Special Right Triangles & Offsets
Special right triangles are a topic explored in geometry and applied frequently in pre-calculus, but also has use in the world of plumbing. When pipes are being ran either under the ground or along the ceiling of a building there are often obstacles in their way. So a pipe might need to continue it’s path, but might need to go around a wall, another pipe, a light fixture, etc. An offset is a way a plumber can keep the pipe going and avoid such obstacles. They would need to cut the pipe in advance to make sure it would travel the proper distance so that it can diagonally avoid any object and still continue it’s path in the most efficient way possible. Thus, special right triangles are involved. Plumbers often use pipe fittings that are 45 degrees, 30 degrees, and 60 degrees and perform calculations based on these angles to calculate what is called the “travel” or the diagonal distance the pipe travels. A plumber can also use those angles to calculate the “set” which is the distance two pipers are apart from one another and the “advance” which is the distance between pipes in terms of the path of what is traveling in the pipe. So one can see the connection between the right triangle geometry and what a plumber does in the field. Below are some resources for calculating the set, advance, and travel and it’s connection to geometry.