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7 TYPES OF PIPES USED IN WATER

SUPPLY SYSTEM OF BUILDINGS
August 25, 2015 by Suryakanta

Pipes for Water Supply System

Pipes which are commonly used in water supply system are given below.

1. Cast Iron ﴾CI﴿ Pipes

2. Steel Pipes
 3. Galvanized Iron ﴾GI﴿ Pipes
4. Copper Pipes
5. Plastic or Polythene or PVC pipes
6. Asbestos Cement ﴾AC﴿ Pipes
7. Concrete Pipes

1. Cast Iron Pipes

These pipes are most commonly used in water distribution system mainly because of
the following reasons.

They are cheaper in cost

It has high resistance to corrosion
It is highly durable

C.I. pipes are manufactured by following 4 methods.

1. Horizontally cast ﴾MC ware pipes﴿

2. Vertical cast ﴾pit cast in sand moulds﴿
3. Centrifugally cast in sand lines moulds spun type
4. Centrifugally cast in water cooled metal moulds

Now a days horizontally cast C.I. pipes are no longer used.

Centrifugally cast pipes posses fine grained dense structure and uniform thickness and
therefore they are widely used.

Special care has to be taken during transportation and making connection of these
pipes, to prevent damage.

2. Steel Pipes
Use of steel pipes in water supply system is suggested when,

pipes are subjected to very high pressure ﴾i.e. above 7 kg/cm2﴿

large diameter pipes are required

Steel pipes are used because they are stronger and lighter in weight as compared to C.I.
pipes.
These pipes, however, require adequate preventive measure to sustain adverse
atmospheric conditions.

When steel pipes are encased in cement mortar or cement concrete, they are called
Hume Steel pipes.

3. Galvanized Iron ﴾GI﴿ Pipes

Galvanized Iron Pipe

This type of pipe is used for water supply work inside the building. These pipes are
wrought steel pipes provided with zinc coating.

They are available in light, medium and heavy grades depending on the thickness of the
metal. For a 15 mm GI pipe, the thicknesses are 2.0, 2.65 & 3.25 for the light, medium
and heavy grades, respectively. Generally the medium grade pipes are used for internal
plumbing in building.

Mostly screw and socket joints are used for G.I. pipes.

4. Copper Pipes
These pipes are used in hot water installation. They have high tensile strength and can
therefore have thin walls and they can be bent easily.

Copper pipes are sometimes coated with chromium to enhance its appearance.

5. Plastic or Polythene or PVC Pipes

These pipes are being used increasingly these days for supply of cold water in external
and internal plumbing work.

They are light in weight, non‐corrosive, lower in cost and do not require any threading
for connections.

There are 3 common types of plastic pipes are available in market, as given below.

Unplasticized PVC ﴾UPVC﴿ or rigid pipes for use with cold water
 Unplasticized PVC ﴾UPVC﴿ or rigid pipes for use with cold water
Plasticized PVC pipes which are plasticized with addition of rubber. It has lower
strength and lower working temperature than UPVC pipes.
Chlorinated PVC ﴾CPVC﴿ pipes which can withstand higher temperatures upto
1200 ﴾used to carry hot water﴿

For pipes used in soil and waste water discharge systems, the thickness of the wall will
be larger than that of used for roof drainage.

Rigid PVC pipes are used for distribution of water with temperature below 450C.

At higher temperature, the strength of the pipes decreases. Similarly ultraviolet

radiation from sunlight as well as frequent changes in temperature reduces the life of
PVC pipes.

These pipes are costlier than AC pipes but cheaper than GI pipes.

6. Asbestos Cement ﴾AC﴿ Pipes

These pipes are used for drainage of rainwater from roofs, soil and waste and also for
ventilation. They come in two profiles – one with beading around socket ﴾WB﴿ and the
other without beading around socket ﴾WOB﴿. The latter type is more common than the
former.

The pipes come in lengths of 3 meters.

The principal defects of these pipes are that they are heavy and they break easily.

These pipes are cheaper than PVC pipes.

7. Concrete Pipes
Unreinforced pipes of small diameters as well as reinforced and prestressed concrete
pipes of large diameters are available for water supply and other uses.

Small unreinforced concrete pipes are very much used for drainage of rain water.

Large diameter pipes are generally used for major water supply works.

