Plumbing – How to avoid excessive junk on inside junction, when cementing PVC sprinkler pipe

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I'm cementing some schedule 40 PVC pipe using the best instructions I could find ( http://www.tchristy.net/pdf/ChristysTechManual_v5_English.pdf ). The outside of each joint looks fine, but inside there's often a mess of plastic scrapings, PVC primer and PVC cement:

PVC Pipe Cement inside junction at stop

PVC Sprinkler Pipe

The dross could clearly affect water flow or clog a filter. I won't use PVC pipe for drinking water because of lead (See http://chej.org/2013/09/pvc-pipes-bringing-toxic-lead-to-drinking-water/ ), but for those that do, the bits of plastic in the water could be an issue.

I've already tried rotating less while inserting, but that's not always practical. I'm cutting pipe with a ratcheting PVC cutter and deburring with sandpaper.

How can I get better looking interior joints?

Best Answer

That level of glop is not normal.

Some things to check:

  1. Is the pipe end deburred? A file plus sandpaper to finish works well.
  2. Are the pipe & fittings dry? Water can do strange things to PVC cement.
  3. Be firm, but don't push too hard, and don't over rotate. 1/8 of a rotation is enough.
  4. Work quickly, but do let any residual drips in the primer evaporate before moving on to glue.
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