Stainless Steel & Potable Water

[GaDawg]

Does anyone know of any specific plumbing codes that specify stainless steel pipe material grades permissible for potable water? I'm mainly interested in codes for use in cold water applications.

Thanks.

 

[PEDARRIN2]

The International Plumbing Code does not allow use of stainless steel for domestic water piping.

Why would you want to use stainless steel, anyway?

It would be more expensive than the allowed materials and because of the chlorine in the water, I would be concerned about corrosion.

 

[GaDawg]

Thanks for the feedback. We have similar concerns when using cast iron or bronze, such as might be found in a pump volute or impeller, respectively. I do know that stainless steels, both 304L and 316L, are accepted materials by both AWWA (Ref. AWWA C220)and ANSI/NSF 61 for potable water piping. They specify a material reference of ASTM A312, A778, or A269. I will look into the IPC for further information, but at this point I have not found any grade specific reference to stainless steel pipe in any published plumbing code I've reviewed. Thanks again.