Jefferson - The Basic Guide To DIY Plumbing System For Beginners And Dummies

Table of Contents

Plumbng follows th b lw f ntur -- grvt, rur, wtr kng its wn lvl. Knwng this, u n understand t "mtr" and mk dozens f fx to your hm' lumbng tm. You can save urlf time, trubl, nd mn!

The lumbng tm n ur hm composed of two rt subsystems. On ubtm brng freshwater in, nd th thr tk wtwtr ut. Th wtr tht comes nt ur hm is under rur. It enters ur hm undr nugh pressure to allow t t trvl utr, around rnr, r whrvr else it's ndd. A wtr comes into your hm, it thrugh a mtr tht rgtr the munt u u. Th main water hutff, or stop, vlv typically located l t the mtr. In a plumbing mrgn, it's vtl that you ukl l th main shutoff vlv. Otherwise, whn a burt, t n flood your hu in n tm. If the mrgn nfnd t a nk, tub, r tlt, however, u m not wnt t turn ff your entire water ul. Thrfr, most fxtur huld hv individual t vlv.

Wtr from th mn supply mmdtl rd for ur ld water needs. Th ht wtr ul, hwvr, requires nthr t. One pipe carries wtr frm th cold wtr tm t ur wtr htr. Frm the htr, a ht water ln rr the htd water to ll th fxtur, ut-lt, nd appliances tht rur ht water. A thrmtt n the heater maintains th tmrtur u lt b turnng th dv' heating lmnt on nd ff rurd. Th nrml tmrtur ttng for a home water heater btwn 140 dgr F nd 160 degrees F, but 120 degrees F is uull dut and is also mr nml. Some utmt dhwhr require hghr temperature wtr, though many f these hv a wtr heater within thm that boosts the tmrtur nthr 20 dgr F.

Whthr ur hm n a sewer or t tm, th tm wthn your hm r ntll the same. Drainage tm d nt dnd n rur, supply tm do. Intd, waste matter leaves ur house bu th drainage all th, r ngl, dwnwrd. Grvt pulls th wt along. Th wr ln continues th dwnwrd flw t a sewage treatment flt or a septic tank.

Plumbng (from th Ltn wrd lumbum, mnng "lead") is th skilled trade f working wth pipes, tubing, nd l fxtur for the dtrbutn nd use f water in a building and th drng of wtrbrn wt. Th trm lumbng l refers t th nd fixtures tht are rt of uh a system. Plumbing usually dtnguhd frm wtr nd wg systems, n tht a lumbng tm rv n building, whr water nd sewage tm rv a gru f buldng or a city.

A lumbr a person wh installs r rr ng systems, plumbing fxtur, nd umnt uh water htr. The plumbing ndutr is a b nd ubtntl part f every dvld economy, du to th need fr clean wtr nd rr lltn nd transport f wt.

Stndrdzd earthenware lumbng wth broad flng making u f asphalt fr rvntng lkg rd n th urbn ttlmnt of the Indu Vll Cvlztn by 2700 B.C.E. Plumbng rgntd during th nnt civilizations, uh as those f Gr, Rm, Persia, India, and China, they developed ubl baths nd ndd t provide tbl wtr nd drng of wt. Imrvmnt n plumbing systems was vr lw, wth virtually n rgr made frm th tm of the Rmn tm f udut nd ld pipes untl th nntnth ntur. Evntull, th development f rt, underground water nd sewage systems lmntd n wg dth nd l.

Plumbng umnt nlud items uh as wtr meters, pumps, xnn tanks, bkflw preventers, fltr, wtr softeners, wtr htr, ht xhngr, gug, nd ntrl tm.

In a plumbing tm, wtr flows mnl through and tub. A tll frmd via casting or welding, whereas a tube md thrugh xtrun. A nrmll h thicker wll nd may b threaded r wldd, whr tubng thnnr-wlld nd requires l jnng thnu uh 'brzng', 'mrn fitting', 'rmng', r (fr lt) 'solvent wldng'.

In ddtn to and tubng, lumbng systems rur mn fttng, such vlv, elbows, tees, and unn.

Plumbng fxtur r dgnd fr nd-ur. Examples f fxtur nlud wtr lt (also knwn tlt), urnl, bidets, hwr, bthtub, utility nd kthn nk, drinking funtn, mkr, humdfr, air whr, funtn, nd wh ttn.

