This is a complicated question, and one that we’d like to spend this blog post talking about. There’s no perfect answer, and it’s important that we’re honest with you as your go-to local professional for any questions that pertain to plumbing in Boerne, TX. The truth is that either one of these options is a good choice, but for very different reasons and situations.
If you’re in the market for some repiping, first we recommend that you call us. We’ll walk you through the different types of materials and give you our specific recommendations for your situation. However, if you’re not at that stage yet and you’d rather do a bit more research, then we can help with that.
PVC and copper pipe materials are both great solutions for the specific problem of repiping. But let’s dive into which material is best for your situation or budget.
PVC Is Less Expensive
Let’s start with the most important factor in this equation—your budget. You don’t want to replace your pipes with a material that’s too expensive. PVC, or plastic piping is one of the most affordable plumbing materials on the market for how effective they are. PVC will be a great choice for your home’s drains and cold water plumbing if you’re looking to save some money on the overall costs of repiping.
Just remember that PVC can only be used for cold water and drainage systems. Hot water pipes should only be made out of metal, or a material that’s resistant to heat which PVC is not.
Copper Lasts Longer
If you were to hold two toys in your hand, one made out of plastic and the other made out of metal, which do you think would last longer? The metal toy, of course!
Copper is an extremely reliable and durable material that can last for 10 years or more while working diligently to supply your home with water, both hot and cold. The sturdiness of copper pipes is what makes their more expensive cost worth it a lot of the time, since you might be replacing your PVC pipes a lot sooner than you would copper pipes.
Copper Pipes Are Flexible and Small
Another huge benefit that comes with copper is its flexibility. Copper pipes are flexible at their joints which means they’ll endure strain a lot better than PVC. Metals like copper are what we call malleable, which means they can bend without breaking very easily. Plastics like PEX and PVC can quickly break once they start to bend, or when they’re put under a lot of pressure.
Copper pipes are also smaller, so they can fit in your walls and in crawlspace a lot easier than PVC piping can.
PVC Doesn’t Corrode Like Copper
One big caveat to take note of is the corrosion of copper. Have you ever had a copper penny that’s turned green with age? Copper corrodes through oxidization, and it will react with both the air in your home and the water in the pipes to slowly degrade over time.
PVC doesn’t interact with air or water the same way. That means PVC pipes won’t require constant protection against corrosion that a set of copper pipes would. Yearly maintenance can help ensure your copper pipes aren’t corroding too.
Contact D’Spain Sales & Service to get more information on plumbing materials.
