Take a good look at your home’s plumbing system. How much do you know, understand and even comprehend about the workings and parts about them? Can you identify what they are made of? Do you know how to remove a broken section of pipe and install a replacement if need be? Or will it be a case of looking for the yellow pages or online to call a commercial tradesman / person to speedily repair you plumbing or furnace heating system? Can you stop a leak, thaw a pipe that is frozen solid or eliminate the noise caused by pipes that seem to forever “banging”. Pipes are the lifelines of your plumbing and heating systems and you should know the basics, at the least about how they work and function as well as how to repair or replace them when for some reason, known or unknown, they fail.

First of all its wise to know the type of pipe and piping involved, the differences and advantages among them. In most cases what is installed in the home when you purchased it is what you have in place. If you are involved in building a brand new home then you may have some choices and alternatives from the contractor or plumbing / heating contractors and trades. Yet you are limited in your choices and even restricted by your local building code and a code which dictates what can and can not be employed in new home construction and renovations where a certified inspection is made. Yet for reasons of safety, consistency and home property insurance coverage it is always a wise and prudent choice to stay within and abide by “the code”.

Rigid copper pipe is one type of pipe that is on the strictly approved list in nearly every local plumbing code and codes. Relatively lightweight and easy to handle, copper pipe is one of the most popular types of pipes to use. It resists corrosion and scaling, in fact it is so durable that under most normal use conditions the copper pipe that you have installed today the materials involved will most likely outlast both you and your house.

Next in line in terms of home plumbing pipe types are those pipes made of flexible copper – that is “flexible copper tubing”. You can buy flexible copper tubing only in Type K (designed for hard use) and Type L (for most other applications and uses), but that disadvantage is about the only solitary limit that you will encounter.

Flexible copper tubing can do just about anything else that rigid copper pipe will and can do, and plenty more besides. You can bend the tubing around corners or snake it through walls and over ceilings more easily than you can ever maneuver with rigid copper pipe types. However, installations made with flexible copper tubing are not as near as those made with rigid copper pipe. So flexible tubing is usually where it will be concealed from view.

One other very solid pipe type and material not used as widely as it once was good old fashioned (and heavy) galvanized steel pipe. These sturdy pipes used to be the standard for home water supply lines. They have been supplanted in most cases by new and more modern forms of pipe.

Lastly we come to the most common and even popular form of household plumbing pipes that you will encounter – that is “Plastic Pipe”. Plastic pipe definitely has advantages in that it is light in weight, durable for the most part, and easy even for the do it yourself DIY plumber and home renovator to complete work him or herself that not long ago would of required the services of a highly trained trades person.

True plastic pipe may be easy to work with, is less costly and is not susceptible to corrosion, scaling or rust. It is easy to work with. However before doing and planning anything but relatively simple plumbing tasks, renovations and upgrades take the time to check that in your local area if the specific type and gauge of plastic pipe and piping that you are employing “Meets Code”.

By having a brief basic understanding of the types , differences advantages and disadvantages of the pipes used in your home plumbing , as well as furnace or air conditioning heating system you will be in a much better situation when dealing and discussing repairs , renovations and upgrades.

Author Bio: Kerry A. Francis Furnasmans One Hour Winnipeg