Moving away from traditional steel is a hard decision to make, if you haven't worked with Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC) systems before. You may already know of the significant benefits that CPVC can offer over steel, including lower cost and quicker installations, as well as fewer disruptions for residents in retrofit projects.
BlazeMaster® CPVC pipe and fittings, from the US corporation Lubrizol, have grown to become the most specified nonmetallic fire protection system in the world. They are approved for the following applications:
- Single-family residential, duplexes and mobile homes
- Multi-family residential
- Light-hazard commercial use, including hospitals, schools, long-term care facilities and high-rise residential buildings
Here, we look at the finer details of why CPVC systems for residential fire protection systems are the best choice for specifiers and installers, and consider the advantages of choosing BlazeMaster branded Fire Protection Systems to help keep health and safety your top priority.
Choosing BlazeMaster Fire Protection Systems
Industry standards
As the leading CPVC system globally, BlazeMaster pipes and fittings meet all international fire safety standards. Submitted to the flammability rating as per EN 13501, the Lubrizol Advanced Materials CPVC has achieved the best possible classification that any non-metal material can achieve, which is Bs1d0:
- Fire behaviour: B = low flammability, no contribution to flashover
- Smoke development: s1 = low smoke development
- Flaming droplets: d0 = no burning drops
CPVC fire protection systems have also had UK approvals from the Loss Prevention Certification Board (LPCB) and listed on their Red Book as an approved fire and security product.
Corrosion
Any steel product is synonymous with corrosion and fire protection systems are no different. It is well known that the higher the corrosion levels inside a metal pipe, the more friction is created which decreases the flow of water in the event of an emergency - potentially stopping the system from working altogether.
Using the Hazen-Williams formula to calculate internal friction and roughness, steel's flow characteristics and performance dropped by over 50% for pipes that were in service for between 4 and 40 years. Meanwhile, pipes made from high quality CPVC such as BlazeMaster systems, continued to perform at the same level as the day it was installed.
Water quality
Tested and listed CPVC pipes and fittings should be Water Regulations Advisory Scheme (WRAS) approved for use with potable water. Water quality after being in the fire protection system, however, has been put to the test to see how CPVC performs compared to steel and copper.
While steel contained high turbidity, particulate solids and high levels of Legionella bacteria in the 14-week study, CPVC pipe "did not show any deterioration - and in fact had a lower turbidity that the initial water". The study by the KIWA Institute in the Netherlands also found that Legionella bacteria in CPVC pipes was significantly lower too.
Installation
As well as being less costly and quicker to install, CPVC pipes and fitting also offers significant space efficiency and increased safety compared to steel installations. BlazeMaster CPVC Fire Protection Systems can be directly installed to a ceiling or wall and therefore have been instrumental in many retrofit projects around the world - showing flexibility to fit into any existing property.
Safety on job site also increases as CPVC requires a cold installation, requires no electricity and is fitted using manual tools -- unlike steel that requires heavy machinery and a labor intensive preparation process. It is this combination that also speeds up the installation process.
Environmental impact
The Environmental Resources Management, an independent environmental research conducted an LCA of two common materials used for fire protection systems in the U.S. — steel piping and BlazeMaster CPVC piping — to determine which material's production, use and end of life were more detrimental to the environment.
In the ISO-compliant study, BlazeMaster CPVC Fire Protection Systems were compared against steel in 13 categories of environmental impacts. BlazeMaster products beat steel in 12 of the 13 categories, including climate change. BlazeMaster systems are preferable to steel for environmentally conscientious builders.
The future is CPVC
BlazeMaster's CPVC fire protection systems are widely approved by UK organisations and outperforms steel in installation, corrosion, water standards, environmental impact and, of course, reliability too.
