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CA: Plastic pipe ban is ruled illegal
Sac Bee ^
| 12/21/02
| Aurelio Rojas
Posted on 12/21/2002 9:22:38 AM PST by NormsRevenge
Edited on 04/12/2004 5:47:19 PM PDT by Jim Robinson.
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To: Jhoffa_
I've also heard that there is something a plumber can do while fitting copper pipes that makes the joints not last as long, so as to get repeat business. I believe this scam is harder to do with plastic. Have you heard of that???
To: evolved_rage
No, I haven't..
I suppose it's possible to do a superficial joint or somethign that wouldn't last as long, but by and large a good solder joint should last as long as the plumber does.
22
posted on
12/21/2002 9:56:13 AM PST
by
Jhoffa_
To: NormsRevenge
If the long term performance is like some of the earlier plastic pipe, then this may be good news for lawyers.
23
posted on
12/21/2002 9:59:37 AM PST
by
PAR35
To: Jhoffa_
Some of these joints couplers failed and led to millions...
Rather..
24
posted on
12/21/2002 10:00:39 AM PST
by
Jhoffa_
To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
Ping. At least one Davis bribe comes unraveled.
To: Sabertooth
PEX is "cross-linked polyethylene" and PVC is polyvinylchloride.
To: Jhoffa_
I went to Glendora this summer to help my son re-do the bathroom in his rent house and was outraged to find that copper piping was required. It costs more and took ten times longer to do.
27
posted on
12/21/2002 10:11:51 AM PST
by
blam
To: Jhoffa_; templar; Gorzaloon; Sentis; steveo
Wouldn't plastic pipe be more flexible and therefore more likely to survive one of those tiresome earthquakes we have every once in a while?
I'd think that would give the nod to plastic, at least around here.
D
To: John Jorsett; Ernest_at_the_Beach
A most perPEXing development for ol' GraYout and his donors, indeed.
To: blam
Oh yeah. It's not cheap by any means.
My parents moved their kitchen and them moved the washer/dryer upstairs.. It cost allot more for the parts I did in copper and some of the soldering presented a bit of a fire hazzard.
Had to cover things with wet rags and the whole bit. Imagine what a union goon, (or three or four) dragging his feet would consume for a similar job in flat rate labor?
30
posted on
12/21/2002 10:16:52 AM PST
by
Jhoffa_
To: Tacis
But, this absolute fact, the stuff could have negative environmental effects! Take a six foot length of the stuff and wrap the first six inches of one end with black tape. Then, grasping the taped end (and, assuming you have a reasonable eye and reasonable hand/eye coordination), swing from the heels at every spotted owl you see. OUCH!!!!
To: daviddennis
Wouldn't plastic pipe be more flexible and therefore more likely to survive one of those tiresome earthquakes we have every once in a while?
Above ground and with small gauges, a several foot span of either would flex sufficiently as to render it immune, imo.
Copper is actually a pretty soft metal.
I bet galvanized iron wouldn't get off so easily though..
32
posted on
12/21/2002 10:19:42 AM PST
by
Jhoffa_
To: Sentis
Soldering may be enjoyable Oh yeah, especially the horizontal joints with that little bit of water that you can't get rid of.
To: NormsRevenge
Californians still use copper? Why? Plastic works just as well and is easier to install, You don't need any special training, really, to use it and no need to sweat a joint. It's only reasonable and rational and ...
Oh wait, now I understand. Never mind.
To: NormsRevenge
The plumbers union also gets their firemen union buddies to complain that in the event of a fire, the PVC gives off noxious fumes. I'm surprised they didn't use this line in this article.
To: Sentis
As a home owner with plastic piping I can do my own plumbling work if I had copper pipes I would need to call a plumber in order to do what is simple mantainence with plasticWhat is so damned difficult about plumbing with copper? If you personally can handle working with plastic pipes, you have 90% of the skills you need to work with copper. Try it sometime, you will find this is true.
To: Petronski
Exactly. I use PVC outdoors for plumbing, but would absolutely never allow it inside walls. Copper is much, much more reliable, especially on hot water lines. It can also be grounded, which PVC cannot. Even with GFI circuit breakers, the additional safety of grounded plumbing is valuable. So it costs $500 more to plumb a house with copper. So what? Plastic is for sewage and drainage, in my expert opinion. For water under pressure, copper wins every time. As for repairs. I can solder up a leaky pipe with a coupling just as fast as I can do the same job for plastic. If you get to specify...specify copper for all in-wall plumbing. For external plumbing, plastic's OK.
To: Sabertooth
PEX is short for Cross-Linked Polyethylene.
It comes in rolls, and is cut to length with a ratcheting cutter like is used for rigid PVC [Poly Vinyl Chloride] pipe. The natural color is translucent white, but most plumbers use blue for cold and red for hot. Yes, it is suitable for hot water.
It is crimped onto brass fittings with copper rings. The crimpers cost about $100, and usually two are needed - one for 1/2" and one for 3/4" PEX tubing. Around here, you can rent the crimpers for $10 per day.
PEX can be imbedded in concrete floors for hydronic heating purposes.
I can tell you that ALL new homes in my part of North Carolina use PEX for potable water. (I installed Type L Copper in the house I am building, because I'm a traditionalist, I guess. I sorta' wish I had used PEX, now.)
To: MineralMan; Petronski
Yes, yes. But the point of this article was that people weren't even given the option of PEX. I remember a few years ago steel frame houses were on the rise because the cost of steel had made it a very attractive alternative. Whatever your preference is, don't you think we should be able to decide for ourselves?
39
posted on
12/21/2002 11:21:14 AM PST
by
Mr. Bird
To: Gorzaloon
But copper plumbing, once one gets some practice soldering, is actually quite an enjoyable and easy thing to do.That's for sure. "Sweating" or heating up a copper joint with a small, cheap, MAP torch from Home Depot and letting the soldier melt and seal the joint is not rocket science. The biggest risk is, if you are an idiot and light yourself on fire.
40
posted on
12/21/2002 11:31:59 AM PST
by
elbucko
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