pvc to plumb air compressor?

[electrician42]

has anyone used the 400psi pvc to plumb there shop air compressor before?

[lakeroadster]

Bad idea... PVC can handle the pressure just fine, problem is if you bump into it or overstress it mechanically you end up with shrapnel.

http://www.osha.gov/dts/hib/hib_data/hib19880520.html

[RuralRoute C-30]

I asked that same question a few years back before plumbing my shop for air lines to a guy I knew who worked where they did it once. Don't do it, was his reply.

Like it was explained to me, if and when it breaks, and it will, it is shrapnel. One of his co-workers was nearly killed when an air line at his work broke. Missed his co-worker but pvc pipe penetrated an exterior steel sided wall. The company replaced all their air lines after that incident.

I stayed with hard pipe.

Just my two cents. I thought it sounded like a good way to go at the time too having read about it, but...safe is better.
Mark

[piecesparts]

My shop is plumbed with the PVC and I have not had problems. There were a couple of leaky joints in the origianl installation, but those are now gone. It has been there for 6 years. I have the connections clamped on both sides of the air chuck and it does not move. My compressor maintains the max pressure of 175 PSI.

[electrician42]

thanks for the replies .. i was just run maybe 5' up the wall to the hose reels and clamp it to the wall...

[piecesparts]

I ran mine up the wall and went all the way around a 40 X 40 shop. I dropped down to each area that I wanted to have a connection point, to let moisture have a dead leg collection point.

[dwcsr]

Get the cross linked PVC it doesn't explode like regular pvc. Its similar to PEX

[Number21]

NO, NO, and NO! PVC cannot be used for compressed gasses. End of story. Ask any manufacturer or seller of the product. That's what they'll tell you, and it's not because they're trying to make money off you. The fact is PVC plumbing systems aren't even allowed to be air pressure tested like copper lines are.

PEX on the other hand is a very affordable alternative. If you're only running 5 feet copper will be about $10, use it. Not only is it stronger and safer, it will also help cool your air, while plastic insulates it.

[Shane]

pvc also deteriorates over time due to age and the stress cycles of being pressurized and depressurized ... what's fine today may very well be a grenade tomorrow.

[red69ss]

I have mine run in pvc also, I've read of the dangers of it, but for the ease of installation and cost comparisions to black pipe I'll take my chances. I keep my regulator set on 95 psi usually and it has been installed for over 5 years with no issues.

[gearys 5600]

I used pvc once upon a time..Ended up replacing all of it with pipe..

[LinuxUser42]

PVC in a commercial shop, is fineable by OSHA. There IS an ABS that is rated for air, but it is colored differently then the store stuff (and priced up there with metal).

There is also a pex that is rated for air (NOT ALL PEX IS). But it is harder to come by and doesn't have the line cooling effects.

[Number21]

Originally Posted by red69ss

I have mine run in pvc also, I've read of the dangers of it, but for the ease of installation and cost comparisions to black pipe I'll take my chances. I keep my regulator set on 95 psi usually and it has been installed for over 5 years with no issues.

I smoke sometimes but I don't have cancer, (yet) can we conclude from that smoking is safe and healthy?

Cost comparison...really? How much did you spend on your air compressor? How much did you spend on your air tools? Quit being cheap and spend $50 on the proper air lines. It's not THAT expensive. If you can't afford proper plumbing, then use an air hose. They are cheap and plentiful. There is NEVER an excuse to use PVC. There is no room to argue.

Copper pipe runs about $1-2/foot depending on the size, will never rupture, looks better, and works as an air cooler/dryer. Using PVC for air lines is about the equivalent of using extension cords to wire your house.

As far of "ease of installation" goes, it doesn't get any easier than the new "sharkbite" fittings. Works with copper, PEX, and PVC. Not that copper pipe is hard to solder in the first place...

[stich626]

seems some have a death wish.
all it takes is a failling jack handle to hit it just right and BOOM
black iron or copper are not that much more..

[cdowns]

the ones that use PVC seem to b the same that use the lazyman rubber fuel lines//why do it right when you do it quick and cheap seems to b the motto

[piecesparts]

When you build on a budget, you get creative. I built the 40 X 40 shop with concrete, metal walls inside and out, lighting, and insulation for $23,000. It has served me well. The PVC pipes were a crazy idea that a friend of mine did to his shop and we both have had great luck.

[Restrorob]

Well, The shop I work at (50x200) was plumed with PVC 28 years ago. I've been there 20 years, Haven't yet had any issues with busted pipes but they are ran and mounted properly to ward off any unsuspecting accidents.

[Number21]

Originally Posted by Restrorob

Well, The shop I work at (50x200) was plumed with PVC 28 years ago. I've been there 20 years, Haven't yet had any issues with busted pipes but they are ran and mounted properly to ward off any unsuspecting accidents.

If OSHA found out your shop would be shut down on the spot. There is no such thing as "ran and mounted properly" for PVC air pipes.


People that say "haven't had any issues yet" are idiots. I could store old dynamite in my shop and it might not blow up. Then I could tell everybody how safe it is to store. It only takes one "yet" to KILL someone.

[Restrorob]

You work for OSHA ?

Or just one that has to make a mountain out of a mole hill ?

I'll let you know when the roof blows off..... Or maybe I won't.

[Number21]

You don't have to work for OSHA to know the rules...PVC air lines is not acceptable anywhere, anytime. It would be the same as if the found bare copper wires strung around for the electricity.

And yeah, I've worked in a shop that OSHA shut down because they didn't like one tiny little thing and kicked everyone out and shut off the power.

.

[ERASER5]

And the pummeling of the deceased equine continues.

Doing an unsafe act is one thing, encouraging others to do the same is another. Claiming the unsafe act is safe just because you did not die, is unconscionable. If you had to take extra precaution to use the wrong material, then you already know you were wrong. Defending it as "good" is just silly. Your stuff, your life, your choice. Getting others to join in on the Russian Rolette is not wise. I cannot stand by and watch.

[cdowns]

seems like the wronger they are the louder they proclaim the virtue

[lakeroadster]

From the OSHA article I linked in the very first reply above:

Information Date: 19880520
Record Type: Hazard Information Bulletin
Subject: The Use of Polyvinyl Chloride Pipe in Above Ground Installations.

"When PVC piping explodes, plastic shrapnel pieces are thrown in all directions."

"'We're seeing more incidents of explosive failure, and we're citing more employers for using PVC air system piping,' said Paul Merrill, senior safety inspector in L&I's Spokane office. It's probably just a matter of time before someone gets seriously injured in one of these explosions unless everyone pays more attention to the manufacturer's warnings,' Merrill said.

Last year, a section of PVC pipe being used for compressed air exploded 27 feet above a warehouse floor. A fragment of the pipe flew 60 feet and embedded itself in a roll of paper. Fortunately, nobody was in the area at the time.

A PVC pipe explosion in a new plant in Selah broke an employee's nose and cut his face."

"PVC piping buried 3 feet underground at a Yakima manufacturing plant exploded, opening up a crater approximately 4 feet deep by 3 feet across."

http://www.osha.gov/dts/hib/hib_data/hib19880520.html

[Shane]

Originally Posted by Restrorob

Well, The shop I work at (50x200) was plumed with PVC 28 years ago. I've been there 20 years, Haven't yet had any issues with busted pipes but they are ran and mounted properly to ward off any unsuspecting accidents.

Well, that settles it.

[bosephus]

I'll bet that they can't pick up PVC shrapnel with an x-ray.When the doctor has the scalpel in his hand and mentions"exploratory surgery" won't you be glad you saved a few bucks on air plumbing(you're going to need that money to give to the doctor)