Can You Pour Concrete Over Water Lines?

Can You Pour Concrete Over Water Lines?

Water lines, also called water mains, are the main pipes that carry water to homes and businesses in a city.

Water is usually carried from a source such as lakes or a reservoir into an area that will be well distributed for people and businesses.

Water enters the home through the service line, connecting to your meter (your billable unit).

The service line usually runs down the side of your house underground and stops at a shut-off valve.

If you need to stop or turn off any part of your plumbing system.

There should be another shut-off located near this valve to isolate it from the rest of your home’s plumbing.

It’s dangerous to pour concrete onto water lines or pipes if you don’t have the correct tools for the job.

No! Water lines and pipes are not designed to withstand such a heavyweight. When you pour concrete over water lines or other underground utilities, it seeps into small cracks and holes in the system.

This is especially if you do not give them plenty of time to dry beforehand.

This allows contaminants, including algae, fungus, and bacteria, to grow inside.

The previously clean water becomes contaminated with these substances as it runs through your newly poured cement-lined pipe after a rainstorm or when the snow melts.

This is especially true for agricultural areas where there is a lot of fertilizer runoff from nearby farms.

Can You Pour Concrete Around The PVC Pipe?

No. You don’t want to pour concrete around PVC pipe for two reasons. The first is that the plastic is not waterproof, so you will have a mess on your hands when water gets in.

A better choice would be to set the pipe in sand and gravel or stone dust.

You can also use solid-wall polyethylene or ABS piping instead of PVC, but their cost makes them prohibitive except in special circumstances.

The base may crack, allowing water into the structure and ruining it from within.

The pipes themselves may also crack or burst because they weren’t designed to hold up under pressure created by the weight of wet cement.

This is a problem if you’re using them to deliver water.

If you’re building a septic system, the concrete could be porous enough that it would allow sewage gases to come through and blow up.

PVC pipe is immune from all these problems if you put it in a bed of sand or solid-wall polyethylene pellets.

The sand will keep the water out, and the plastic will stand up under pressure better than PVC.

Solid-wall polyethylene is even more expensive but even more resistant to the weight of wet cement.

This is because its smooth surface causes less friction when supported by gravel or other aggregates.

Plastic ABS piping is also much stronger than PVC but costs approximately three times per foot as conventional materials for long runs.

Must You Wrap PVC Before Pouring Concrete?

Yes. Before pouring concrete, you must wrap PVC to create ample space for expansion and contraction.

This prevents water and moisture from seeping into it when the concrete is set.

When you pour concrete around PVC, it can swell and expand in a direction that will make it nearly impossible to remove from the concrete without breaking or warping its shape.

If this happens, you’ll have to cut out the wrapped PVC, which could cause damage to other pipes in your home if done incorrectly.

By wrapping your PVC pipe before pouring concrete, you ensure that when your piping expands and contracts with the heat and cold.

It does not break away from the foundation of your house due to moisture seepage into cracks in poured concrete.

You also allow ample space for expansion by wrapping the contact area between PVC and poured concrete with tar paper;

Or similar material before adding new foundation walls or floors.

The best way to wrap PVC is to use a ½ inch wide strip of heavy-duty aluminum which you can easily fasten around your PVC piping.

This can be done by installing a screw on each end around the width, back, and forth.

You can then cut out any excess part that pokes out from between the screws with a box cutter or similar tool.

This wrapping technique will help prevent moisture from seeping into the contact area.

Between your sidewalks and pipes and protect your pipe from expanding and contracting over time.

How Can You Make Concrete Not Stick To Plastic?

You can make concrete not stick to plastic by using additives. The polymer additive gets mixed with the plastic before its added to concrete, making the concrete not stick to the plastic.

Additives are chemicals that can help or serve a purpose, whether to make the concrete stronger, less likely to crack, etc.

Polymer additives are fine particulate powders made from long-chain synthetic polymers or filler compounds.

They have particles between 25 and 1000 nanometers in diameter.

Polymers contain high molecular weight monomers connected through covalent chemical bonds between some atoms.

Monomers are units bonded together in a repeating chain structure called a backbone chain.

Hydrogen bonding allows for small side chains or functional molecules that give certain polymer attributes, such as polarity and solubility.

The polymer’s main function is to improve plastic concrete’s durability and resistance to water.

For example, if you take a piece of plastic and spread it out on a table, it will not stick because there are no particles between the atoms making up the surface of the plastic.

However, if you did this with concrete, it would stick because many small and very tightly packed particles (which make up cement).

Adhere to each other tightly through van der Waals forces.

These forces hold together smaller objects by electrical attraction or repulsion due to their relative permittivity or dielectric constant, respectively.

These forces also hold everything together in one material.

Can You Spill Concrete Over A PVC Pipe?

No. A PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride) pipe is specifically designed for water, not concrete.

Concrete is very heavy, and it will break the PVC pipe in short order with no problem at all.

You must use an alternate route for drainage if you are pouring concrete in the area.

If the pipe is already installed, then you can bond fiberglass matting (available at any hardware store) over the existing drainpipe when you pour your footing/foundation/walls.

