Plastic rad pipes

[Muscle750]

Is it common practice to fit plastic pipes to rads been fed off a combi boiler? It seems the so called "Plumber" has runn plaky pipes and put 6 inches of copper on the ends for connecting to rads

 

[newbie1]

its the cheap quick and nasty way of doing it

 

[stevetheplumber]

its the cheap quick and nasty way of doing it

its perfectly normal practice now to use plastic with copper tails out of the floor
most people boil water in a plastic kettle and think nothing of it

 

[Bernie2]

Just watch the boiler doesn't over heat Plastic goes like skipping rope in between the clips. People also perhaps disregard design resistance and just whack the pump up to overcome any resistances.

 

[newbie1]

its perfectly normal practice now to use plastic with copper tails out of the floor
most people boil water in a plastic kettle and think nothing of it

have to agree to disagree on this one imho its used because its quick and easier to route not because its better
would agree to solve problem of getting 22mm from one end of roon to other with minimal disruption to boards but in a surface run i wouldnt use it in a million years i wld compare it to polystyrene coving as opposed to gyproc

 

[Plouasne]

No plastic pipe that I know of, and used in general building/plumbing work can withstand elevated temperatures and or pressure long term, in my opinion its cheap, nasty krap, and only used by ill trained bodgers for conventional radiator central heating, it only has its use in low temperature under floor heating

 

[Phil]

I hate plastic pipe aswell, (excluding waste pipe of course) but is it not true that most house builders (Barratt,Redrow, Bryant etc) are specifying plastic pipe now in newbuilds to keep costs down?

Worked it a few newbuilds recently and they are riddled with the stuff.

 

[newbie1]

probably because they dont give a **** if in ten years it pops..my copper pipe 26yrs and not one single bad joint or leak..its cheap nasty and only used for convenience but one ill fitted push joint and 6 months time pop goes the weasel

 

[Jason.S]

I did a refurb recently and the plumber there was using some new fangled plastic with a kind of alu reinforcing running through it.

Then at the terminations and the joints were crimped.

Dunno how new that technology is but i though it looked quite good.

Yay me: 100 Posts!!

 

[D34no]

Am workin on new builds at minute and its all plastic. Just rad tails, first 1.5 meters off boiler and 1.5 meters from unvented cylinder in copper . Builders own specs.

 

[Plucky]

We try and do all of our work in copper. There are instances where we use plastic but I think the customers like us using copper as its more reassuring,

 

[GreenArmy]

Very refreshing to see most of the plumbers here shun the plastic. Have to say ive never used it for a paying customer in 18 years and have only used it on one heating job for the council when i was an apprentice (because it was specified). In my opinion its not a material a properly trained plumber would use.

 

[stevetheplumber]

unfortunatly times have changed when i was a lad you moved into a house and the idea of "remodeling" didnt cross anyones mind as the cost of ripping out a bathromm in lead and iron was enormous
nowadays people want to change the bathromm kitchen and move walls every couple of years this is great as it makes work but wouldnt happen if we were still using lead and steel
only high spec new builds use copper and i mean over a million quid everythink else is in plastic and a lot of that will be microbore heating which ive no doubt you will all disaprove of
i do resent the remarks about no decent plumber would use it as at the end of the day i have to remain competative to fed myself and family
would be great to still be living in the 70s when three lengths of soil a day was the norm now we get a couple of hours to do a stack on a new build its the way of the world things change and never for the better in some peoples eyes have a look in a dictionary for LUDDITE

Just watch the boiler doesn't over heat Plastic goes like skipping rope in between the clips. People also perhaps disregard design resistance and just whack the pump up to overcome any resistances.

Most of the boilers fitted now have no pump adjustment many are inteligent so the idea of whacking the pump up is as old fashioned as your dislike of anytning since lead

 

[GreenArmy]

Steve, we all use plastic soil pipe and waste pipe these days (ive never fitted a cast stack as ive only been plumbing since 1991). But this thread is about plastic for c/h pipework which, as i believe, is for the plumbers who dont care about quality but only quantity. Using plastic with push fit is like putting the top on my biro which any numpty can do thus encouraging anyone to call them-self a plumber.

 

[stevetheplumber]

Steve, we all use plastic soil pipe and waste pipe these days (ive never fitted a cast stack as ive only been plumbing since 1991). But this thread is about plastic for c/h pipework which, as i believe, is for the plumbers who dont care about quality but only quantity. Using plastic with push fit is like putting the top on my biro which any numpty can do thus encouraging anyone to call them-self a plumber.

the whole of the building trade has been deskilled like it of not refuse to use plastic you might as well leave now because in ten years copper will only be used as lead is now. on listed buidngs
i dont do new builds very often but most already use no copper (tracpipe for gas) so when you got to a new build i five years time to move a rad what are you going to use? obviously the sane matierial thats the rest of the sytem is in
At the end of the day your a plumber to earn a living would you sill be plumbing next week if you win the lottery this weekend ?i doubt it

 

[GreenArmy]

Agree Steve times change and im ready to embrace change. I would never use flexi pipes for supplies but in the last few years some of these WC suites come with them supplied and are meant to be fitted.
Until the time comes when plastic is the norm i'll stick with the copper. At least i wont have to learn any new skills when we are all fitting plastic.
Oh well, hope i win the lottery.

 

[david williams]

plastic service pipework any fool can install them,but how many put them in correctly proper clipping etc .i see a lot of plumbing new builds etc .the standerd in most cases is appalling,proper pipe sizing seems to have vanished,even on new build most of the building regs are ignored.plumbing is fast becoming a non trade

 

[newbie1]

i would like to see a plastic pipe with its really attractive joints that can simulate a 90deg elbow and street elbow for those time when the poxy rad just refuses to be a convenient distance from the wall
no one is disputing that plastic is used the question is
a/is it better
b/as good
c/as durable/long lasting(yet to be proved)
d/asthetically good(not sure of spelling there}
lets all be honest its not used for any other reason than pure cheapness and the fact that any helmit can push one bit of plastic into another piece and you can get slobodan slavasnovich from the village of tsrfgvndhdmfhd in romania to wack it in for 3.50 an hour plus board and lodging at the local caravan park with his closest 350 familly members

 

[smoggs03]

i for one hate plastic pipe, it looks cheap, looks ugly, fittings are bulbous, i think it takes the craft away from the trade (pipe bending etc) and if it is so good and better than copper why can't we put gas through it?? is it because the fittings pop off?

 

[radswilldo]

Loathe,loathe,loathe. No one can compare plastic to copper, soldered joints will long out live an 'o' ring and grip ring. With hard flooring, cant see how plastic would be even considered. The only upside of plastic is that most of its installers are animal lovers, as they like leaving hammocks for the mice.

 

[stevetheplumber]

Loathe,loathe,loathe. No one can compare plastic to copper, soldered joints will long out live an 'o' ring and grip ring. With hard flooring, cant see how plastic would be even considered. The only upside of plastic is that most of its installers are animal lovers, as they like leaving hammocks for the mice.

on any large exspanse of hardfloor i would always recomend plastic
10 mm fed up behind the skirting in conduit for each rad means no joints under floors and no pipes to cut around
hopefully ive added a pic of rad at home

 

[newbie1]

why would anyone want to reduce down to 10mm pipework

 

[stevetheplumber]

why would anyone want to reduce down to 10mm pipework

upper floor of house is all laminate and rads fed from a manifold hidden in void under vanity unit so no joins below floor
in the kitchen i laid 12mm ply and routed a grove in a ring 300mm out from cupboards and run a 10 mm pipe in the grove put a thermostic mixing vale in hey prestow warm tiles while i make my toast in the mornings