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27 thoughts on “7 TYPES OF PIPES USED IN WATER

SUPPLY SYSTEM OF BUILDINGS”

jack
January 5, 2024 at 5:03 pm

Understanding the various pipes in water supply systems is crucial for optimal
building functionality. Materials like PVC, PEX, and copper offer diverse benefits,
from durability to corrosion resistance. Tailoring pipe choices to specific needs
ensures an efficient and reliable water supply infrastructure, enhancing the
overall performance and sustainability of buildings.

jack
http://www.repipefitting.com

Reply

jack
September 8, 2023 at 7:15 pm

This article neatly outlines the “7 Types of Pipes Used in Water Supply Systems
of Buildings.” It’s a handy reference for understanding the diversity of piping
of Buildings.” It’s a handy reference for understanding the diversity of piping
materials and their applications. Whether you’re a homeowner or a
professional, this information helps you make informed choices for water
supply systems. Great resource!

jack
http://www.repipefitting.com

Reply

Afzal Taisee
June 13, 2023 at 12:01 pm

This article is usefull , but needs to explain of PPRC , ductile iron , HDPE pipes
also.

Reply

Ajay
March 6, 2023 at 11:55 am

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International

Reply

Hardox
February 3, 2021 at 2:33 pm
Very informative and Useful information

Reply

S
December 26, 2020 at 10:43 pm

Read your pipe info with great interest. Thank you. Can you or anyone help with
clues to locate the main bld water pipe from the stopcock located in the middle
of the traffic lane on our main road, ﴾ real safe & handy!﴿ to our 1960 block of
flats? Utd Utilities detectors can’t follow it in. Land registry, bld plans all blank.
Crazy.

Reply

Kingsley
January 17, 2020 at 4:15 am

Thanks for this information, but please can you list for me the kind or names of
chemical materials needed in production of PVC pipes

Reply

Abubakry sarafa
October 22, 2019 at 3:12 pm

Wonderful post, but can you tell us about eco pipe

Reply

Atiqullah
November 27, 2018 at 7:20 am

Thanks from your information. It is useful but u did not mentioned about PPR
pipes

Reply

hitesh sharma
October 11, 2018 at 10:33 pm

Reply

Hanns‐Andre Pitot
July 29, 2018 at 4:23 pm

I join the other commentators in thanking for this useful overview.

Polythene is mentioed in the title on plastics pipes, but as the other comment
was mentoning, it is not included. HDPE ﴾some call it PEX﴿ is one of the major
materials for water distribution piping, irrigation, etc.

Reply
 NABIDE Isah Kiti
July 10, 2018 at 1:01 am

Dear Suryakanta,
This is a great post indeed – thank you very much. Recently, I was working on a
project where we were using Ductile Iron Pipes for transmission of water. Are
they the same as cast iron pipes.? If not, please include Ductile Iron pipe as an
additional type of pipes. Have you also come accross bambo pipes – I read
from some literature that theu are being used in Asia on a trial basis. Does any
one have information on the same. Finally, as regards to Asbestos Cement
Pipes, they are being discouraged because of the alleged carcinogenic
properties. Once again, thank you very much for the informative writeup.

Reply

Subramani raju
June 12, 2018 at 4:52 pm

Thanks for the information

Reply

Ram
March 16, 2018 at 10:34 am

Useful information

Reply
 Rebecca
December 28, 2017 at 12:34 pm

Nice post…Your article completely describes importance of pipe and its

different types used for water supply in the building.

Reply

Shefee
May 19, 2017 at 5:25 pm

Very good of your, its advisable.

Reply

Jaya
March 16, 2017 at 5:51 pm

useful post ..short and clear information.

Reply

Anu
March 16, 2017 at 5:41 pm
Thanks for providing this useful stuff with great detail.

Reply

Tilahun
March 10, 2017 at 7:14 pm

It is nice information, good way of diffrenciation,clear and precise.beyond this i

would like to comment you,its better if you give us information about types of
fittings,valves and etc.

Reply

Gaurav singh
February 3, 2017 at 11:17 am

its highly appreciable information thanks for provide these important

knowledge

Reply

jaya
February 1, 2017 at 6:45 pm

Thanks for the information

Reply
 shivam
January 11, 2017 at 1:40 pm

Thanks for th information . COPPER PIPES are not explained in detail please
explain it more

Reply

pooja
January 10, 2017 at 4:51 pm

Thanks for the information .Really so useful stuff.

Reply

Karthik
October 4, 2016 at 1:24 pm

Well written.. You forgot to include HDPE Piping which is also one of the
commonly used piping in water distribution systems these days..

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Reply
 amar vizag
July 22, 2016 at 12:54 pm

useful post surya..short and clear information.

Reply

andy
July 11, 2016 at 11:51 pm

you did not mention the types of joints used for these various pipes, though i
found it so useful thanks for sharing

Reply

Amit Jain
December 10, 2015 at 3:44 pm

Wonderful Post…! Perfectly differentiated the types of pipes used in water

supply system. I want to change my pipe fittings and your post helped me a lot
in selecting the best pipes at affordable prices. I purchased them from the
leading online industrial goods megastore Garamloha.com, you may feel free to
visit them. Thanks for the share.

Reply

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