Welcome to John’s Blog. Answers to frequently asked questions are periodically posted here. The objective is to share information about PVC pipe with readers as well as with utilities, design engineers and pipe installers. The blog provides the latest information on PVC pipe design, installation, and application for water and wastewater infrastructure projects.
We encourage you to connect to John’s Blog by bookmarking this page or by connecting our Technical Blog to your RSS feed program.
John Houle: Senior Technical Consultant, PVC Pipe Industry
John Houle holds a Master’s Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Missouri and an MBA from the University of Oregon. He has more than 25 years of experience in the plastic pipe industry in applications engineering, market development, forensic analysis, technical writing, and standards development.
Attached is a two-page material comparison sheet that addresses some important issues in sanitary sewer pipe selection. The document also serves as a quick reference for comparing PVC and PP non-pressure pipe. Click here to read.
The long-standing technique for making a decision is to draw a vertical line down the middle of a piece of paper, listing the positives to the left and the negatives to the right. If you follow this process for PVC pipe, you will find the left side filled with positive attributes. Here are a few:
Longevity PVC has become the material of choice for sanitary sewers because of long-term reliability coupled with low maintenance requirements. Joint Integrity PVC joints are designed to be leak-free when tested at 25 feet of head per ASTM D3212. This is a stringent test method that includes testing joints that are deflected both radially and longitudinally to simulate extreme jobsite conditions. Stringent Post-Installation Acceptance Tests Low-pressure air testing and deflection-mandrel testing are routinely performed on installed PVC sanitary sewer lines. Because of PVC pipe’s material properties, these tests have proven to provide a high degree of assurance that the installed lines will perform as designed.
I encourage you to compare and contrast the two materials. The conclusion I reached is that PVC’s positive attributes are reasons to keep any unproven pipe material on the sidelines. In this case, I would kick PP to the curb until it has shown itself to be a viable product for the long term.
Want to keep up to date with all our latest news and information? Enter your email below to be added to our mailing list.
All the fields are required.