good points @Globalti. I'm planning on filing the tops of the joints right down to the pipe below and shaping it around the profile between 10 and 2 o'clock (if that makes sense) so the rings aren't too inhibited by the join. There will be a bit of a hole on top, but that doesn't matter as it won't be seen (it's going to be 2.5 meters above the floor and 70cm above my lanky eye-level). The hole could be filled if need be... and two thirds of the soldered joint will be intact so I'm guessing it'll still hold together.

Another odd element to this daft idea is that the poles extend a whole two feet beyond each side of the window. I'm always niggled that curtains seldom open wide enough and always cover a few inches of the window when open... so when mine are open, maximum light can flood in and I'll be able to see all the nice Victorian woodwork around the window frame. The outer ring will have to float like the rest, otherwise they won't meet in the middle.

 

[Globalti]

Noooo... your curtains should be minimum double with width of the window so that they are folded even when drawn. Must be lined as well.

Before soldering on the joints why not block the ends of the pipes with a wad of silver foil? Then once you've ground the tops off the joints you could pour resin or something that will set, into the joint to give rigidity and to help carry the curtain rings over the joint.

 

[MontyVeda]

I hate pleated curtains too... why stick with the norms when we can break them?

 

[raleighnut]

The copper will tarnish anyway, trick is to clean and polish it after you've soldered then put it up wearing gloves (any fingerprint will start corroding)

 

[classic33]

Clean using tomato ketchup.

 

[slowmotion]

If you haven't soldered copper pipes before, you need to practice. You need to have a decent blowtorch. A weedy one will just burn off the flux before the pipe gets hot enough for the solder to melt, and the solder won't flow into the joint. My advice, if you don't need a watertight joint, would be to use end-feed copper fittings and glue them into place with some epoxy.

 

[12boy]

In the US we have JB weld, a 2 part epoxy that is very strong. I wouldn't use it if water would flow through the glued area but you should be ok. I would leave a little roughness, perhaps with sandpaper inside and out to give ridgesvforvthe glue to grab. f you glue this together and polish the assembly later you may consider putting on some clearcoat to preserve the shine. I made a 3' x 18'x rectangle out of copper pipe to hang about a dozen large pans. In my case I put a dowell in the pipes so the coat hooks I screwed into the pipes could handle the weight. Long pieces of narrow copper pipe tend to bend under weight.

 

[ClichéGuevara]

I'm also keen on the solder joints from an aesthetic point of view... I want it to evoke a bit of plumbing rather than a copper curtain pole. I only hope filing down the tops actually works, otherwise it'll be a twice a day niggle for many years to come

Can't you get end feed rather than pre-soldered joints so you don't have to file them? Non-active flux is less corrosive too.

The trick to soldering is clean fitting and pipe and to apply the heat to the centre of the joint so it draws the solder in. Only a small dab of solder is needed.

 

[Adam4868]

If you want the industrial look then this is fine.Ive done this before myself for a bay window.But as you'll hardly notice when the pole is up I'd go for doing it in one piece.Get a spring(bender) I'd guess less than a fiver (toolstation or screwfix) and bend with your knee.The curtain will run smoother as well.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Rethink this project. It is wrong on so many ways. It may look cute in the centrefold of Caveman Home Hacks but it is impractical. Copper is too flexible for curtains, it will need plenty of brackets. Soldering without skill so that the solder doesn't protrude beyond the socket is an art, copper tarnishes, rings don't slide/glide over it, the joints will irritate you each time you use the curtains and I'll never have the opportunity to tell you that I told you so. Steampunk is only steampunk if it is done to excess. One little curtain rail in the corner of a bedroom ain't gonna make you a leather-and-brass hard-ass steampunker.

Go to a curtain shop, get proper rails and do it like it is supposed to be. And yes, get copious curtain, at least double as uncle Globalti said, because if you don't, you'll look like a pauper, wannabe half-baked steampunker too old for that shoot.

 

[Profpointy]

Clean using tomato ketchup.

This isn't a joke - my copper saucepans always have a shiny bit on them when a tomato related thing gets in the outside - even baked bean gloop

 

[raleighnut]

This isn't a joke - my copper saucepans always have a shiny bit on them when a tomato related thing gets in the outside - even baked bean gloop

It's the acid in Tomatoes that does it.

 

[youngoldbloke]

Rethink this project. It is wrong on so many ways. It may look cute in the centrefold of Caveman Home Hacks but it is impractical. Copper is too flexible for curtains, it will need plenty of brackets. Soldering without skill so that the solder doesn't protrude beyond the socket is an art, copper tarnishes, rings don't slide/glide over it, the joints will irritate you each time you use the curtains and I'll never have the opportunity to tell you that I told you so. Steampunk is only steampunk if it is done to excess. One little curtain rail in the corner of a bedroom ain't gonna make you a leather-and-brass hard-ass steampunker.

Go to a curtain shop, get proper rails and do it like it is supposed to be. And yes, get copious curtain, at least double as uncle Globalti said, because if you don't, you'll look like a pauper, wannabe half-baked steampunker too old for that shoot.

^^^^ THIS, and your curtains will get filthy too - as they do with a 'proper' brass curtain pole and rings. If you are willing to take the whole lot down every few months/weeks and polish /wash, go ahead.

 

[MontyVeda]

Rethink this project. It is wrong on so many ways. It may look cute in the centrefold of Caveman Home Hacks but it is impractical. Copper is too flexible for curtains, it will need plenty of brackets. Soldering without skill so that the solder doesn't protrude beyond the socket is an art, copper tarnishes, rings don't slide/glide over it, the joints will irritate you each time you use the curtains and I'll never have the opportunity to tell you that I told you so. Steampunk is only steampunk if it is done to excess. One little curtain rail in the corner of a bedroom ain't gonna make you a leather-and-brass hard-ass steampunker.

Go to a curtain shop, get proper rails and do it like it is supposed to be. And yes, get copious curtain, at least double as uncle Globalti said, because if you don't, you'll look like a pauper, wannabe half-baked steampunker too old for that shoot.

thanks for posting... all your comments, in particular the really patronising ones, have been ignored