What year(s) did we convert to PVC?

I am considering purchasing a home built in 1976. I have not seen it yet. One thing came to mind that could be a problem is if it has cast iron piping. Does someone here know when plumbers switched from cast iron to PVC?

 

At least it isn't outfitted with Orangeburg Pipe, whose production was finally discontinued in 1972.

 

Thanks, Vermont. I had never heard of that before. After looking it up, I am glad there is no chance of that being in that home.

 

Yes, they even used Orangeburg for drainage in the Empire State Building back in the 1930s . . . . which was fine until minor clogs created pressures which could not be tolerated by the Orangeburg. History says that a good time was had by all !

 

Old ways not always better...

 

Cast iron is not a bad thing. It is still used in many higher end homes as it's quiet. You don't hear water pouring down inside the wall when someone upstairs flushes a toilet. And Cast iron is surprising resistant to rusting so it can have a very long life. If undisturbed it's joints can remain watertight for decades. For me the big thing to look out for is galvanized steel drain piping which usually has threaded fittings joining it together. It is much more prone to rusting out on the bottom side. Once you spot a little leak don't think about patching the leak rather start replacing pipe. Steel water supply pipes also have a rusting problem though it can occur anywhere and in my area copper water lines aren't much better.

 

I still haven't made the switch. Cast iron, aside from being a little heavy, is a good job. Much quieter than plastic.

 

Dad built a house in 1972 and used pvc for everything. So it was commonly used then. But some municipalities didn't allow it for various amounts of time. (Old school... as mentioned, the old ways are usually superior).

 

Interesting. I read many complaints about galvanized and in my head wrongly lumped cast iron with it.

Any idea what years galvanized was used?

 

{from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galvanization}

"In the early 20th century, galvanized piping replaced previously-used cast iron and lead in cold-water plumbing."

It gets a bad rap because there's a lot of rotten galvanized piping still in use. Considering how long it's lasted, I don't thing it owes an explanation. Hot water galvanized will fail before the cold, so sometimes you'll see a place with copper hot piping and cold still galvanized.

 

In a 1972 house, there will be older mechanicals... eventually, they will need to be upgraded at some point if they haven't already. None of them should be too scary or dissuade you from the house.

A good inspector should be able to walk you through the house and help identify any systems that will need upgrades in the coming years. One of the issues of older houses. But new houses aren't always perfect either!

 

My house is 1978 and is all PVC.

 

It's all about local codes. Many houses had DWV piping entirely piped with ABS or PVC plastic pipe since the late '60s, but I also have seen areas that still required cast iron under a basement floor through the late '70s. ABS was quite popular in my area in the '70s, but today ABS pipe and fittings cannot even be found, everything is PVC while ABS is the standard in other areas.

 

ABS is popular in my Northern CA area. I've always thought it's simpler to use ABS over PVC -- no priming. Just glue it together.