Counting the number of plastic $0.69 elbows and $3.99 valves, and estimating the cost at $80 per hour of union plumber time, is left as an exercise for the reader.
Posted on 12/23/2003 10:33:33 AM PST by NormsRevenge
Edited on 04/14/2004 10:06:33 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger won office in large part on a promise to reduce the anti-business climate fostered by recalled Gov. Gray Davis. A prime example of that climate is the Davis administration's bureaucratic ban on the use of plastic pipe in housing construction, an issue we have written about for years.
(Excerpt) Read more at 2.ocregister.com ...
Counting the number of plastic $0.69 elbows and $3.99 valves, and estimating the cost at $80 per hour of union plumber time, is left as an exercise for the reader.
The main problem with plastic pipe is that it leaks and is susceptible to damage. There have been many class action suits by HOA's against builders due to plastic plumbing systems, at this point, no manufacturer has come up with a dependable system. Plastic (ABS) is still used for waste systems all over the country, the problem is the water service side. Copper is still the best system out there.
We haven't had any trouble with CPVC. Ever.
We haven't had any trouble with CPVC. Ever.
OK, that statement was a little overbroad, but most, if not all construction defect plumbing problems are with the plastic systems and not copper.
My home is 15 years old and we have a lot of plastic piping under the sinks. It does make it easier for me to clean "U" pipes or replace the leaky pipes.
In your opinion, which piping is more energy efficient for transporting hot water; plastic or copper? :)
Check. Rigid, PVC pipe commonly used in plumbing such as schedule 40 and schedule 80 should not be installed in walls. They were developed for exposed pressure systems such as irrigation. Polyeurathane and polybutalene are better suited for interior pressure plumbing, but still not the equal of copper.
Cheap PVC pipe will become brittle and crack when it ages, especially in hot water or corrosive service. Glue joints will fail. Cheap Home Depot plastic valves aren't worth squat.
California is doing the right thing in this case.
Copper still rules and will last forever...
Yes, and it gets brittle with age too. I even had a mouse chew a hole in plastic pipe inside a wall. It cost a lot more to fix than metal piping would have cost.
Right. That is on the waste side, still OK, and I agree, ABS or PVC is easier to work with than cast iron.
In your opinion, which piping is more energy efficient for transporting hot water; plastic or copper? :)
I'm no energy expert, but I would say plastic has a higher R-value than copper. Most exposed copper water lines are required to be insulated these days. Check the photo in post #6, those copper pipes should be insulated (Note the hot water heater has a blanket.)
IMO.
That's because what you see are for drainage only; the pressurized lines coming into your faucets would be copper or galvanized.
I agree with you that copper is superior, however in the DC Metro area for the past few years there has been a problem with copper pipe springing pinholes and leaking causing quite a bit of damage. It turns out that all that pipe was from one manufacturer but I just wanted to point out that there are some problems with copper.
I will never allow anything but copper in my house though.
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