In ancient times, wtr systems relied n grvt for th ul of wtr, using or channels usually md f clay, ld or tn. Prnt-d wtr-ul tm u a network of hgh-rur pumps, and pipes are now made f r,[3]br, lt, steel, r thr nontoxic mtrl. Prnt-d drain and vnt lines are md f plastic, tl, t-rn, nd lead. Ld nt used in mdrn wtr-ul ng due t t txt.

Th mjr categories of lumbng tm r ubtm r:

Ptbl cold and hot wtr supply

Tr, drains, nd vnt

St tm

Rnwtr, urf, nd uburf wtr drainage

Fuel g piping

Fr their nvrnmntl benefit and sizable nrg vng ht wtr heat recycling units are grwng n u thrughut th rdntl buldng tr. Furthr lgl concern has n nrng interest n gray-water rvr nd trtmnt systems.

Frtng rurd whr mhnl ntrnt trvr fire-resistance rtd wall nd flr mbl, r membranes thrf. Th wrk uull dn b workers n the insulation trd or lt frt ub-ntrtr.

Muh f th lumbng work n populated r (t, twn, and forth) is regulated b gvrnmnt r u-gvrnmnt gn, du t the drt mt on ubl hlth, safety, nd wlfr. Plumbng ntlltn nd rr wrk n rdn and other buldng gnrll mut b done rdng t lumbng and buldng d to rtt th inhabitants f the buldng nd t ensure f, ult ntrutn for future buyers. If permits r rurd fr wrk, lumbng contractors tll secure thm frm the uthrt on behalf f home r buldng wnr.

In some rt of th wrld, however, th plumbing trd remains vrtull ungvrnd. Thr are fw (if n) tm n l to mntr or control the tvt of unulfd lumbr r th home wnr wh choose to undrtk ntlltn nd mntnn wrk themselves, despite the hlth nd ft u that r frm such wrk whn they r undrtkn incorrectly.

The World Plumbng Cunl (WPC) h appointed a rrnttv t th World Health Organization (WHO) to tk frwrd vru rjt related t thr jnt ubltn, Hlth Aspects f Plumbing.

Whether hiring a lumbr r taking n a d-t-urlf lumbng rjt, th xrn n b confusing because of th choice f vrl types f plumbing . Evntull, ' u tnd to blend tgthr. Which t f huld b ud fr water ul, drainage, wr, nd vn fr th xtrr? Th nwr nt clear as it m have bn n th t when th mn pipes of h wr glvnzd steel r t-rn.

PEX, or cross-linked lthln, pipe is one f th nwt and most ulr to ht the lumbng mrkt. PEX is ud only to ul wtr. PEX a pipe that rigid nugh t withstand th rur of wtr ul but flexible nugh to wv throughout wll, ceilings, basements, nd rwl. PEX h trul delivered water-supply plumbing into th hnd f d-t-urlfr nd rfnl plumbers.

Pr

Clr-dd rd for ht water nd blue fr cold wtr

Hghl flxbl, wth 90-degree urv bl

Attaches wth uh-ft plumbing fittings, among thr t

Inexpensive

Able t join wth r

Cut l

Cons

Lng-trm blt unttd

May lk with push-fit lumbng fittings

Cnnt be rld

PVC, or lvnl hlrd, a drain r vnt ln type f lumbng pipe. PVC ntll gained ulrt bu t w lghtr and r to work wth than traditional galvanized tl pipe. PVC pipe mdrtl t ntll nd rur lttl more than a hkw nd a mtr box to ut. PVC glu tgthr wth solvents.

Pr

Diameters lrl mrkd n th wht surface of th

Inxnv nd n be ud fr lng run uh fr rrgtn

Er t wrk wth than tl r r

Cn

The nnt b unjnd nd must b cut

Glud pipes n b prone t leaking

Degrades n unlght

Rgd r often ud fr wtr ul ln wthn th home. Rgd r easily ut wth a hacksaw or wth a special copper tub cutter. Th nntn a different mttr, it requires a rtd hnd to ldr r together. Rigid r pipe grt for water supply because t does nt m wth n hlth rk.

Pr

Thugh it is called rgd, this can be lghtl bnt

Hndl ht wll

Stnd up gnt ntn rur

E t rl and wt r pipe vn has mntr value

Cn

Dffult for d-t-urlfr t work wth due t ldrd nntn

Exnv

Dvl pinhole lk

Ind f m vntull corrode nd impede wtr flw

ABS (rlntrl butadiene trn) mnl ud a vnt nd drain line. ABS looks very muh lk PVC , xt tht t blk nd lghtl softer.

Pr

Stronger thn PVC

Gd fr undrgrund xtrr u

Wrk wll n cold temperatures

Cn