Copper water pipes and stainless steel water pipes for home improvement differ in several ways, as follows:
1. Hygienic performance:
- Copper water pipe: a certain degree of antibacterial, copper ions on bacteria, viruses and other microorganisms have an inhibitory effect, can reduce the breeding of bacteria in the water. But copper water pipe in the process of use may produce copper green, which is a copper oxide, although less harmful to human health, but may affect the sensory properties of water, such as the color of water, taste changes.
- Stainless steel water pipe: superior hygiene performance, not easy to scale, no harmful substances precipitation, can keep the water quality pure, harmless to human body. Its inner wall is smooth, not easy to be stained by bacteria, eliminating the "red water, blue-green water, and hidden water" and other problems.
2. Life expectancy:
- Copper water pipe: the material is more durable, under normal circumstances, the service life is longer, can reach 50-100 years or so. But if the use of poor environment, such as water pH imbalance, the presence of more corrosive substances, etc., may affect its service life.
- Stainless steel water pipe: It has strong corrosion resistance, and its service life can reach more than 70 years under normal conditions of use, which is comparable to the service life of buildings or even longer.
3. Compressive strength:
- Copper water pipe: relatively low compressive strength, less than 40% of stainless steel water pipe. Affected by external forces, such as extrusion, collision in the construction process, or in the long-term use of water pressure fluctuations, copper water pipe is more likely to deformation, rupture and other problems.
- Stainless steel water pipe: high compressive strength, greater than 520MPa, can withstand high pressure, not easy to deformation and rupture, suitable for a variety of complex installation environment and use conditions.
4. Thermal insulation performance:
- Copper water pipe: better thermal conductivity, higher heat transfer rate. Therefore, when conveying hot water, the surface of copper water pipe is easy to heat, heat dissipation faster, need to increase the insulation layer to reduce heat loss.
- Stainless steel water pipe: low heat transfer rate, is 1/23 of the copper pipe, heat insulation and heat preservation performance is good, especially for hot water delivery, can effectively reduce the heat loss, energy saving.
5. Corrosion resistance:
- Copper water pipe: good corrosion resistance in the general environment, but in the humid, acidic or alkaline environment, copper will corrode and produce copper green. When the water flow rate is larger, the corrosiveness of the pipe will also increase.
- Stainless steel water pipe: There is a dense layer of oxidized film on the surface, which can effectively prevent oxygen and other corrosive substances from coming into contact with the inside of the pipe, and has excellent corrosion resistance. Even in harsh environments, such as the seaside, chemical plants, etc., stainless steel water pipe can maintain good performance.
6. Connection methods:
- Copper water pipe: relatively more connection methods, such as welding, threaded connections. Welding requires specialized technology and equipment, improper operation is prone to welding defects, affecting the sealing and strength of the connection; threaded connection requires the use of materials such as sealant or sealing tape to ensure the tightness of the connection.
- Stainless steel water pipe: common connection methods are double clamping connection, welding and so on. Double clamping connection is easy and fast to operate, good sealing, and does not need to use additional sealing materials; welded connection requires professional welding technology, but the welded connection has high strength and good reliability.
7. Price:
- Copper water pipe: the higher cost of raw materials, coupled with the relatively complex processing technology, so the price of copper water pipe is usually more expensive than stainless steel water pipe. Especially some high-quality copper water pipe, the price is higher.
- Stainless steel water pipe: with the continuous improvement of production technology and the intensification of market competition, the price of stainless steel water pipe is gradually reduced, and now has a certain degree of competitiveness in price, especially compared with some high-end copper water pipe.
