Mopar440_6
New member
My only input on the PVC/CPVC discussion is, lots of people do lots of things that aren't recommended and have no issues but that doesn't mean its right or safe. Personally, I'll avoid even the possibility of having PVC shrapnel flying around my shop.
Black iron pipe is cheap and plentiful but the fittings, mounts, and labor to cut and rethread add up quickly. Also, rust. Even with dryers you'll still have some level of moisture in the lines and it will eventually rust. We have all black pipe at work and I'm constantly fixing/replacing components because rust particles have clogged or damaged it. That said black pipe is nearly indestructible even in a fire and I've seen it take hits from a forklift. If you have to mount the air lines low on the walls where they could take a hit, go with black pipe.
Black Pipe:
Pros - Cheap, plentiful, nearly indestructible
Cons - Slowest install, difficult to join, dirty air
Copper pipe is expensive but it is the gold standard for clean air supply. I've seen a few ISO9000 clean rooms and the air supplies were all plumbed with copper. I like copper because its easy to cut, solder, unsolder, and modify. However, some people have concerns with joints possibly becoming unsoldered in a fire and fanning the flames but the same could be said for any of PVC/CPVC/PEX/PexAlPex or Rapid-Air fittings.
Copper:
Pros - Cleanest air, easy to join, easy to modify, somewhat durable
Cons - Moderate installation time, most expensive, could be punctured, joints could fail in fire
Rapid-Air Fastpipe (or one of the competitors) is my personal choice and what will be going into the new shop I built last year. Stuff is high quality, somewhere in between black pipe and copper price wise, and the biggest thing for me is that it runs in quick. A friend and I plumbed his 4 bay shop with the big RapidAir 1" Fastpipe 235' master kit from Northern in a Saturday afternoon. Its somewhat modular with the saddle drops too and easy enough to change later because of the compression fittings. I'm going with the Fastpipe because my system will be all external to the walls and it will look better. If I could keep everything in the walls, I'd probably use the Maxline.
RapidAir:
Pros: Fastest install, clean air, easiest to join, easy to modify, somewhat durable
Cons: More expensive than black pipe, could be punctured, joints could fail in a fire
Just my $.02
Black iron pipe is cheap and plentiful but the fittings, mounts, and labor to cut and rethread add up quickly. Also, rust. Even with dryers you'll still have some level of moisture in the lines and it will eventually rust. We have all black pipe at work and I'm constantly fixing/replacing components because rust particles have clogged or damaged it. That said black pipe is nearly indestructible even in a fire and I've seen it take hits from a forklift. If you have to mount the air lines low on the walls where they could take a hit, go with black pipe.
Black Pipe:
Pros - Cheap, plentiful, nearly indestructible
Cons - Slowest install, difficult to join, dirty air
Copper pipe is expensive but it is the gold standard for clean air supply. I've seen a few ISO9000 clean rooms and the air supplies were all plumbed with copper. I like copper because its easy to cut, solder, unsolder, and modify. However, some people have concerns with joints possibly becoming unsoldered in a fire and fanning the flames but the same could be said for any of PVC/CPVC/PEX/PexAlPex or Rapid-Air fittings.
Copper:
Pros - Cleanest air, easy to join, easy to modify, somewhat durable
Cons - Moderate installation time, most expensive, could be punctured, joints could fail in fire
Rapid-Air Fastpipe (or one of the competitors) is my personal choice and what will be going into the new shop I built last year. Stuff is high quality, somewhere in between black pipe and copper price wise, and the biggest thing for me is that it runs in quick. A friend and I plumbed his 4 bay shop with the big RapidAir 1" Fastpipe 235' master kit from Northern in a Saturday afternoon. Its somewhat modular with the saddle drops too and easy enough to change later because of the compression fittings. I'm going with the Fastpipe because my system will be all external to the walls and it will look better. If I could keep everything in the walls, I'd probably use the Maxline.
RapidAir:
Pros: Fastest install, clean air, easiest to join, easy to modify, somewhat durable
Cons: More expensive than black pipe, could be punctured, joints could fail in a fire
Just my $.02
