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FAQ’s
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GENERAL INFORMATION
What
is SnapMarker®?
SnapMarker® is a comprehensive coordinated
system of mounting products and methods, Label Plates™,
and adhesive labels which enables users to mark rounded pipe
and tubing surfaces with a flat sign or label.
What
problems does SnapMarker® solve?
- Difficulty
or inability in reading a label that is wrapped around a
round surface. It creates a flat plane upon which to label
the item.
- Important
Labels peeling off due to heat and cold in pipe or glue.
It provides an insulating separator between these conditions
and the label.
- Obliteration
of labels in routine maintenance by painting over them.
SnapMarker® creates a prominent
display surface plane separate and distinct from the pipes
and wall and thus unlikely to be painted over.
What
problems does SnapMarker® prevent?
- Mistaken
operational movements.
- Using
the wrong valve.
- Feeding
wire through the wrong chase or conduit to the wrong destination.
- Cross-mixing
of wrong gases due to improper line connects
- Delays
in operation of equipment during emergencies
- Signage
travel movement due to vibration on horizontal pipes that
would result with strap-on methods.
- Signage
slippage down vertical pipes that would result with a strap-on
method
Is
it patented?
Yes, and numerous patents are pending.
Is
it trademarked?
SnapMarker® is a registered trademark
of SnapMark, Inc. SnapMark, Inc. owns some 30 additional trademarks,
and carefully uses these trademarks to distinguish our products
as genuine SnapMarker® products.
Where
is SnapMarker®™ Used?
Wherever the labeling of a pipe, tube, conduit, valve, wire,
rod, or chase is necessary or beneficial. The cost is miniscule
compared to the money made through increased operation efficiency,
avoidance of down time.
Why
should SnapMarker®™ be Used?
- Clarity
- Convenience
- Increased
profits
- Increased
safety
- Most
efficient means of labeling
- Professional
look to your system
Ease
of installation. It's a Snap!
Features:
- Light
weight
- Non-conductive
/ non-corrosive
- Hand-installed
– no special tools needed
- Solid,
strong one piece PVC construction
- Waterproof
- Both
SnapMarker® and the stick-on labels
are resistant to many chemicals.
- Fluid
leaks run down a pipe or conduit behind the protruding label,
not affecting the label’s legibility.
What
materials make up a SnapMarker®?
PVC, injection molded. Custom materials are available.
What
are the properties of the adhesive labels?
- 3.5
mm vinyl
- Permanent
adhesive
- 2
year outdoor rating on ink
- Screen
printed
- Water-proof
- Resistant
to many chemicals.
How
can do we obtain custom stick-a-labels™ when standard
ones don’t suffice?
1.
We can provide them to you. Click
here to email us your specifications, and we will custom
generate and deliver them to you. We can meet your specifications
for custom materials and ink types.
2. System operators Click
here to use our website label generator to do an immediate
label layout and printout.
3. Engineers and system designers click
here to link to our software CADD download add-on for
use in specifying SnapMarker®
sizes, symbols and wording for labels, colors, material
types. The date data file may be transmitted to us for production
of a set of custom labels to meet your exact needs.
Typical
Applications:
Places of use are limitless and include virtually every
place in the world that pipe, metal conduit, plastic conduit,
tubing, Smurf®Tube, etcetera, is used:
- residential:
low to high rise, single of multi-family
- commercial:
- office
- retail
- industrial
- factories
- hotel/motel/resort
- schools
- nursing
homes, ALFs, hospitals
- fire
suppression systems
- marine:
on-board cranes, engines rooms, hydraulic systems, ship-board
wiring, and other systems
- marinas
and boatyards
- swimming
pool control systems --- public, private, residential and
scholastic; landscape irrigation and sprinkler systems
- communications
conduit, including phone, data, cable, fiber optic
- plumbing
lines
- refineries
- aircraft
- mechanical
switch levers (such as on electrical, railroads or heavy
equipment;
- oil
platforms
- laboratory
tubing and lines
- HVAC
lines
- hospitals
and health facilities with their many complex and dangerous
wiring, oxygen, communication, suction, computer, and other
systems
- chemical
manufacturing plants
- power
plants
- gas
lines both natural and petroleum
- petrol
and natural gas vehicles
- vacuum
tube canister data transfer systems
- etcetera,
ad infinitum
How
do I install SnapMarker®s™?
How
can I permanently install SnapMarker®?
SnapMarker® firmly and tightly grips
the pipe to which you are mounting it. Many systems typically
do not vibrate enough to cause a SnapMarker®
to move over time. Therefore, leaving SnapMarkers®
unglued allows you to reposition them later.
Where
desirable to avoid tampering or movement by vibration, SnapMarker®
may be permanently glued in place with ordinary PVC cement.
If you wish a permanent tamper-resistant installation, coat
the inside of the saddle clip with PVC cement, clip it into
the pipe, and very quickly position it.
