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New technologies and materials in construction appear constantly, gradually replacing traditional materials. A good example of this is plumbing. Fifteen years ago, metal was used in most cases – in general, there was no alternative. Today, almost everywhere, metal is replaced with polymers, since they are easier to install, cost less, last the same or even more. One of the most popular modern materials is propylene. Installation of a water supply system from polypropylene pipes is good because you can do it yourself. This will require a special soldering iron and some experience. A soldering iron can be rented, and experience is acquired. You can practice on the most inexpensive fittings and small pieces of pipe.
Marking and scope
Start installing a water supply system from polypropylene pipes It is necessary with the choice of type of pipes. They are single-layer and three-layer, they also differ in wall thickness and, accordingly, have different purposes. To make it easier to navigate, they are marked:
- PN10 – single-layer pipes designed for cold water in pipelines with low pressure. Suitable for distributing polypropylene plumbing in private homes.
- PN16 – single-layer pipes with a thicker wall. They can be used both for transporting cold water in systems with increased pressure (centralized), and for distributing the DHW system. The maximum allowable temperature is +50°C.
- PN20 – three-layer pipes with a fiberglass reinforcing layer. They can be used for the installation of a water supply system for transporting hot water, low-temperature heating systems. Maximum temperature +90°C.
- PN25 – three-layer pipes reinforced with aluminum foil. They are mainly used for heating, they can be used for hot water supply, but this is not economically feasible: these are the most expensive pipes, and their qualities for hot water supply are excessive.
By colors there are pipes made of gray and white polypropylene. This is not displayed in any way on quality, so choose according to aesthetic preferences. Some firms (mostly German) paint their products green. If the wiring is hidden – in the walls or in the floor – you won’t find anything better, since the Germans are leaders in quality.
To make it easier to navigate by area of application, colored stripes are applied along the PPR pipes. Those designed for cold water are marked in blue (light blue), those for hot water and heating are marked in red, universal ones are marked in orange. Some manufacturers have different markings. They mark products for heating and hot water in red, and do not apply markings to those intended for cold.
From the above, the following conclusions can be drawn: it is better to install a water supply system from polypropylene pipes in an apartment from PN 16 for cold water and PN20 for hot water. In a private house, you can get by with PN 10 for cold water and PN 20 for hot water.
Mounting Features
Single-layer PPR pipes PN 10 and PN 16 have a high coefficient of thermal expansion: with a temperature difference of 100 ° C, each meter becomes 1,5 cm longer. Even taking into account the fact that such a temperature difference is unattainable in real life, this is a very large figure. To prevent this increase in length from destroying the water supply system, compensation loops (compensators) are provided in the system.
If the length of the pipeline is small and cold water is diluted, the compensator can be omitted – the difference in length will be small, but it is advisable to make at least an elementary L-shaped compensator for hot water supply (see figure).
Connection principle
Polypropylene pipes have a lot of advantages, but one of the disadvantages is that they do not bend. Therefore, when installing a water supply system from polypropylene pipes, fittings are used for all branches and turns. These are special elements – tees, angles, adapters, couplings, etc. There are also taps, compensators, bypasses and other elements of the system, also made of polypropylene.
All these elements with pipes are connected by soldering. The material of both parts to be joined is heated until melted, then joined. As a result, the connection is monolithic, so the reliability of the polypropylene plumbing is very high. Read more about soldering and the necessary tools for this, read here.
To connect with other materials (metal), to switch to household appliances or plumbing fixtures, there are special fittings. On the one hand, they are completely polypropylene, on the other, they have a metal thread. The size of the thread and its type is selected according to the type of connected device.
System planning
Due to the fact that the PPR pipes do not bend, it is necessary to develop a wiring diagram in such a way that there are as few detours and turns as possible. After all, they are all made using fittings, and they have a solid cost (compared to a pipe). Therefore, we try to optimize the wiring – to make as few turns, detours and bends as possible.
Serial (tee) connection
Installation of a water supply system from polypropylene pipes with a serial connection of consumers (plumbing and household appliances) is used in small systems. Usually they have 5-6 connection points. With such an organization of the water supply system, one pipe departs from the riser, it sequentially bypasses all connection points. In the case of PPR plumbing, all branches are made using tees, therefore this type is also called a tee.