Ensure that you bond it on tight enough to have gaps underneath the cement where water could potentially collect and rust out untreated steel where concrete is touching it.

In short, it’s not advisable to pour concrete over a PVC pipe. It will almost always break the pipe and create a mess you will have to clean up later.

Can You Glue PVC Twice?

Yes. After getting rid of the old glue first, you can glue PVC twice.

This is because of forming a new plastic bonding phase in the residual thermosetting plastic phase for the first bonding time.

The double gluing does not only increase the mechanical strength but also makes it more wear-resistant.

But suppose you insist on using PVC glue that is already dried for a long time to do the second bonding.

In that case, there will be a polymerization reaction accompanied by an exothermic heat reaction during the setting.

The inner layer film will melt, and its thickness will increase. Thus changing its structure from thermosetting to thermoplastic state.

That means you are no longer gluing PVC but plasticizing PVC instead. Do note that this case may create fire danger or even explosion hazards.

What Is The Difference Between Blue And Clear PVC Cement?

The most obvious difference between these two types of cement is their color. One has an opaque blue hue, while the other appears clear.

But what distinguishes them so much from each other? It all boils down to their chemical composition.

Blue PVC Cement contains ammonia, which lowers its melting point by about 20°F (11°C) more than Clear PVC Cement does.

This means it will be easier to use this type of cement when working with cooler temperatures.

The other major difference between the two types of cement is their suitability for different applications.

Blue PVC Cement tends to be more flexible and stronger than Clear PVC Cement. However, it also takes longer to harden and does not work with other plastics.

However, Clear PVC Cement dries faster and is easier to use with plastic blends or other materials that contain less chemically stable components.

One can use this cement to fasten pontoons safely into place on a favorite pool toy, such as a raft or water slide.

It also works well in building custom-made furniture, toys, or anything else you can dream up.

In addition to gluing different plastic parts together, you can also use it to make repairs, seal cracks in PVC pipes, and even adhere to linoleum flooring.

You must use the appropriate cement for the job.

This is so that it’s also good to know that you can use Clear PVC Cement with polypropylene plastics, carbon fiber, natural rubber;

Wood glue, epoxy resin, alkyd resin, thermoplastic olefins (TPO), neoprene rubber, acrylics/polycarbonates, vinyl ester resins, nylon 6-6 rubber copolymer elastomer.

With ethylene propylene diene monomer polymers (EPDM), nitrile rubber/acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR/ABS), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).

If you’ve ever needed to glue something, you’ve likely found yourself in a situation where you had to make a choice. Use Clear PVC Cement or Blue PVC Cement.

The most important dissimilarity between the two types is their composition. One contains ammonia, while the other does not.

From there, what kind of cement you choose comes down to how hot or cold your workspace is.

You want to select the type that will be easiest for you to work with when the temperature conditions are less than ideal.

Is Oatey PVC Cement Safe For Drinking Water?

The EPA has determined that Oatey PVC cement does not pose a health concern for drinking water.

The EPA created an assessment of three different types of pipe cement and found that “based on available information in this study.

There are no significant concerns concerning toxicity or carcinogenicity.”

They also found that “there were no adverse effects from inhalation, ingestion or dermal contact” in lab animals when exposed to high concentrations of Oatey PVC cement vapor.

In addition, they concluded that Oatley PVC cement could be simply classified as non-hazardous waste.

This is because it’s not toxic under conditions usually encountered during its use and disposal.

Can You Use Schedule 40 PVC For Drinking Water?

It is not recommended to use Schedule 40 PVC for drinking water.

The current plumbing code (AWWA C500) specifies that schedule 40 is a must-use only at not more than 75degF.

The maximum allowable operating temperature for CPVC, HDPE, and polyethylene pipe is 140degF.

It’s hard to imagine a situation where hot water would be traveling through a pipe made from plastic rated at 140 degrees for any significant length of time.

Any water piping system will be subject to some fluctuation in pressure (even cast iron might explode if the pressure is too high).

As temperatures increase, so does the pressure required to keep water flowing.

PVC is usually used below the maximum allowable temperature threshold, and polyethylene is not.

Hot water contains dissolved gases, which expand as the water gets heated.

The expansion of these gases can cause stress in piping systems and lead to the failure of pipes made from rigid materials like steel or cast iron.

Since they contain no such gas-forming constituents, HDPE and CPVC (polyvinyl chloride) will not fail due to pressure stresses when used at higher temperatures.

Polyethylene has a higher maximum recommended operating temperature than either HDPE or CPVC.

Conclusion

The most important thing to do before pouring concrete is to make sure the area around the PVC pipe or water lines is clean and dry.

You want a good seal between your cement and plastic.

This is so you can use either white primer or glue specially formulated for PVC pipes to get a stronger bond between them.

It’s also important that you not pour too much cement at once. This is because it will stick better when less surface contact with the pipe.

What color of PVC should I buy? There are two distinct types available – one is clear, which means you cannot see through it.

But the blue means you can see what is on the other side if they have been correctly cut.