By: Jason Maxwell
Submitted: 2011-03-09 04:14:20 | Word Count: 425
Lead pipes, way back when, were the material of choice for plumbing. However, this isn't the case today. Other materials like copper, iron, and bronze have been used as substitutes through the years. But none of them has proved as successful as plastic.
While the metal pipes used threads in the fittings (elbow, tee, etc.), plastic doesn't and is therefore more versatile. Unlike metal pipes, which, when the threads become worn out, leak, plastic pipes are ideally free of leaks. Not only are you released from worrying about the water bill but also from contamination of your water supply. Unlike metal pipes wherein you have to use a pipe wrench, installation of the plastic is very easy. Just apply the solvent and join the connections. You can do it yourself and save the cost of hiring a professional to install it unlike for instance copper piping.
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Plastic pipes can outlast metal pipes even copper since copper corrodes just like other metals. According to studies, plastic can last more than 25 years and in some cases even up to a hundred or more.
Plastic pipes are very friendly to the environment ecologically speaking because it can be recycled.
There are different types of plastic that is being used for piping in the market today. One is Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)which is a rigid plastic. It comes in two different colors namely blue, which is for cold water piping, and orange which is for waste and sewerage. There's its close cousin the Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC), colored white which is being used for hot water delivery. Thread or solvent weld is a type of glue being used to join the pipefittings. Heat can also be applied to fuse joints.
Then there's PolyEthylene or PE which is a flexible plastic pipe that can be bent to create corners, thus, does not need elbow fittings. Attaching it together can be done by utilizing barb fittings as well as clamp rings. Alternatively, it can also be melted or fused together by using heat. PE pipes do not have color and appears frosted and translucent. It is the material of choice for geothermal heating and used as supply line for sprinkler systems. Crosslinked PolyEthylene or PEX, as it is commonly called, is also used in water supply.
ABS pipe, is the last but not the least, which is black and rigid and is found useful in drainage piping. It is cheaper than PVC.
Author Resource:-
For your piping needs, contact iMarine Inc. We also deal in attwood pumps and livewell pump.
