To many, the most difficult part of working with copper pipe is in making the many needed connections. There are, however, many options to make life much easier.

Most homes today contain copper plumbing in at least some form. Especially if it is a slightly older house, chances are good that the plumbing consists mostly of copper pipes. Even newer houses, though, are often plumbed with reliable old copper – even if the trends today seem to be moving toward the flexible and durable plastic alternatives such as PEX.

But working with copper for the standard DIYer can be an intimidating task. After all, the professionally installed copper piping that's in there now was probably connected using soldered fittings, creating a permanent weld at all the connection points in order to construct a rigid framework of plumbing throughout the house.

Many weekend DIYers do not know how to solder a copper fitting. It's nothing to be ashamed of, but this is a skill that seems to be growing rarer by the year.

And if one happens to fall into this category, what are they to do when the plumbing springs a leak, or needs to be replaced, and a plumber is too expensive?

One of two things: Learn to solder (it's really not that difficult at all), or use a different type of fitting (even easier).

Here is a brief rundown of some of the more popular methods for connecting copper pipe:

Sweat Fittings

Sweat (soldered) fittings possesses the benefit of being reliable, rigid, and dirt cheap; though it has the downside of requiring a certain set of skills and tools right from the start.

The basics of the process are simple – a standard solder fitting (the cheapest of all fittings by a considerable amount) such as a coupler, threaded adaptor or tee, simply slide onto the pipe like a sleeve.

All one needs to make the connection is the pipe, the fitting, some flux (with a brush to apply it), some plumbing (lead-free) solder, and a torch.

Flux is applied, solder is heated, and the weld is made (this is not meant as a step-by-step guide - there are dozens of those on the web, such as this one). It may seem intimidating at first, but it's really very simple. And to make it even simpler, the powers-that-be have created:

E-Z Sweat Fittings

These are fittings which seem just like standard solder fittings, except they have a small ring around the connecting ends. This ring comes prefilled with solder, so all one has to do is to apply flux to the pipe and fitting, slide it on, and heat it up. The hard part (which is really not hard at all) is already done.

These are a great first step for someone interested in learning to solder.

Compression Fittings

Most commonly used on smaller diameters of copper, such as 1/4" or 3/8" copper tubing, compression fittings come in three parts – the sleeve, the nut, and the seat.

The nut slides easily over the outside of the copper, then the sleeve follows it, and then the pipe itself slides into the seat-end of the fitting. When the nut is then tightened down on top of the sleeve, the sleeve compresses and forms a water-tight seal (hopefully).

Again, this is not a common fitting for standard water supply, and should not be used in applications that are closed into a wall. There are, however, solderless fittings which can be used in major applications.

Sharkbite Fittings

Sharkbite-brand fittings are a great example of incredibly fast, easy (and expensive) fittings that can replace any soldered fitting in almost any application. They come in standard shapes and sizes, from 1/2" up to 1".

The key to the success of sharkbite fittings is their simplicity – just slide them onto the end of the pipe. No need to tighten, no chemicals, no tools. That's it. They seal using an ingenious o-ring design that even allows them to rotate in the fitting and remain sealed.

The best part? They can be reused. Simply pull back on the thin flange around the pipe and they pull right off.

These fittings would surely be replacing most others if it wasn't for their price tag (which varies from store to store, but are generally more than $5 (US) a piece! So unless one is somewhat wealthy, they should be used with caution.

There are other options as well, of course, but these are some of the more important ones, and give the DIYer a good start in understanding the available options for connecting copper pipe.