Should I Use CPVC or PVC? Your Questions Answered

What type of pipe is best for plumbing?

FlowGuard® CPVC Pipe and Pipe Fittings are trusted in many countries around the world and provide plumbing solutions to both commercial and residential properties. However, there are many materials out there, all of which promise a quality installation. 

Here we answer some of the plumbing industry’s most common questions about different available pipe materials, and how they compare.

Should I Use CPVC or PVC?

PVC undergoes a chlorination reaction process to become CPVC. In doing so, it develops improved qualities that allow for stronger plumbing pipe installation and performance. 

CPVC’s main advantage over ordinary PVC is its ability to work under higher operating temperatures and pressures. Its improved strength and corrosion resistance is due to the additional chlorine content. This allows FlowGuard CPVC to perform for longer, in hot and cold water installations. 

Which pipe is better, PPR or CPVC?

Polypropylene (PPR) has limited strength and rigidity in water distribution applications, allowing for corrosion, even from routine disinfectants present in water supplies such as chlorine. Chlorine dioxide also corrodes PPR, which is becoming increasingly common in global water supplies in the fight against bacteria, viruses and parasites.

PPR‘s very installation method threatens its integrity. Heat fusion is required, disturbing the flow rate within the pipe by creating beading between joints, as well as disturbed pipe surfaces where bacteria can develop.

FlowGuard CPVC installs faster and with no hazardous heating tools. Correctly installed FlowGuard Pipe and Fittings should not suffer bead formation, nor should it suffer potentially dangerous levels of microbial contaminaton.

Should I use copper or CPVC?

In recent times, there have been developments in pipe manufacturing that fortunately have long since eliminated the setbacks of copper. 

Common setbacks include pitting corrosion and scaling. This long term damage threatens a system’s integrity and inevitably leads to expensive repairs. 

Modern plumbing (and construction as a whole) is now fully focused on sustainability and creating energy efficient systems that serve families’ homes for the duration of their time there. Condensation on the external surface of copper pipes, as well as poor thermal conductivity, leads to potential hazards in the home, not to mention the financial and environmental cost.

FlowGuard CPVC not only wastes less energy in the home, it also requires less energy to produce, a more cost effective decision for the installer.

Is PEX better than CPVC?

PEX systems have been known to struggle against CPVC in several categories, all of which affect the quality of an installation and greatly impact the health of its users in the long term.

Third party studies show that FlowGuard CPVC is far less susceptible to microbial contamination, particularly the development of legionella bacteria. The quality and strength of the internal pipe surface between CPVC and PEX differs greatly, the latter being a more welcoming environment for biofilm to form. Its weakness to corrosion is also similar to PPR, in that it does not resist chlorine dioxide, a problem for modern water treatment.

Is CPVC good for plumbing?

Against PPR, PEX and Copper, CPVC has been engineered to address the very common challenges of hot and cold plumbing, particularly microbial contamination and corrosive environments. 

FlowGuard CPVC is approved by all major international public health agencies for safe use in potable water systems, including the Water Regulation Advisory Scheme (WRAS), NSF International and ASTM International. That’s why it has become the trusted CPVC brand for installers across the Middle East.

To learn more about installing FlowGuard CPVC and to see it in action, watch our installer video series.