The advantage of this system is that a small number of pipes are needed, and the minus is that the pressure on each branch drops. As a result, with one or two working points of analysis, the third, located further from the riser, the pressure may simply not be enough.
Parallel (collector) wiring
A parallel connection scheme is also called a collector. This is because after the tap from the riser, a special device is installed – a collector. This is an element with one input and some number of outputs. Available in polypropylene and metal. For plumbing, polypropylene manifolds are more suitable (and cheaper).
The connection scheme is such that a separate pipe stretches from each branch to each consumer (sometimes to a small group of consumers).
The advantage of such a system: the pressure at all points of water analysis is the same, the disadvantage is that a lot of pipes are required. Another plus is that if any branch fails, only one consumer does not work. The rest of the system functions normally. By the way, in order to be able to turn off individual devices, valves are installed at the outlet of the collector (usually ball valves, but if you need the ability to adjust the pressure, you can put a valve).
Plumbing and household appliances
In each of the methods of installing a water supply system from polypropylene pipes, a pipe is suitable for a specific consumer. There are two ways to connect to the system: flexible and rigid piping.
Hard connection is more reliable: PPR pipes and fittings have high strength. In addition, in this case there is only one thread – at the point of connection of the consumer. But this type of eyeliner requires high precision: the error can be only a few millimeters. It is difficult to achieve this when installing a polypropylene water supply system with your own hands, therefore flexible piping is more often used. Just be careful, in some cases it is impossible to use it: connect gas boilers or gas water heaters, supply water to storage water heaters, water heated towel rails are recommended only with a hard connection.
Soft eyeliner, on the contrary, does not require high accuracy – errors are leveled by a flexible hose in a stainless steel braid or a hose that is used to connect a washing machine or dishwasher. Tubes are brought out approximately in the area where appliances are installed or plumbing is connected. It ends with an adapter for metal, to which a flexible hose is connected (it is connected to the device with its second end).
This option is less reliable, since a lot depends on the quality of the flexible eyeliner. Also, not the most pleasant moment is the presence of two threaded connections, and this is a potential place for a leak to appear.
Internal or external laying
One of the advantages of polypropylene plumbing is that it can be easily embedded in walls and floors. This material does not corrode, does not react with any materials, and does not conduct stray currents. In general, if the connection is made correctly, pipes can be hidden into the wall or into the floor without any problems. The whole catch is to make a quality connection.
To make sure that the assembled system does not leak, it is checked – pressure testing is carried out with excess pressure. There are special devices for this. They connect, pump water, increase pressure. Under this pressure, the water supply is left for several days. If no leaks were found, then at operating pressure everything will work for a long time and without problems.
Installation rules
Before starting work, it is necessary to draw up a diagram, mark on it all the necessary fittings and elements of the system (meters, filters, taps, etc.), put down the dimensions of the pipe sections between them. According to this scheme, we then consider what and how much is needed.
When purchasing a pipe, take it with some margin (a meter or two), fittings can be taken exactly according to the list. It does not hurt to agree on the possibility of a return or exchange. This may be necessary, since often in the process, the installation of a water supply system from polypropylene pipes throws up some surprises. They are mainly due to lack of experience, not to the material itself, and happen quite often even with masters.
In addition to pipes and fittings, you will also need clips that attach everything to the walls. They are installed on the pipeline after 50 cm, as well as near the end of each branch. These clips are plastic, there are metal – staples and clamps with a rubber gasket.
For open laying of pipelines in technical rooms it is more convenient to use brackets, for better aesthetics – for open laying of pipes in the bathroom or in the kitchen – they use plastic clips of the same color as the pipes themselves.
Now a little about assembly rules. The system itself can be assembled immediately by cutting pipe sections of the required length, constantly referring to the diagram. So it is more convenient to solder. But, with a lack of experience, this is fraught with errors – you must accurately measure and do not forget to add 15-18 millimeters (depending on the diameter of the pipes) that go into the fitting.
Therefore, it is more rational to draw a system on the wall, designate all fittings and elements. You can even attach them and trace the contours. This will make it easier to evaluate the system itself and identify shortcomings and errors, if any. This approach is more correct, as it gives greater accuracy.
Next, the pipes are cut as needed, fragments of several elements are connected on the floor or desktop. Then the finished fragment is set in place. This sequence of actions is the most rational.
And about how to quickly and correctly cut pipe sections of the desired length and not be mistaken.