pvc pipes

PVC pipes are pipes made of polyvinyl chloride, which is a very popular plastic. It has thermoplastic properties, making it a very easy to form material, resistant to corrosion and weather conditions, perfectly suitable for processing and dyeing. In addition, polyvinyl chloride shows exceptional susceptibility to modification of its properties, thanks to which it can be adapted depending on its intended use. This is why PVC pipes are light and durable, thanks to which they have many types of applications in various branches of the economy.

Polyvinyl chloride is used, among others:

• for the production of floor coverings, window and door joinery, accessories, pipes and fittings,
• for building installations (hoses, pressure couplings)
• for the production of films, carpets, materials used for upholstery,
• in medicine (for the production of such elements as drains, probes, catheters, syringes),
• for the production of packaging, bottles, device elements, as well as, for example, gramophone records,
• in the process of covering sports and other surfaces (sometimes as plastic mattings),
• in electrical engineering as insulation in wires and cables (the material used for this is polyvinyl chloride, i.e. softened plasticized and granulated polyvinyl chloride).

Polyvinyl chloride comes in two basic types:

1. PVC-U (non-plasticized, hard), it is used to make, among others, sewage pipes, fittings, construction and furniture profiles, containers, boards, tiles, bottles, disposable syringes, hard foils. It is not used in installations where it may be exposed to high temperatures. PVC-U pipes are used in sewage and drainage systems and as casing pipes for cables, as well as in cold water systems. The recommended operating temperature is 0-60°C. working pressure is 1.6 MPa.
2. PVC-P (plasticized, soft) – used for cable insulation, as well as the production of e.g. shoe soles, synthetic leather, floor and car coverings, wallpapers, garden foils and hoses, construction and packaging foils.

PVC or PVC pipes?

The widely used polyvinyl chloride is known under three names, but only two of them are correct, while the third one - incorrect - is still very popular and commonly used. Among the used abbreviations: PVC (Poli Vinyl Chloride), PVC (Polish polyvinyl chloride) and PVC correct there are only the first two. last – PVC – is incorrect and formally does not exist, although in practice it can be encountered very often, not only in relation to pipes, but also other elements made of this material (e.g. windows, panels).

Additionally, the material is traded in Poland as polyvinite (softened, i.e. plasticized and granulated PVC) and polwiplast (PVC shoe granulate). In international nomenclature, however, only the abbreviation PVC is used. PCV is therefore not a correct acronym for either the international name or the Polish one. However, due to its popularity, it is often used in Polish nomenclature.

PVC pipes in water and sewage systems

Plastic pipes have become more and more popular for years because, unlike metal pipes (made of e.g. copper and steel), they are light and easy to transport, they are smooth inside (so no deposits build up on their walls), their assembly is faster and easier (pipes can be connected by gluing, welding or mechanically), they do not corrode, and they also have low thermal conductivity (so their insulation can be thinner, and in some conditions it can be completely dispensed with). In addition, plastic pipes do not react with water and the compounds contained in it.

Owing to these advantages, among others, plastic pipes successfully replaced metal pipes used previously in water systems, which corroded over time, resulting in water pollution and failures. An additional advantage of this solution is the possibility of easier adjustment of individual elements using fittings. The diameters of pipes used to distribute drinking water are usually between 75 mm and 250 mm. The material, thanks to modern improvements, is resistant enough to distribute water under pressure and water at very high temperatures.

The larger diameters are usually pipes and fittings for collecting and discharging sewage and intended for burial in the ground (horizontally). For pipes it is usually between 160 mm and up to 630 mm.

PVC piping systems are also often used in fire sprinkler systems installed in public places such as shopping malls, libraries, museums and theaters, as well as in offices, hotels and other tall buildings.

PVC pipes in water drainage systems

PVC pipes also work well in a system intended for rainwater drainage, as gutters and downpipes (i.e. vertical elements connecting the gutter with the ground or underground rainwater drainage system). In this case, the offered models are available in a wide range of diameters (50-160 mm) to suit both domestic and industrial applications.

Both gutters and downpipes are designed for outdoor use. Buried rainwater drainage pipes have similar mechanical properties to sewer pipes, but may have larger diameters due to the need to drain a large amount of water at one time (e.g. after a storm).

PVC pipes in heating systems and gas pipelines

Copper or plastic pipes are most often used for central heating installations. The latter are cheaper, easier to install, do not rust or scale, but may have lower resistance to high temperatures. That is why they used to be installed only where they could come into contact with cold water, but today, after the improvement of plastic materials, they can also successfully conduct hot water.

PVC pipes can also be used in pipelines buried outside the building for the distribution of low pressure gas and for the installation of heating systems, e.g. for underfloor heating. The main feature of pipes in this type of application is long-term resistance to hot water pressure.

Central heating installations made of plastic pipes may be installed:

• over the top of walls and ceilings (i.e. surface-mounted) - this type of installation is most often used when making horizontal distribution lines in non-residential rooms (e.g. storage rooms, basements and garages) and when making risers in non-residential buildings,
• in special building partitions(i.e. in wall furrows and under the floor of rooms) – this solution is used in residential rooms, in thermal insulation, with the exception of surface heating, in which the pipes are directly embedded in a layer of floor screed or plaster. It is worth emphasizing that cables routed in grooves should be protected against contact with the sharp edges of the groove, e.g. by using thermal insulation.

The el12.pl offer includes plastic pipes supplied by reputable manufacturers and available in various colors (white, black, red, blue, grey). This assortment includes such products as: lightning protection pipe (designed to isolate the discharge wires of an external lightning protection device), elbow for lightning protection pipes, electrical installation pipe, compensating coupling, straight coupling, rigid connection pipe resistant to UV radiation with a socket, mounting bracket of the "Mushroom" type; (protective post), lockable handles, covers, casing pipe.