Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Thin PTFE ribbon packs the clearance between mating tapered threads. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a everyday life fact?

Yes. It sits on the Everyday Life shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

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The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

Plumber's tape seals joints by filling the spiral gap

Thin PTFE ribbon packs the clearance between mating tapered threads Pipe threads are tapered, so the two parts wedge together and the seal is meant to come from deformed metal. In practice a spiral clearance remains, and wrapping polytetrafluoroethylene tape around the male thread fills it. The tape is also slippery, which lets the joint tighten further without galling, so it must be wrapped in the direction of the thread. It sits in Mondo's everyday life collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Tags: plumbing, seals, materials

Plumber's tape seals joints by filling the spiral gap: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Thin PTFE ribbon packs the clearance between mating tapered threads. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a everyday life fact?: Yes. It sits on the Everyday Life shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.