Why doesn the pipe break or burst?
The point of least resistance in the pipe is the water not the pipe. In other words the plug will grow lengthwise in the pipe as long as there is water in the pipe and the two freeze collars are not too close to each other the pipe will not burst. The collars should be placed at least 2′ apart (1′ in each direction of the solder point) from one another even if using the heat absorbing past method described above. If only making one freeze plug the two collars may be placed butted up one against another but do not leave any space between the two collars creating an air pocket and possibly causing a rupture of the pipe. A tee fitting is included to cap off one side of the tee for using only one freeze collar to make one ice plug.
