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Posts tagged pipes
Tips For Plumbing A Basement In Clay Soil
Tips For Plumbing A Basement In Clay Soil
By Christopher W Smith?
Basement construction in clay soil poses several problems. Expansive soil can cause cracking in the foundation, basement walls and floor if proper precautions aren’t taken. Natural movement caused by expansive clay soils also require special precautions to be taken when installing basement plumbing. Pipes can burst if plumbing is too rigid.
Floating walls keep the walls and floors from being damaged as the home moves with the expansion of clay soil. This allows the walls to move independently from the floor of the basement. The pipes need to be able to move upward with the floor but not push against the first floor of your home. The drainage pipes under the basement floor need to be able to breathe as well.
When you install bathrooms, laundry room, or a mudroom in the basement you need to allow for natural movement of clay soil. Installing flexible expansion couplings and expansion joints on basement plumbing will allow for this movement and keep the pipes from leaking at the joints or cracking.
Your pipes should ideally be new during installation. If you are working with pre-existing pipes make sure not to go from one type of metal to another. If you are using copper stay with copper pipes and the same goes for other metals. Take care to not to change the size of pipes accidentally. It is possible to go from one size to another but it is not always usually wise idea. You should also start with new pipes whenever possible. Older pipes can have lead solder break up while you are working with them and you do not want this to get into your water supply, even if it is for a shower and not drinking water.
Anywhere that you are attaching one length of pipe to another you need to add an expansion coupling. Expansion couplings are made of a synthetic polymer sleeve that slips over the ends of both pipes. Steel clamps are used to hold the coupling and pipes together. Once applied, the coupling will allow for a small amount of movement in the pipes. It is important to make sure you have the expansion couplings and not regular couplings as the expansion couplings are made to breathe with the home and the regular couplings aren’t made to move.
When installing a shower you can use reverse floating walls to stabilize pipes in the basement and allow movement in the top of the pipes. You should put as much of the plumbing in the same area as possible and use the same wet wall. A chase should be included and access can be either along a wall or in the ceiling.
Flex lines are needed for water supply lines. The main water supply line should go into the chase and have flex lines attached in that area to the pipes used in the basement. The most logical place for the chase access panel is in the utility room along with the hot water heater.
As well as having expansion joints and flexible couplings installed the pipes there should be enough space between the pipes and the ceiling/floor to keep from having the pipes push into the ceiling as the ground expands with the changes in the moisture in clay soil.
Expansion joints will be needed for installation of ground water drainage pipes also. This can be done below the basement floor, above the foundation. Drains can be placed in the basement floor allowing moisture that does enter the basement to run into the drainage system and away from the home.
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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christopher_W_Smith
Home Plumbing and Why We Use Copper Instead of Lead
Home Plumbing and Why We Use Copper Instead of Lead
By Lance Winslow
Did you know that the Roman’s used lead pipes to deliver water to their homes and bath houses, it’s true and perhaps that is why Washington DC used lead pipes too? Of course, over the years we have learned that lead is a real problem for the human body and causes all sorts of ailments; it’s very bad for you.
Unfortunately, most of Washington DC still has lead pipes and you can imagine the costs to re-plumb the entire city and all the government buildings right? Some joke that the lead poisoning is why all the Congressmen vote the way they do, and well, I am just not going to go there.
Nevertheless, now-a-days you cannot put lead pipes in your home, no home inspector would ever accept that, nor would you wish to do that to yourself or family. But here is an interesting tid bit, you know all those old Roman Pipes? They are still there and some good as new, so maybe there cared more about longevity of their infrastructure than they did their bodies; although the way they worshiped their bodies with statues, that would be hard to believe.
Today, we use copper pipes which are very expensive, due to the high world-wide demand for copper. We also use plastic pipes, which no one knows the long-term implications of this to human health as those old plastic pipes become brittle and allow plastic flakes into the our homes fresh water supplies. Lead poisoning is serious and over time deadly, causing shortened life spans; so much for Roman ingenuity?
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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lance_Winslow
Waste Plumbing in the Home
Galvanized steel plumbing on the waste system is used in some areas solely for vent pipes. Vents carry air but do not carry water. The galvanized vent piping is not, therefore, subject to the same rusting problems as galvanized steel supply piping. Its life expectancy is very long, easily more than fifty years. In other areas, galvanized drain and waste pipes were used. These have a relatively short life expectancy since the steel corrodes and the rough inner surface created by the corrosion can cause blockages as solids get hung up.
Copper waste plumbing was used commonly after World War II, up until the mid 1960′s. Copper piping was used for branch drain lines, main stacks, and vent piping. It performs all of these functions very well. In single family residential use, it has become rare, since plastic waste plumbing is much less expensive to purchase and install. In multi-family construction, copper waste plumbing is sometimes used where authorities will not allow combustible plastic piping.
Pipes and Ductwork in Unheated Areas
Pipes, both supply and waste as well as heating pipes passing through potentially cold or cool areas should be insulated to at least R-4, but more if possible. Realize that even the best insulated pipe can eventually freeze if the water in the pipe is not flowing. Insulation slows the rate of heat loss, but does not eliminate it. Depending upon the situation, it is frequently better to move the pipes to a heated area or provide heating elements on the pipes under the insulation where possible.
Ductwork in unheated areas should ideally be insulated to a minimum of R-7 to prevent heat gain and/or heat loss wherever possible. Some ductwork comes insulated in a fashion, by the manufacturer. In some cases the insulation is on the inside of the ducts and is not visible.
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