We have so many names for common things and tools that we use in this business; and because I have way too much time on my hands, I started wondering how those names came to be. For instance, calling a tee a “tee” makes sense because that’s exactly what it looks like when you hold it a certain way. If you install it with the bull on the bottom, it becomes a bullhead tee because it looks sort of like, well, a bull’s head. Or not, use your imagination.
Why do we call the side of the tee that’s not the run the “bull?” Why do we call the part that goes straight through the “run?” It’s not going anywhere once you install it, is it? Maybe we should call it the “just hanging-out” fitting. The elbow got its name for an obvious reason — it turns. But, when your arm is hanging at your side, your elbow doesn’t turn, yet we still call it an elbow. That makes no sense. If you stand up, do you no longer have a lap? Maybe “elbow” isn’t the best name for that particular fitting; perhaps we should just call it a “90,” as so many do. Or maybe a “45?”