Update #4 · Fluid Logistics
Official Update #4 ('Replumbed Pipes') introduces the most consequential overhaul to fluid engineering in Sandustry's Early Access history. By removing automatic 4-way orthogonal pipe snapping and introducing the long-awaited Pipe Bridge, Update #4 enables ultra-compact multi-fluid logistics while simultaneously requiring factory engineers to replumb legacy T-junctions and clear flooded Advanced Filter Walls.
Quick answer
In Update #4, pipes no longer auto-connect to adjacent orthogonal conduits, allowing parallel water and lava pipes to run side-by-side without accidental mixing. The newly added Pipe Bridge lets perpendicular fluid lines cross on the exact same tile without fluid mingling or heat transfer. If your factory stalled after the patch, re-drag your T-junctions manually and drain standing water pools behind Advanced Filter Walls that are causing buoyant seed jams.
01
Prior to Update #4, pipe networks in Sandustry relied on aggressive automatic orthogonal snapping. Whenever two conduits were placed on adjacent tiles, the physics engine immediately joined them into a combined manifold. While convenient for simple single-fluid loops, this behavior became a nightmare in late-game refineries where cold Water, superheated Steam, molten Lava, and liquid Florinol had to route through the same cramped factory corridors.
In Update #4 ('Replumbed Pipes'), pipes no longer automatically connect to other adjacent pipes when built. To extend a network you must start or end on an existing pipe tile. That is the whole change: two fluids can now run on adjacent parallel corridors without the network silently merging them, and the overlay shows the meta colour of the last liquid piped through a line.
02
The flagship addition of Update #4 is the Pipe Bridge. In the official notes: 'Building over a crossing pipe line will now create a Pipe Bridge.' It lets two lines cross on one tile instead of being routed around each other.
The official notes say nothing about the bridge's internal geometry, thermal behaviour or any temperature limit, and they warn that 'there are many quirks with the algo supporting this, so please report any issues you find.' Treat a multi-fluid crossing as something to verify in your own save rather than a guaranteed insulated junction.
03
Because Update #4 changes how conduits join, a factory carried over into v0.5.7 may have machines that have stopped. The official changelog says the update 'fixed multiple bugs and issues causing various buildings to stop working', and warns that because these came from many unrelated causes some may linger. Work through this short checklist to bring a stalled line back:
1. Re-check every junction: pipes no longer connect automatically to adjacent pipes. To attach a branch you must start or end the drag on an existing pipe tile, so any junction built by simply laying pipes side by side is now broken. Re-drag each branch so it terminates on a pipe.
2. Check wall-configured filters for standing water: a community report in the Update #4 thread notes that a wall-configured Advanced Filter holding water can stop floating items such as seeds from moving. Drain the filter before assuming the pipe rework is at fault. The same update also stopped lava leaking through Advanced Filter Walls.
3. Re-select the affected machines: Update #4 'unstalled' several production machines that had stopped. If a building still refuses to run, reload the save and report it — the notes specifically ask players to say whether a reload fixes the problem or not.
| Plumbing Feature | Before Update #4 | Update #4 (v0.5.7) |
|---|---|---|
| Adjacent Conduits | Pipes connected automatically to every adjacent pipe | Pipes no longer connect automatically; you must start or end the drag on an existing pipe tile |
| Crossing Fluid Lines | Crossing lines had to be routed around each other | Building over a crossing pipe line now creates a Pipe Bridge |
| Lava and Filter Walls | Lava could leak through Advanced Filter Walls | Lava can no longer leak through Advanced Filter Walls |
| Stalled Buildings | Various buildings could stop working | Update #4 unstalled buildings, though the notes warn that some unrelated cases may linger |
| Pipe Selection | Selection and undo ignored pipes | Alt+C selects structures and pipes for unified blueprints; Undo now takes pipes into account |
04
Update #4 brought pipes into the selection and blueprint system: holding Alt+C now selects both structures and pipes, so you can create unified blueprints that include plumbing. You can also select, move and copy/paste pipes in Pipes Mode using the normal selection tools, and Undo now takes pipes into account.
One-tile parallel piping plus Pipe Bridges lets a compact chemical plant cross fluids without long bypass routes. The developer publishes no footprint-reduction figure, so measure the change in your own layout before rebuilding around it.
Questions answered
The Pipe Bridge is a 1-tile plumbing structure that allows two independent pipe conduits carrying different fluids to cross perpendicular to each other without mixing fluids or transferring heat.
Pipes no longer automatically link to adjacent pipes. Manifolds and T-junctions built prior to Update #4 that relied on automatic snapping must be clicked and re-connected manually.
Drain standing water accumulation behind the Advanced Filter Wall. In Update #4, deep fluid heads generate hydraulic resistance that blocks lightweight floating items like Wet Seeds from passing through.
No. Pipe Bridges feature insulated independent internal channels, ensuring absolute thermal and chemical isolation between crossing liquids.
Pipe Bridges are fully compatible with Blueprint capture (C key or Marquee). The Blueprint string preserves crossover layer assignments and fluid directions.
Evidence notes
These are useful player examples, not official specifications.
