Spinning off/on 6" RMC

[wexcellent]

We have to disassemble and move about a 100' overhead run of six 6" RMC raceways. Looks like RMC weighs about 180 lbs per 10'. I helped run 5" RMC years ago but it's been awhile. Just curious if anyone with some decent experience can share any useful tricks to make unspinning and spinning easier. I was thinking that if I shimmed up the piece being uninstalled/installed just a 1/16" off the strut and then fabricated some rollers I could shove up against the pipe on either side and tighten in place before removing the shim it would make it so that the only thing I was fighting was the threads. Also thinking about using some kind of lube on the threads for the reassembly.
Open to any useful suggestions/insights.

Thanks!

 

[letgomywago]

Separate material lift

 

[ptonsparky]

FWIW, loosening the coupling towards and onto the the next pipe is easier than rotating the whole 180#. Once both sets of pipe threads are engaged, tighten.

Rollers of some sort for sure.

 

[roger]

In these type situations we would use welder roller stands like these. Sometimes it took some improvising to set them up on scissor lifts.

 

[ptonsparky]

 

[wexcellent]

Separate material lift

I should have mentioned that they have already put up a catwalk under the whole affected area and for a number of reasons we only have about 16" between the floor and bottom of conduit for jacking/carting.

 

[wexcellent]

FWIW, loosening the coupling towards and onto the the next pipe is easier than rotating the whole 180#. Once both sets of pipe threads are engaged, tighten.

Rollers of some sort for sure.

Yeah, I had completely forgotten this important detail. Thanks for saving me from having to figure that out again. Excellent pro-tip!

 

[wexcellent]

In these type situations we would use welder roller stands like these. Sometimes it took some improvising to set them up on scissor lifts.

View attachment 2569383

This is what my foreman and I were trying to figure out by looking at what some of the fitters had on site. The problem is out spatial constraints under the run.

 

[wexcellent]

View attachment 2569384

Excellent! Just the direction I needed. Looks like there are several options and we can come up with some kind of strut mount to use this with jacks. Thanks much!

 

[hillbilly1]

Don’t know the price, but this would be the ticket! Probably need more than one job to write this off on!

 

[wexcellent]

Don’t know the price, but this would be the ticket! Probably need more than one job to write this off on!

Dang, yeah, can't find a price anywhere online but given the scale of this job and company it might be a good fit, just in terms of safety alone. Thanks for sharing. Very cool tool. Definitely pass this one along up the chain of command.

 

[coop3339]

I would probably use rope to support it while spinning, with one side of the rope wrapped around something where it can be allowed to slip and lower the conduit into the lift once lose. You could do it that way with 2 men. just would have to coordinate well when lowering. 3 may be better just in case, that way you could grab it if need be since it would only be 60# each.

 

[wexcellent]

I would probably use rope to support it while spinning, with one side of the rope wrapped around something where it can be allowed to slip and lower the conduit into the lift once lose. You could do it that way with 2 men. just would have to coordinate well when lowering. 3 may be better just in case, that way you could grab it if need be since it would only be 60# each.

We have embedded strut above throughout the area, so yeah, I like this for safety too. Put eyebolts up and use some nice smooth mule tape. I think there are going to be spots where it is difficult to use jacks/rollers so chain falls/rope/mule tape will come into play. Heck, they might actually be easiest for all of the raising, lowering and spinning. This is great, we are at the beginning of planning out how to do this and these suggestions really help jog my thinking.