John Copeland 
Plumbing in your home is not the galvanised steel and cast iron pipes of your ancestors. The homeowners now usually prefer copper piping, because it’s corrosion resistant and less likely to leak.
There are also other materials you can consider for construction such as Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) and Acrylic Butadiene Styrene (ABS). There are benefits and disadvantages to each material for different circumstances.
PVC
There are many kinds of pipes that you will see in your home and they have different purposes and drawbacks. Some work as supply lines and others may be more suitable as drains or sewer pipes, the pipe you choose will largely be dependent on your budget and home plan.
The ideal choice for house water supply pipes is rigid copper (hard copper) which is tough but lightweight and can accommodate the maximum pressure, yet still stay pliable in tight spaces. The tubing can also be stretchy and handy if you are running long distances through corners or over curves.
Both the CPVC and PEX pipes products are among the most popular today, in the case of the drainage pipes. Both CPVC and PEX can be used for drain lines but PEX is more versatile, cheaper and solar resistant so the two can be used in exterior plumbing.
PEX
PEX pipe is easily one of the most popular materials used in today’s plumbing construction due to its polypropylene plastic structure, allowing it to slide around obstructions and angles, less fittings and connectors being installed and hence fewer points of leakage (piping is often the cause).
There are numerous benefits for homeowners of spiralized polyethylene pipes, like their durability, corrosion and scaling resistance, and the lower maintenance and repair costs.
The PEX pipes can be crimped, clamped or push-fit connections, the last of which don’t require tools for installation. Push-fit connections make connection easy and painless – their fittings “lock” in the end of the pipe like those paper tube “traps” you used to play with as a kid! They also remove water hammering which makes banging noises when the pressure is changed and bang noises when the pressure changes when PEX becomes very resistant to chlorine, ensuring safe drinking water for homes!
ABS
ABS pipes are great for plumbing since they are light, chemical resistant and inexpensive. Installation is also simple. Unfortunately, too much sunlight can break them down over time. They too kowtow to the strain. When this is the case, PVC can work more effectively.
Whether you’re doing a residential or commercial plumbing installation, for drain, waste, vent or insulation of electrical pipes, ABS and PVC pipes are great. Both have chemical and water resistance – but check your local building code before deciding.
PVC pipes and ABS pipes are very different in installation; ABS pipes are very quick to install, you just need to glue them together and the pipes are connecting without doing 2 separate steps of priming and cementing, so PVC pipes are always going to cost more than ABS pipes.
Copper
Copper plumbing pipes were the traditional domestic plumbing, until cheap plastic pipes like Pex were created, and much quicker to install themselves. Also Pex pipes are not corrosive and are a great product for home use.
Copper is soldered, so you have leak-proof connections. Also, lightweight and durable so easy and easy to work with, non-rusting and easily cleaned to get rid of hard water deposits from hard water fixtures.
Ridgid copper pipe can be of any size but Type L is most often chosen when new construction or repairs are needed as it has thicker walls that can withstand greater pressure. It is common both indoors and outdoors, and great for uninstalling or re-laying old branch lines in homes. Also less popular, but also available is softer copper tubing, which could prove more flexible in some cases.
