Copper water supply

[orange_cat]

For a new build, I would prefer to have copper water supply (and possibly cast iron wastewater). Had it done 15 years ago in a different house in a different state and liked it. Current climate is harsher - Ontario (Canada). Is there a concern about either? I suppose it matters less for wastewater to be in plastic - my main concern is longevity/zero maintenance (hate house maintenance, would prefer to be done once).

Is there something other than cost I am missing re copper? I hate the idea of plastic in my water. Would appreciate your comments. And if you have a recommendation for Ontario for a company that does that, even better.

 

[Reach4]

The time to avoid copper is when the water is corrosive, and much of that is determined by pH.

Copper pressurized pipe comes in type K, L, and M. M is the thinnest of these, and has red ink. Some places do not allow M for water service.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[John Gayewski]

Copper is better. As long as your water quality is OK then copper would be preferable. Cast iron I don't care for. It doesn't last longer than pvc and is worse for flow. Think about this, when was the last time you rode on a waterside made of cast iron? Ever seen one? That would be a rough ride.

The only reason to use cast is for sound dampening or for fire proofing (which is in itself kind of a dumb reason in my opinion).

 

[orange_cat]

Thank you, I appreciate your replies.
City-supplied water has ph of 7.5 according to the city water report, max 7.8 and min 7.3 so seems to be ok.

What is a good way to find a company that can do this/has experience with this? I understand that much of new housing has PVC pipes and copper is a bit of a specialty/weird request (with premium pricing for labor on top of materials)?

 

[Reach4]

I hear tell that Ontario is kinda big. Click the envelope icon, above.

 

[orange_cat]

It is indeed. Southern/GTA but sometimes people are willing to come from outside of GTA - thank you for the info in the envelope, much appreciated.

 

[Jeff H Young]

A company that does a good share of commercial work likely runs a lot of copper. I think commercial plumbers do nicer looking copper work but that is in general . out here around the big cities almost all homes are production builds and the one house builds are very expensive I used to do custom homes 30 years ago and they started at around a million bucks so the work was expected to be a little cleanner. find out who plumbs custom homes
Unless weather is a factor plastic holds up well in DWV systems , Id go plastic except noise can be a issue.
Im not a big fan of PEX but you might concider it all in all a pretty good record .

My money Id save the money on the drainage and enjoy a very good system. I havent piped an entire home in a while (over a decade) I have PEX expansion in my personal home plumbed by others and its been flawless in 22 years. I cant say any choice is a mistake or that any are significantly better than Pex and Plastic drainage. I think they are pretty equall but costs arent equal

 

[WorthFlorida]

PVC drain pipes rarely clog as long as the pitch is correct. From the home to the sewer connection you want PVC. Roots will not penetrate the joints when properly done.

Owning five homes all have and had PVC for drainage. Terry Love did post that one time he changed a section of PVC for noise. Second floor to the basement. It is the only time you'll hear noise are usually vertical runs. If you have a basement you may here some trickling.

 

[Jeff H Young]

Single story new homes are around 1 in 10 so id say about 90 percent of homes Ive been involved with building are 2 story with drains in living areas Its been a common complaint, often a casual mention (noise) . I think its gotten more accepted as people get used to it and dont notice . but When I did custom homes high dollar we almost always put partial cast iron in to help aleviate. anything over a couple million here they might . cheaper homes anything under a million people wont pay for it here