New Construction Plumbing Question
8 years ago
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New Construction Plumbing: White PVC vs The Black Stuff
Comments (30)I've been using both ABS and PVC for over 25 years and in different places across the US, each with different rules and regulations, most of which is not based in solid science. ABS hands down beats PVC in direct sun and also under homes in indirect sunlight. In Hawaii, PVC becomes brittle within a year. It pits, shatters, cracks and crumbles. ABS doesn't do any of that. As an inspector I see this every day. An ABS roof vent pipe can last 15 years in heat and sun without being painted. ABS is more expensive than PVC. While ABS is not used for water pipe, PVC and not CPVC is still being used as water supply in Hawaii. Both should be outlawed as toxic for water. Sched. 80 PVC fairs much better than Sched. 40. Sched. 80 is grey and a bit softer. Yes about the primer purple for inspections. On Farms and ranches you can see crumbled remains of long runs of original PVC, right next to newer and flexible and safer HDPE tubing. If one looks close at larger diameter ABS, you can sometimes see its "foam" core. Like one comment said - If you hit ABS with a hammer, it's unlikely you'll break it, but try that with PVC and it will break easily - shatter even. Once a plumber from Australia told me that some places banned ABS because of the gases released when it burns in a house fire or when it's cut too fast by plumbers. I'm sure the health of plumbers was not on a politicians mind when banning ABS. ABS will burn continually once it starts, whereas PVC supposedly self extinguishes. Not sure that burning carpet and every other thing in a house fire is any less toxic. But to answer the question - ABS is much more expensive (in Hawaii anyway) than PVC. And maybe in the end its the same because you'll buy and replace 3 to 4 times PVC to 1 time ABS. And seriously, it's just plain greed when a 3" ABS cap fitting that used to cost 2-5 dollars is now over $20 in 2024....See MorePex vs. copper plumbing for new construction with well water?
Comments (5)Since the days that we dug wells by hand in my area, and I helped on some of those, observation tells me that the analysis of the water in a particular well can change over time. And most of the well water in my area does damage copper pipe. For that reason, I used only stainless steel pump and fittings and polyethylene pipe in my well. And avoided copper and brass as much as possible in the above-ground fittings. No regrets. Now 6 years with no repairs and hoping for at least 15 more years of trouble-free service....See Morenew construction plumbing line question,
Comments (1)Yes diameters need to be known. If you really want the showers to be balanced, you should use a manifold for both hot and cold lines and have a separate hot and cold line to each room....See MorePlumbing screw up in new construction
Comments (12)So I am going to disagree a bit. My main piece of advice - Don't assume that what you believe is true just because you believe it. Something isn't bad just because you think it is bad, and something isn't right just because you believe it is right. You are building a home, it is going to be a great home or a terrible home because of the knowledge and actions of professionals, and not because of what you believe. Many many years ago I had a plumbing license, I am not an expert in plumbing by any means, but from the time I was 13 years old, I spent summers and weekends working for my dad's plumbing company. There is not nearly enough information to answer your question in any meaningful way. Waste plumbing running horizontally sloped isn't a problem at all. I assure you that there are many spots that plumbing runs through a horizontal slope for stretches much much longer than 7 or 8 feet. Additionally, PVC running 8' through a wall is not necessarily going to harm anything in the wall at all. Nothing. The typical master bath today will have wall runs longer than 8', even through 2x4 walls. If you want to post a floorplan and describe where the pipes are and their diameter, I can give you more advice. Generally, putting a toilet or tub/shower outlet in the wrong place is a problem, while putting sinks in the wrong place is usually not a problem, putting the stack in the wrong place might be a problem and it might not be a problem at all. The plumber probably COULD have dug this up, fixed it in the ground, patched the slab and gotten on with it What you are describing may do more harm than good. Every plumber, who has been doing this for more than a few months, will have quickie sawed through a slab. Sawing through an uncured concrete slab isn't even a lot of work, so there is little reason to believe that either party were avoiding this if it was the best solution. Lots of plumbers don't like a lot couplings and joints in a concrete slab in 1.5" or 2" pipe. A clog in the slab is costly. As for the mistake. Mistakes get made in builds, it just happens. A good builder will protect the homeowner from the mistakes. However, he is not going to call you every time a mistake that is easily correctable gets made. In the scope of things this just isn't necessarily a very big mistake. With some more information I could give you an opinion. If you are that concerned pay a plumber to come look at the house and give his opinion or post actual pictures of the mistake and the floorplan....See MoreRelated Professionals
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