Plumbing advice please

renovation_man

I am looking for advice from plumbers please, with the price of copper being top dollar how much could be saved if a standard semi detached house was carcassed out with plastic insdead of copper for which I have been quoted £17 per length for 22mm

southcoastrgi

personally if i was doing a new (or addition to) heating system or hot & cold pipework i would use plastic under the floors & use copper where it was on show you can't clip plastic without it moving all over the place, of course apart from the gas which has to be in copper or black iron

renovation_man

Thanks Keith, I thought that I could clip it to a batten in the roof void to avoid any movement. I have renovated many houses over the years and always used copper, but it is getting a bit expensive now. I have also started to get various quotes even though I have used the same guy for years, there is a difference of over grand.

southcoastrgi

if you are just laying it in the roof space i wouldn't even clip it, you will have to lag it & believe it or not even though plastic is alot cooler to the touch compaired with copper it will expand & contract alot more, if you clip it it will start to bend giving the wiggly appearance, without clips it will stay fairly straight, you can get plastic either on a roll or in 3m or 6m lenghts (although my local merchant keeps that in stock yours may have to order it).

Leif

keithgillyon wrote: »

personally if i was doing a new (or addition to) heating system or hot & cold pipework i would use plastic under the floors & use copper where it was on show you can't clip plastic without it moving all over the place, of course apart from the gas which has to be in copper or black iron

That is what I had done, plastic in the screed, and copper for the tail pieces, and in places where it was visible, with plastic in the loft. I do not have problems with rats/squirrels in the loft.

In screed would you use joints or continuous? And would you use pipe in pipe or pipe in hairy insulation sheathing?

Leif

renovation_man wrote: »

Thanks Keith, I thought that I could clip it to a batten in the roof void to avoid any movement. I have renovated many houses over the years and always used copper, but it is getting a bit expensive now. I have also started to get various quotes even though I have used the same guy for years, there is a difference of over grand.

I had a quote using copper pipe. I was told that plastic would be the same price, as the joints were more expensive. Perhaps I was, err, given false information.

southcoastrgi

Leif wrote: »

That is what I had done, plastic in the screed, and copper for the tail pieces, and in places where it was visible, with plastic in the loft. I do not have problems with rats/squirrels in the loft.

In screed would you use joints or continuous? And would you use pipe in pipe or pipe in hairy insulation sheathing?

i would always use pipe in pipe with no joints in screed, water regs differ between heating pipes & hot & cold supplies, water pipes should always be accessible where as heating pipes don't need to (ie underfloor heating pipes), i always allow for the pipes to be removed if the need ever arises so hence the pipe in pipe & not hairy felt, or i have done alot where we have built a duct in the floor with a plywood top before the screed is laid.

Leif

keithgillyon wrote: »

i would always use pipe in pipe with no joints in screed, water regs differ between heating pipes & hot & cold supplies, water pipes should always be accessible where as heating pipes don't need to (ie underfloor heating pipes), i always allow for the pipes to be removed if the need ever arises so hence the pipe in pipe & not hairy felt, or i have done alot where we have built a duct in the floor with a plywood top before the screed is laid.

Cheers.