Costly Copper
Over the last few years I've seen a lot of houses and buildings restored in the city. Upon many of my initial visits to these before and after stories, I have found it sad to see that much of the destruction done to the buildings has come in the form of stolen copper pipes. The rising price of copper has wreaked havoc on Buffalo's buildings for years - thieves break in and lay waste to anything between them and the pipes. A couple weeks ago I received an email from Grant Street activist, Bob Franke, who wanted to know if I was interested in hearing about the "...impediments to neighborhood commercial district revitalization." When I tracked him down he told me it was a constant battle to prevent thieves from destroying neighborhoods because of the copper pipes within the houses.
Assemblyman Sam Hoyt recently helped to pass a law that makes it much tougher for illegally stripped copper pipe to be sold. If the law is enforced, this effort will go a long way to securing the city's housing stock. Scrap dealers must now ask to see government issued IDs for anyone selling over $50 worth of copper. A Theft Alert System was also put into place that will make it easier to track and deter the crimes. This is one law that's time has come ... now let's hope that the system works.
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xosder
Okay...try this thread....Legalize drugs. Sell themat the local pharmacy, Wegmans, Tops, etc. and tax punitively like tobacco and alcohol.
Decriminalizing drugs would garner billions in taxes from the existing occasional users, the savings of billions of dollars currently being squandered on law enforcement, prison construction and cost of incarceration for drug offenders. As important, decriminalizing drugs would permit us to focus and assist the small percentage of people who are genuinely drug abusers by offering them both medical education and treatment. And most of all would save our copper for showers and put the dealers out of business.
We here in America use the most drugs and have the most severe penalties. Time for a change.
PS...No I'm not a user.
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KernwatchMN
Important news.
A house stripped of copper plumbing in low income neighborhoods is often a death sentence, making rehab prohibitively costly.
Is the new plastic "piping" yet code-compliant? It is available for hot water use, colored red for hot water, blue for cold. And it is avaible in rigid 10 foot lengths as well as continuous coils that can be threaded long distances.
Is it yet acceptable in Bflo for residential or commercail applications?
R. Kern (in Mpls)
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viking
I've switched to using a new plastic pipe and connectors in all my repair jobs. The time required to complete the repairs is far less and without the danger of fire, when sweating pipes in tight places. This new system also allows a remedy for areas hard to keep from freezing, the pipe expands and doesn't break. This new pipe is available at Home Depot and is code compliant.
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RisingDamp666
Smart remodelers choose lead. Lead pipes for happy homes. Lead pipes for a brighter Tomorrow.
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thisoldcrackhouse
PECS is code compliant, I do not believe regular pvc supply is compliant, or advisable, as it "breathes" plastic fumes into the water. PECS has been used in Europe for over a decade and is considered safer and healthier than copper. You should wrap your lead pipe in asbestos RD666, it will reduce the gas bill.
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oldtimeconstruction
That is PEX, shorthand for cross linked polyethylene. The older plastic, CPVC, was never accepted by the NYS plumbing code. PEX is code compliant. Just because something is on the shelf at HD, don't assume it is accepted. They, and other stores, carry polybutylene supply tubes, they are a grey plastic. Those have never been accepted in Buffalo.
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RisingDamp666
What a wonderful and thrifty solution to those pesky gas bills, thisoldcrackhouse! I just resealed the exterior foundation walls with Dioxin tainted waste oil-based tar.With that and the asbestos as well as my coal fired furnace, I should be warm and toasty this winter!
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viking
The connectors are called shark something and require no special tools to assemble but can be disassembled with a special release washer easily. The pipe I use comes in a roll and is cut with any saw. The connectors are used interchangeably with plastic and copper. The pipe and connectors are more money than conventional but well worth it.
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Crazed_da_Loon
I have a great idea for preventing theft of copper. Once arrested, the theif will be entered in a spelling bee with other criminals. If they misspell a word, they are then burned with a crack pipe on the forehead. All this will be broadcast on TV after the news everyday. I'd watch. Spell "ask"
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sbrof
Something about hot water is plastic that bothers me. Considering that plastic always leaches into the liquid that it hold I don't like the idea of more chemicals in our bodies. Especially that it is now being proven that plastic bottles used for drinking are causing all sorts of strange issues in humans.
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Charger
Crazed_da_Loon - "theif"? Better hope you never get on that spelling bee yourself, you might be in trouble.
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RisingDamp666
Heh Heh. It's just too easy sometimes, isn't it , Charger? I quite agree, Sbrof, plastics impart a "chemy" taste to water and you've got to believe that can't be good. Likewise, too much copper in the body can be very harmful. I'm not saying...I'm just saying.
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sbrof
Well yeah anything in high concentrations is bad for our health but in my normal geek-like fetish with reading science journals I have yet to come across anything about copper pipes and health consequences but I have come across a lot of articles about plastics and their health consequences. So while It might pose a problem I doubt it is as immediate as issues with plastics.
I was just reading that the rate of female to male births in many western countries including the US is shifting towards Females because of the feminizing effects of plastic chemicals from drinking bottles. Those males who are being born are also born with physical anatomy issues related to the same effect.
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viking
An interesting note, in live holding systems and in the filtration systems used for people, the vessels of choice to house the filter medium is a type of plastic. Lead and copper traces in smaller percentages, is more harmful than the chlorine which is the real documented cause of our health problems. The new PEX system, is rated all around better than copper and lead, second only to stainless.
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