Believe it or not, there are many out there who have absolutely no idea what a gasket is; much less, a spiral wound gasket. That being said, a confession is due here; the past couple of sentences were a mere attempt at bragging. The truth is, unless you are involved with gaskets somehow, there is no reason for you to know what a Spiral Wound Gasket is. In other words, you don’t have to feel bad for not knowing what it is because we are going to tell you all you need to know about Spiral Wound Gaskets.
What is a gasket?
When installing pipes, it is not unusual to use pipes that are not made for each other; literally. Pipes often have irregularities that prevent them from fully sticking together; it results in a tiny bit of space between pipes. Unfortunately, this bit of space is enough for almost anything to leak out; especially if the components are under heavy pressure.
A gasket is a seal that is installed between pipes to fill out that space and completely prevent fluid or gas leakage. Gaskets are made using any type of flat material; however, it is preferable for the material to withstand high pressures.
What does spiral wound mean?
In other words, what is a spiral wound gasket? Well, it is basically composed of two different types material. A metallic material and a filler material are usually placed alternatingly in a circular manner. This, not only grants the gasket its name, but it also gives it its incredible resistance and versatility that makes it preferable to use in most environments.
Types of Spiral Wound Gaskets
Different types are usually separated by their unique anatomy. When it comes to Spiral Ring Gaskets, some come with an outer ring, some with an inner ring, and others only consist of the original sealing material.
Outer and inner rings usually offer additional protection to keep the sealing material in shape during the times when the pressure is too strong. They act as support for the main sealing ring.
First, there is type W. This one only consists of the sealing ring without any additional material. The metallic and filler components are arranged together to form some type of groove.
Type WR, on the other hand, consists of the main ring combined with an outer ring which is usually manufactured out of any type of hard metal. Finally, there is type WRI which is basically the main ring, an outer ring and an inner ring.
In a nutshell, A Spiral Wound Gasket gets its name from how its components are arranged together. Metallic and filler layers are spirally wound together to form a seal that prevents a pipe’s contents from leaking out. One of the things that set them apart from other types of gaskets is the fact that they can be made out of any type of metal; it means that if need be, they can endure through an insane amount of pressure.