Gland (engineering)

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A Gland is a general type of stuffing box, used to seal a rotating shaft against a fluid. The most common example is in the head of a tap (faucet) where the gland is usually packed with string which has been soaked in tallow or similar grease. The gland nut allows the packing material to be compressed to form a watertight seal and prevent water leaking up the shaft when the tap is turned on.

Other types of sealed connections without a rotating part are also sometimes called glands; for example, the point where an electrical flex exits a conduit is often sealed by an adjustable gland to prevent water ingress. The linear seal around the piston rod of a double acting steam piston is also known as a gland, particularly in marine applications.