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piping used for swimming pools

Craig Drabenstadt
Craig Drabenstadt Member Posts: 7
Can anyone tell me what types of piping beside PVC is acceptable to use with chlorinated water in swimming pools. I would like to add a heat exchanger to a solar loop for pool heating.

Comments

  • TonyS
    TonyS Member Posts: 849
    Polyethylene pipe

    Well piping(pe pipe) works great, parents pool installed 36 years ago, still flexable with no leaks. If you are going to use salt to chlorinate dont use stainless fittings or exchanger. Nylon fittings for the piping and titanium exchangers are available.
  • EricAune
    EricAune Member Posts: 432
    Salt or Chlorine?

    Stainless would be the most robust, also the most expensive alternative.  No go with salt though.
    "If you don't like change, your going to like irrelevance even less"
  • Gasper
    Gasper Member Posts: 148
    agree

    100%
  • zacmobile
    zacmobile Member Posts: 211
    edited February 2012
    pool piping

    It is my understanding the only acceptable materials for salt water pool heat exchangers are titanium or cupro-nickel. You could use PEX with the plastic fittings for the piping, they are called HPP or poly-alloy sometimes I think.
  • GSE
    GSE Member Posts: 9
    Careful

    Whatever you do, don't plumb SCH40 up to the HEX.  It's rated below 120 at pressure and the solar will certainly reach those temps.  Ever see a pool empty itself in a mechanical room?  Glad I haven't!
  • zacmobile
    zacmobile Member Posts: 211
    pool migration

    GSE: I actually have! it was a small (20,000 gal) therapeutic salt pool at a local spa, a cracked pvc fitting was the culprit, i've never had to wear a rain jacket inside a mechanical room before or since!
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