PVC water pipe for electrical conduit

[JIMMIE]

One of my neighbors noticed the 50 Amp circuit for his spa was in PVC water pipe. I know PVC pipe can break down in sun light but this stuff is coated with about 4 layers of house paint. Even though it is exposed directly to southern exposure for nearly its entire 20 ft length, given it is about 10 years old and hasnt had a problem I dont think degradation due to UV exposure should be something to worry about. Is there any other reason this should be replaced. It shouldnt be a problem to replace, the biggest objextion is that its going to mess up paint that is about two years old with some fading.

Jimmie

[RBM]

I don't know if there is any difference between electrical and plumbing PVC, except for sunlight resistance, but the bigger question would be the competence of the installer. This is a hot tub, a potentially dangerous environment, if the thing was wired incorrectly, so in my opinion, I'd be more concerned about the rest of the wiring, then the pvc.

[Dan Lanciani]

| One of my neighbors noticed the 50 Amp circuit for his spa was in PVC | water pipe. I know PVC pipe can break down in sun light but this stuff | is coated with about 4 layers of house paint. Even though it is | exposed directly to southern exposure for nearly its entire 20 ft | length, given it is about 10 years old and hasnt had a problem I dont | think degradation due to UV exposure should be something to worry | about. Is there any other reason this should be replaced. It shouldnt | be a problem to replace, the biggest objextion is that its going to | mess up paint that is about two years old with some fading.

There is a fish store near me that was (at least a few years ago) wired entirely in white PVC water pipe. The most disturbing thing was the sharp 90 degree elbows. I don't know how this passed a comercial inspection (or how an inspection could have been avoided)...

Dan Lanciani ddl@danlan.*com

[John Grabowski]

*I agree with RBM. The requirements for hot tub wiring are very specific and in addition to being code compliant must be done according to the manufacturers recommendations. What kind of wire is in the PVC? Cable or individual conductors?

[JIMMIE]

.

Individual conductors Red,Black,White,Green Looks like #8, at least bigger than 10.

Jimmie

[fftt]

PVC conduit is Sch 40 gray sunlight resistant material.

My landscaper installed white Sch 40 PVC (unpainted) manifolds ~30 years ago.......the material has been exposed to 1/2 day SoCal sunshine. I'm sure it has become brittle as the backyard manifold broke when someone bumped it with a wheel barrow.

I have been told by plastics people that a couple coats of latex paint will give the material all the UV protection it needs but I still use the gray sunlight resistant stuff.

If the stuff has been painted for most of its life......I wouldn;t worry about.

cheers Bob

[John Grabowski]

Individual conductors Red,Black,White,Green Looks like #8, at least bigger than 10.

*If the unit is GFI protected and bonded properly and there is a disconnect within sight it might as well be left alone. Usually things like this become an issue when the house is sold and the home inspector finds the problem. Then a permit for the work may be requested.

[Phisherman]

I used sched 40 white PVC for an overflow in my pond, spray painted the exposed areas green with Rustoleum paint. It has been in full sun for 14 years, water is still flowing into the creek. As long as the paint is intact it's fine. Plastics become weak and brittle over time, though.

[hamid.rmcc]

Dear sir hope you enjoy your time. We want to know what is defence between water pipe and electrical conduit pipe.

Best wishes Hamid

[dpb]

On 01/31/2017 7:34 AM, [e-mail] wrote: ...

'Pends on the Standard to which is certified--same PVC product may be have multiple ratings & markings i.e. PVC Sch. 40 & EPC 40.

Pressure testing & rating at standard temps for the plumbing products, low tolerance lead/chemical leaching contamination to potable standards (D1785 & D2265).

Some mfg's manufacture some PVC products that are dually tested and labeled/marked & NSF certified ASTM D1785/ASTM D2265/NEMA TC-2/UL 651

Probably biggest difference is most/all(?) of the EPC products are rated for UV exposure whereas most/all(?) plumbing products aren't. This is important for outside applications where conduit may be in sun.

But, if markings are obliterated it's impossible to tell apart visually, dimensions are same for each size/schedule between the two.

[dpb]

On 01/31/2017 9:54 AM, dpb wrote: ...

Other than the gray color vis a vis white for plumbing, that is...

[trader_4]

All the plumbing PVC I've seen is white, all the electrical grey. Seems you could very easily visually spot something out of place. What color is that dual use stuff?

[gfretwell]

From a practical sense, conduit has U/V protection but gray conduit may also have a slightly higher melting temperature. (>90c) The whole issue is really just the U/L listing for each. Water pipe is pressure rated and conduit is impact strength rated. They may be exactly the same but you can't prove it to an inspector.

[CRNG]

On Tue, 31 Jan 2017 05:34:42 -0800 (PST), [e-mail] wrote in

No difference except for the color and fittings.

[gfretwell]

Not exactly true. Water pipe is certified not to leach unacceptable levels of chemicals into the water. I still see a lot of Rigid Nonmetallic Conduit used as water pipe where UV protection is important but that is generally for irrigation or a fish cleaning station on a dock where the chemicals are less of an issue.