[TheForge] PVC for compressed air

[Paul Sperbeck]

Everyone has stated a number of very good reasons not to use PVC pipe 
for compressed GAS service of any type. I use the word gas in a boylean 
sense. If your shop is not used by anyone other than your self then the 
choice is yours, but you really should consider the safety or others...

please see:
http://www.usplastic.com/knowledgebase/article.aspx?contentkey=787

The overriding consideration would be the insurance carrier that you 
have for your shop. Ask them.
If they tell you it's covered for liability then do as you chose, but I 
seriously doubt that that would happen. If your agent says its OK, given 
the preponderance of manufactures that would not warranty the compressed 
gas service of their products, I would make sure that you get a 
statement of coverage from someone higher up the food chain.

As a plumber with 42 years of experience I would be more likely to not 
make a big deal out of threading some pipe and installing drops and 
valves. If you install the system per manufactures recommendations the 
steel pipe will require fewer hangers and supports, does not take that 
much longer to install and will likely outlast your next of kin. I have 
nothing against plastic pipe, and in many situations it is superior to 
other materials... this is just not one of them.

As I have said before, why would blacksmiths chose plastic over steel? 
Even though the steel pipe is three times as expensive as the plastic, 
you can find steel pipe in salvage yards... try that with plastic.

Paul