​THE PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS

​There are many materials that you, as a plumber, will deal with in your working life.

Each one will have different characteristics, such as weight, melting point, density and strength.

It is important that we know and understand the materials we work with to ensure that the correct material is used for a given application.

​The solid materials used in the plumbing industry can be classified into three distinct groups:

1. those made from metals
2. those made from plastics
3. those made from ceramics and fireclays.

​Metals

​Metals are one of the main materials used in the plumbing industry.

They can be found in the form of pipes, tubes and fittings, and in the manufacture of boilers, radiators and other heating appliances, as well as sundry items such as solder, screws and nails.

​Metals

​Metals can be subdivided into 2 main groups, as described below.


1 Pure metals:
these are the metals that are derived directly from the ore and contain very little in the way of impurities.


2 Alloys:
an alloy is a mixture of two or more metals.

This type of mixed metal is used extensively in the plumbing industry.

Alloys used include brass (copper/zinc), bronze (copper/tin), gunmetal (copper/tin/zinc), lead-free solders (nickel/tin or copper/tin) and steel (iron/carbon).

​Metals can be subdivided into 2 further groups, as described below.



3 Ferrous metals:

those metals that contain iron, such as steel and cast iron. These corrode easily because of the formation of ferrous oxide, otherwise known as rust.

4 Non-ferrous metals:

these metals do not contain iron and are known as pure metals. Non-ferrous metals include copper, lead, tin, zinc, aluminium and nickel. Non-ferrous metals do not rust but can corrode over time.