Quality pipes provide clean and safe drinking water, minimize your risk of experiencing water damage, and lower your home insurance costs. The type of pipes in your home plays a significant role in determining the quality of your plumbing system. Read on to learn how to identify the materials used in your plumbing to know if you have quality pipes in your home.
PEX
PEX or cross-linked polyethylene pipes are high-quality options for water supply lines. They’re plastic, so they won’t leach rust or lead into your water. PEX pipes are affordable, flexible, not prone to cracking, and are highly resistant to scale buildup and freezing.
Having a peek at your pipes will tell you whether you have PEX pipes or a different plumbing type. PEX pipes are typically color-coded with red and blue for hot and cold water.
Copper
Copper pipes are also excellent plumbing pipes because they’re durable, resistant to corrosion, and better than other pipes in connecting water pipes to gas heaters. You can tell that you have copper pipes if your pipes have a similar color to a shiny penny and are metallic. If so, then these are quality pipes.
PVC and CPVC
PVC pipes are only used to supply cold water. They can’t tolerate temperatures above 140 degrees. If your home has PVC pipes, the hot-water supply lines are likely to be CPVC. CPVC pipes are brittle and rigid and thus notorious for breaking and cracking. PVC and CPVC look like white, hard plastic, but CPVC is often less white, usually having a cream or off-white color.
Polybutylene
If your home was built between 1978 and 1995, it’s likely to have polybutylene pipes. These gray plastic pipes are prone to deteriorating from the inside out and breaking.
Galvanized Steel
Galvanized pipes are known to rust and build up layers of plaque that lead to water-pressure problems. They may also have traces of lead. Your home is highly likely to have galvanized steel pipes if it was built before 1960. You can confirm that you have them if scratching the surface of one of your home’s pipes reveals a grayish silver metal.
As you can tell, PEX and copper are considered the best-quality pipes for homes. For help with any plumbing issue in the Indianapolis area, don’t hesitate to contact Mowery Heating, Cooling and Plumbing.
