Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Apr 15, 2009 6:59 pm Hi guys Well, as with everything else so far in my owner-builder journey, I've left decisions to the last minute and am basically taking a shot in the dark about whether to go with copper or plastic pipes for the plumbing in our new home. So, I basically have about 36hrs to make a final decision and am hoping to get some feedback/advice from all the experts, home owners, builders, etc out there about what you would do if it was your house?? Forgetting any cost differential at the moment and assuming there is no issue for the plumber to use either, which should I go with?? Any and all advice really really appreciated!!! Thanks Adam Re: HELP! Last minute plumbing decision: plastic or copper?? 2Apr 15, 2009 7:25 pm I recall someone on here saying that you wont get banging pipes with plastic but you can with copper. 'A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world.' Louis Pasteur Vegie garden: viewtopic.php?f=19&t=27637&start=0 My Backyard Adventure Re: HELP! Last minute plumbing decision: plastic or copper?? 3Apr 15, 2009 7:39 pm Hi Adam Can Branco boilers give you any advice in regards to the pipe they use with the hydronic heating system. If it is good enough for your heating purposes than it should be more than up to the job. For what it is worth I am going with plastic. Cheers Michael He wants a dream home theatre - she wants a dream kitchen! Re: HELP! Last minute plumbing decision: plastic or copper?? 4Apr 15, 2009 8:13 pm I hate the smell of copper so would love to go with plastic. Will still need to discuss with my partner as my decision is based purelly on the smell Re: HELP! Last minute plumbing decision: plastic or copper?? 5Apr 15, 2009 8:21 pm Just asked hubbie who is a plumber and he said both has pros and cons. Copper is about 5 times more exp to buy and twice as exp to install. You also can get the water hammer that you can hear, needs to be insulated for hot water, you can get burn marks on timber frame when installing but has proven over time to be a reliable pipe and is rodent proof. Plastic pipe is cheaper, comes with 10 year warranty but has only been around for approx 20 years so hasn't proven its ability long term. For our owner builder house we are using plasic pipe. Hope that helps Re: HELP! Last minute plumbing decision: plastic or copper?? 6Apr 15, 2009 9:05 pm we have copper pipe to hot water in kitchen and laundry, which is in the thick insulation stuff. plumber said its "dedicated" hot water, so it alwasy is in copper. but the rest is the plastic stuff, as its tempered. in my mums house she has copper all through and each bathroom has its own thing in the pipes to temper the water down (dunno what to call it??) i dont know the pros and cons, just went with what i was reccomended. Re: HELP! Last minute plumbing decision: plastic or copper?? 7Apr 15, 2009 10:24 pm Thanks for all the response everyone, really makes me feel a lot better to hear everyone else's experiences and thoughts! From the sounds of things and the research i've been *trying* to do, plastic is probably going to be the best choice for us (i hate those water hammer/squealing sounds! haha) I was just worried that plastic might be the *cheap option*, but be a compromise in terms of quality! Thanks again! DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair We have a hot water copper pipe that runs from our hot water unit on one side of our house under a concrete slab to our bathroom and laundry...old house so not ideal. The… 0 5117 DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair At a bit of a loss on this one - we're thinking the original owners never removed the protective laminate covers from their kitchen cabinets after installation and in the… 0 6337 In my experience roof is essential element of the building envelope and hence a common property and should be covered by owners corporation however a detailed review of… 3 6173 |