Do you have to tighten compression fittings ALL the way?

[Z Overlord]

Like the "Cap" that goes on the fitting, does it need to tighten to the point it no longer looks like it's two pieces? Or can there be a space?

[Supergrover]

There can be a space, as long as it is fairly tight your good to go.
Yfrog - sig55615.jpg

[Z Overlord]

ok thanks :D

[Supergrover]

NP!

Dont forget to post up some images when you are done.

[AmuseMe]

I thought it was needed, bur it definitly is not. Usually just do it as tight as your hands can, then give it a wiggle.

[miggs78]

Yea there should be a space like in the pic from supergrover, don't tighten too much and all the way, you might start cutting the tubes. I did that the first time, although I didn't go all the way, I did tighten it more than required, and the next time I took it apart for draining, you could see a good line on the tube, like someone pressed it really hard.

Like AmuseMe said, tighten as much as you can with your hand, don't use a tool.

[gingerbee]

over tightening them will crush the o-ring and then it will leak hand tight should be good enough adn yes most of the time there's a little gap because they give room for the o-ring to expand into when it gets mushed down.

[SugarJ]

He's talking about tightening the ring over the tubing onto the fitting, not the fitting into a block. And I was told a gap of around 1-3mm works best. I try to get mine around 2 millimeters, and I haven't had a compression fitting leak yet. Elbows are another story, unfortunately.

[antiacid]

a good rule of thumb is to turn it as far as you can with your fingers. Some people use wrenches or similar tools but that's running after trouble.