If
you think you may ever want to reposition it, you may wish
to keep your options open by simply clipping SnapMarker®
in place and running a small bead of PVC cement along one
end of the saddle where it intersects with the pipe; this
makes it much easier to move at a later time should you wish
to do so.
How
should I best locate SnapMarker®
on my system?
Place the SnapMarkers® in visible
locations and in a logical pattern. Label the system as though
it were being labeled for a person who knows nothing about
the system, but must operate it. A good methodology is to
assume you are a user who knows nothing about the system and
will have to operate it by reading the labels. Then proceed
step by step through the operational process, setting out
instructions necessary to step through the operational process.
That way the system can be operated by anyone, no matter who
is present. Valves should be clip-a-labeled™ as close
to the valve as possible for clarity. Pipes should be labeled
to all be viewed from the same direction where possible.
How
can I further shield against UVA rays or other label damage?
The stick-on labels are resistant to bleaching by the sun
and many chemicals. In some outdoor applications you may wish
to purchase special clear clip-over rigid clear plastic covers
for additional UV protection, label protection from damage,
staining or wear, or tamper resistance. These are available
through this website and some dealers.
Why
should SnapMarker® be used over
other labeling methods?
Labeling of cables, tubes, conduits and pipes in the past
has consisted of direct handwriting on the rounded surface,
which is problematic in many ways. Writing on a round or curved
surface is difficult, especially if the outside diameter is
small, frequently producing a sloppy or illegible result.
The total surface is limited and often not conveniently placed
for easy reading. It is often confined small rounded writing
surface area inadequate to legibly depict or contain all necessary
information. Repairs or replacement of the underlying pipe
or conduit destroys any written information thereon. Painted
markings, tied-on, hanging, paper or plastic tags, or colored
tape bands are subject to peeling and corrosion, easy removal,
and require referring to a legend or master coding sheet.
These methods are subject to peeling and corrosion (requiring
the marks and information to be repeatedly replaced or rewritten),
easy removal, compel the user to find each end of a pipe to
match them up, compels the user to incur delay in referring
out to other plans and notes to ascertain the contents, purpose,
source or destination of the pipe, tube or conduit.
Other
pipe identification systems include wrapping straps attached
to an information plate around piping. This method is subject
to many limitations. It does not allow for the labeling of
surface mounted piping or conduit, as there is no space to
wrap the straps. It does not allow for an adjustable multi-position
labeling surface. It is not usable in installations where
pliers necessary to adequately tighten the straps cannot reach
where required. It is subject to loosening and rotation from
mechanical, vehicular or natural vibration, and thereby the
loss of immediately visible or locatable information. It is
also subject to lateral slippage along a vertical pipe or
a horizontal pipe from such vibration, which then cause the
erroneous interpretation of the information and human action
thereby creating or amplifying an accident or disaster rather
than avoiding or correcting it because the signage cannot
be found or (unknown to the user) has become located in an
improper location thus mislabeling the system or pipe. Also,
this method makes it more difficult to change a label if so
desired.
SnapMarker®
surmounts all of the above problems in a superior method which
can be easily utilized by anybody, and requires no tools to
employ.
Sizing
Issues
General Rule
Except with EMT (electrical metallic tubing) and swimming
pools, the general rule is to a 1/2" SnapMarker®
on 1/2" pipe or conduit, 3/4"on 3/4", 1"
on 1", and so forth. This rule applies as long as the
outside diameter (O.D.) of the pipe, tube or conduit to which
the SnapMarker® is being clipped is the same as the PVC
pipe of the same size.
The
following are all known to be the SAME OD for purposes of
SnapMarker® application:
- White
rigid Sch. 40 PVC
- White
rigid thin-wall PVC (sometimes called Sch. 20)
- Gray
rigid PVC
- Black
rigid PVC
- Blue
rigid PVC
- Purple
(reuse PVC)
- CPVC
- Flexible
Electrical Nonmetallic Tubing (ENT) (a/k/a Smurf ® tube)
- Steel
pipe
- Liquid-Tight
Flexible Nonmetallic Conduit
- Flexible
Electrical Conduit
- Plastic
Coated Flexible Electrical Conduit
Copper
Pipe and EMT.
The following have a SMALLER OD than
their size-names infer for purposes of SnapMarker®
application:
- Electrical
Metallic Tubing (EMT)
- Copper
Pipe
Generally
the next size lower of a SnapMarker®
will fit. For example on 3/4" EMT or copper use a 1/2"
SnapMarker®, and on 1" EMT
or copper use a 3/4" SnapMarker®.
Swimming
Pools.
Click here for detailed
discussion of unique swimming pool system sizing issues.
Successful
Pipe and Conduit Layout Patterns and Configurations.
The two most general precepts are:
1.
Leave a small amount of space around each pipe or conduit
to facilitate usage, repairs, and modification.
2.
Where multiple rows of conduit chases are employed,
install each row so that it is at a different height than
the next.
Click here for a
more detailed treatment of this subject, including sample
conduit arrays you may wish follow or adapt from.
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