Tu-Turn

Tu-Turn is a copper fitting brush line manufactured by American Granby Inc, a Central New York based supplier known for consolidating plumbing, pool, and irrigation hardware into a single vendor catalog. Rather than a single flagship product, Tu-Turn covers a focused niche: abrasive brushes sized to match standard copper tube diameters for surface preparation before soldering.

Product Lines

The Tu-Turn catalog on SupplyHouse spans copper fitting and tube brushes from 1/2 inch through 2 inches in diameter, sized to clean the inside of fittings and the outside of tube ends ahead of sweat soldering. Each brush uses a twisted-wire construction designed to remove oxidation and residue from copper surfaces so solder can flow and bond properly.

Why Contractors Specify Tu-Turn

Soldered copper joints depend on clean, oxide-free surfaces, and a properly sized fitting brush removes the thin film that forms on copper almost as soon as it is cut or stored. Plumbers and HVAC technicians keep a range of Tu-Turn sizes in the tool bag because matching the brush diameter to the pipe size produces a tight, consistent scrub rather than a loose pass that misses oxidation in the fitting's interior curve. The brushes are inexpensive enough to treat as a consumable, so a worn or contaminated brush gets swapped out rather than reused past its useful life.

How to Choose Tu-Turn Products

Brush selection is straightforward: match the brush diameter to the nominal pipe size being prepped, whether that is a 1/2 inch branch line or a 2 inch main. Crews working primarily in smaller residential supply and drain lines typically stock 1/2 inch through 1-1/4 inch sizes, while commercial plumbing and hydronic heating work calls for the larger 1-1/2 inch and 2 inch brushes as well. Keeping a brush on hand for every common pipe size on a job reduces the temptation to solder over a surface that was not fully cleaned.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Tu-Turn brush used for?

A Tu-Turn brush cleans oxidation and residue from the inside of copper fittings and the outside of copper tube ends before soldering, helping solder bond evenly around the joint.

What sizes does the Tu-Turn brush line cover?

Sizes commonly range from 1/2 inch up to 2 inches in diameter, matching standard copper tube and fitting dimensions used in plumbing and HVAC work.

Can the same brush clean both the fitting and the tube?

A single brush is designed for the fitting's interior surface, while tube ends are typically cleaned with an abrasive cloth or a separate tube-cleaning tool, though both tools target the same nominal diameter.

How often should a fitting brush be replaced?

A brush should be replaced once its bristles become flattened, clogged with old flux, or visibly worn, since a degraded brush no longer removes oxidation effectively.

Does brush cleaning replace the need for flux?

No, brush cleaning and flux application serve different purposes; the brush removes oxidation and debris while flux chemically prevents new oxidation during the heating and soldering process.