Max Compression & Reinstall of Spiral Wound Gaskets -Advice Needed

[Osvaldo]

TL;DR Summary

Thickness and maximum compression

Would need advise on which is the maximum allowed compression to apply to a gasket according to the thickness of the gasket. If this information is available from the manufacturers, would like to know. Also, if once used, the gasket can be reinstalled and which is the experience about that.

 

[Ranger Mike]

how high is the sky?

what is gasket for? cylinder head on engine? Nuclear power plant cooling?

 

[ChemAir]

Flexitallic has some decent reference information.

This is really application specific.

 

[Baluncore]

The manufacturer specifies compression or bolt torque. You must identify the manufacturer.
A spiral wound gasket is deformed permanently when installed, it does not recover.

Also, if once used, the gasket can be reinstalled and which is the experience about that.

The hidden costs of re-using a gasket works out greater than the cost of replacing it with a new gasket.

 

[Joe591]

We used spiralwounds on the boiler manholes. General consensus was that if you used it once you chuck em. They get crushed quite badly when you tighten them down.
Can't comment on recommended torques though. We tightened them as hard as we could and then flogged them down some more sometimes, the bolts were big though and could handle flogging. No torque wrenches available...management did not believe in torque wrenches and thought the guys would destroy them.