Annoyed By Noise? It's Time To Replace Your Plastic Pipes With Cast Iron
Home plumbing that uses PVC for its pipes might be economical, but over time that cost savings can quickly be dwarfed by the issues inherent in using light plastic to house lots of moving water. If you've been living with these issues for a while, it might be time to have the plumbing in your home redone, this time using cast iron pipes. Cast iron is safe, and while it can cost more than PVC, the cost isn't that much higher once you take all of the replacement processes into account. Once the cast iron is in place, you'll notice some immediate benefits.
Blessed Silence
One of the biggest, and most immediate, benefits is silence. Surely you've noticed that whenever someone in your home uses the water, especially when flushing a toilet or using the shower, the water sends a roaring sound into the next room and possibly even further. This roaring sound happens when the water causes the pipes to vibrate (and some of it is the general noise that water makes as it rushes through a pipe, of course).
Replacing the pipes with cast iron versions silences that noise. Cast iron pipes are a lot harder to move; they're thick and sturdy, so they don't vibrate that easily. Plus, their thickness helps contain the general rushing sound you'd get from the water anyway. If you're tired of being woken up by the loud sound of water running through pipes in the walls, you'll love cast iron pipes.
Fire Safety
Another major benefit to using cast iron in pipes isn't as evident at first -- but it's good to know it's there. That's the flame resistance of metal. If there's a fire at your home, the PVC pipes will melt if exposed to the heat and release gases that could cause harm to anyone in the home. Cast iron won't do anything except maybe get hot. But chances are you would not be trying to grab a cast iron pipe with your hands at this point.
Cost Saving Over Time
Here's a benefit if you're considering redoing the pipes as you're also redoing walls. When constructing homes with PVC pipes, contractors are supposed to add firestopping materials to further protect the PVC pipes. With cast iron, you don't need those because cast iron isn't going to burn and likely won't warp to the point of melting. So if you have cast iron pipes installed, when your new walls are constructed, they aren't going to need additional materials that could drive up the cost of the project. And those costs can quickly outpace any savings you'd see from replacing a PVC pipe with more PVC.
Talk to a plumbing company about the cast iron pipes they have and what it would take to replace the PVC in your home. Cast iron lasts a long time, and this investment will make your home much more pleasant to be in. For more information, visit websites like http://www.rkknightplumbing.com.
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