Polypropylene is a material that has been known on the installation market for several decades. It has very high chemical resistance, allowing installations made of this material to transport various chemicals in industrial processes. All this has made polypropylene pipes and fittings a great success in the installation market over the years. It is a very popular solution for the projects related to the thermo-modernization of renovated buildings, particularly recommended for the replacement of old, steel corroded potable water systems. Thanks to its technical characteristics as well as excellent quality-price ratio, it is still one of the most commonly used sanitary solutions on the market.
KAN-therm PP is a complete installation system, that consists of pipes and fittings made from thermoplastic material PP-R (type 3) polypropylene with diameter range 16-110 mm. Element connection is performed using the socket welding technique (thermal polyfusion) and electric welders.
With ongoing technology development KAN-therm has added to its offer PP-RCT (type 4) polypropylene homogeneous pipes with SDR7.4 PN20 and diameter range 20 -110 mm.
PP-RCT (Polypropylene Random Copolymer with Enhanced Thermal Stability) is a new type of plastic that is used for pipe production. PP-RCT pipes are made from polypropylene with enhanced thermal and chemical resistance.
The advantages of using that new material above others are:
- Greater resistance to high temperatures and chemicals that allows to use them in more aggressive environment, for example in chemical and petrochemical industries.
- Possibility to get pipes with bigger diameters allowing to flow larger volumes of liquids and gases,
- Longer operation time of PP-RCT pipes compared to traditional polypropylene pipes,
- Possibility to use PP-RCT pipes in heating and cooling installation systems reducing the energy consumption and operating cost.
The changes also apply to KAN-therm PP system pipe marking, which previously carried the following information:
- pipe name
- material
- external diameter and wall thickness
- dimension class
- operating parameters
- information about standards and certificates
The following information has been added to the current version of pipe marking:
- Welding parameters, i.e. information about the welding depth, heating time and connection process of the pipe with the fitting.
- Information on extending the heating time of the pipe and fitting when the ambient temperature is below + 5oC,
- In case of Stabi AL pipe, there is also some information about a scraper that should be used to remove aluminum layer.
Thanks to the new pipe marking all the information needed for ideal connection is in one place.
The third change in KAN-therm PP refers to the welding of pipes and fittings itself, to be exact the ones with big diameters. Installation process high up the ceiling could be a hard and tiring experience, that could lead to assembly errors.
To make an installer’s work easier, we have introduced dedicated tools into KAN-therm PP offer to facilitate proper installation. There are two of them.
Ritmo PRISMA JIG, originated in Europe and consists of two main parts fixed in a special rail, with which the welded parts are joined. One is fixed and the other is movable. Both elements have convenient locking knobs that ensure stable fixation of pipes and fittings. Each segment has self-centring steel clamps: one to install the fitting and two to install the pipe. The mutual sliding and pulling apart of the segments with the clamps is achieved by a common, special 'worm screw', which can be driven manually or by means of a screwdriver.
McElroy SPIDER 125 is one more tool that assists with heating process of polypropylene elements. Functional conception is very similar to the Ritmo tool. Here we also have two separate segments, equipped with clamps to fix the pipe and fitting. McElroy SPIDER 125 is only hand-operated by means of a specially designed crank. Due to a specially patented mechanism, assembly is very simple, easy and precise. The tool has the possibility of being secured by hanging it with a special Eye Bolt, reducing the danger of falling from a great height and damaging it. The tool is delivered in a specially designed, waterproof case that protects it from external factors (precipitation, high humidity) and hard building conditions. It is manufactured by US company McElroy and has patent protection.