If you are planning to work on your own plumbing, or if for any other reason you are working with PVC pipes or CPVC pipes then what you will need is the right kind of adhesive to bond those various pieces together. Now, with that being said, there are not many types of adhesives that will stick to either PVC or CPVC, so having the right kind is extremely important to say the least.
Now the type of glue used for PVC pipes is PVC glue and the type of glue used for CPVC pipes is a CPVC cement. Something that you might be wondering is whether or not these two types of glue are interchangeable and whether or not you can use one type of glue for both of these materials. The short answer to this question is that no, absolutely can you not use PVC glue for CPVC purposes, but with that being said, CPVC glue can be used for PVC purposes.
As you can probably tell already, PVC glue is not nearly as strong or resistant to a variety of elements as CPVC glue is. What we are here to do today is to figure out exactly what these two types of adhesives are, what they’re made out of, and what they are best used for. Let’s figure out whether it is PVC glue or CPVC cement that you need for your next project.
| OATEY CPVC | OATEY PVC BLUE |
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Main Component: CPVC Resin, solvents, filler (and other chemicals) Application: Small scale Materials: PVC & CPVC Curing Time: 2 hours Toxicity: Very |
Main Component: Cyanoacrylate Application: Small scale Materials: PVC Curing Time: 24 hours Toxicity: Very |
PVC Glue Review
First off, we have PVC glue. For those of you don’t know, PVC is a special type of plastic, also known as Poly vinyl chloride, a type of plastic that is often used for tubing in plumbing. This is important to know because PVC requires the special PVC glue. Let’s take a look at exactly what PVC glue is and what it can do.
What is PVC Glue?
As you can probably tell by the name of it, PVC glue is just a very special type of glue that is specifically designed to bond one piece of PVC to another. The reason why such a special type of adhesive is needed for this task is because PVC is a type of smooth plastic and smooth plastic is notoriously hard to bond together. Your average epoxy or super glue just won’t be able to bond a PVC pipes together.
What is PVC Glue Made of?
We aren’t going to get into the specific details of it, because quite honestly, it’s fairly difficult to understand. But with that being said, what you need to know here is that PVC glue is made with special types of solvents. Generally speaking, PVC glue is made out of resin, fillers, stabilizers, all of which are dissolved in a cocktail of solvents. When it comes down to it, there are many different components included in PVC glue, and it’s all way too much to explain.
What is PVC Glue Used for?
As you can probably guess by now, PVC glue is designed for one specific purpose and that is to bond together various pieces of PVC or Poly vinyl chloride. In other words, this type of glue is designed to bond together plumbing plastic. If we want to get technical about it, this process is known as cold welding.
How PVC Glue Works
As we touched on above, PVC glue is a very special type of solvent glue. There are various components that are dissolved inside a cocktail of solvents. The solvents are designed to literally melt the surface of the PVC pipes so that they become somewhat liquid. There are then a variety of chemicals, resins and fillers included in PVC glue, which, once the initial PVC layer on the outside is melted well, then create a chemical reaction that forms into an extremely hard surface. There is a reason why this process is known as cold welding, and it’s because the final result is an extremely strong bond that is nearly impossible to break by any means.
How to Make PVC Glue Stronger
The glue itself is as strong as it’s ever going to be. It’s not like you should mix any additional components into the glue because not only is that dangerous, but it could also result in a product that works less well than it should. However, if you do want the glue to work better in faster, using a primer on the pipes before applying it is definitely a good idea.
Drying Time
PVC glue is quite convenient because it requires about 20 minutes of setting time before it is dry enough to handle. However, with that being said, do keep in mind that PVC glue takes up to 24 hours to fully cure.
Is PVC Glue Toxic?
First and foremost, while this type of glue does dry very quickly while it is in its liquid form, it can be hazardous to your health if it comes into contact with your skin or if you happen to inhale the fumes. Moreover, what is actually more dangerous than that is when the chemical reaction occurs and the actual PVC pipe melts, it creates various fumes that are definitely toxic to humans, can cause dizziness, respiratory problems, and more severe illness as well. Therefore, the utmost of caution is required when working with PVC glue.
What Brand of PVC Glue is the Strongest?
When it comes down to it, any high quality construction brand name can be used for this purpose. When it comes down to it, most of these products are very similar to each other.
✅Purchase link: Buy Oatey PVC Blue at Amazon
CPCV Glue Review
OK, so now that we know what PVC glue is, we need to figure out what exactly CPVC glue is. Technically speaking, this stuff is actually known as CPVC cement.
What is CPVC Glue?
When it comes down to it, PVC and CPVC blue are indeed very similar and the difference between them is honestly quite minimal, especially when it comes to the chemical composition. Now what you need to know is that CPVC stands for chlorinated Poly vinyl chloride. In other words, this type of plastic also contains additional chlorine. Therefore, the adhesive used for this type of plastic needs to be able to handle that chlorine, and this is what CPVC glue is all about.
What is CPVC Glue Made of?
CPVC glue has more or less the same chemical composition as normal PVC glue. This is a special type of solvent cement that is made out of CPVC resin stabilizers and fillers, all of which are dissolved into a cocktail of solvents. Yes, there are of course some different ingredients between CPVC and PVC glue, but it’s honestly too much to explain. You would more or less have to be a full time chemist in order to understand subtle differences between these two things.
What is CPVC Glue Used for?
Just like PVC glue is used to join PVC pipes together. CPVC glue or cement is designed to bond together CPVC pipes. As you can see, their applications are extremely similar and which one you use really just depends on the exact type of pipe being used.
How CPVC Glue Works
CPVC glue works in the exact same way as normal PVC glue works. In other words, the solvents contained in this glue melt a portion of the CPVC piping on the exterior of the pipe. Once that outer layer is melted, the other ingredients contained in the glue, such as the resin and fillers, are chemically activated and will then begin to quickly harden. This process is also known as cold welding.
How to Make CPVC Glue Stronger
Just like when using PVC glue, the only thing that you can really do to make CPVC glue stronger is to first apply a primer before you apply the glue itself.
Drying Time
What is quite impressive about CPVC cement? Is the fact that it only needs about 15 minutes for it to dry enough until you can handle it and if the temperatures are above 60 degrees Fahrenheit, it takes only two hours for it to fully cure.
Is CPVC Glue Toxic?
If PVC glue is toxic than CPVC glue is very toxic. The additional components contained in this glue required to deal with this special type of pipe are very poisonous. The fumes created when that CPVC pipe melts are very poisonous, and it is definitely recommended that you wear a respirator when working with this stuff.
What Brand of CPVC Glue is the Strongest?
If you really want the best CPVC glue around, one of the best brand names to consider is Oatey.
✅Purchase link: Buy Oatey CPVC Medium Orange Cement at Amazon
Comparing CPVC Cement vs PVC Glue
Now that we know what both CPVC cement and PVC glue art, let’s figure out what the differences between them are.
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Applications
The difference in application is of course that PVC glue is designed to be used with PVC pipes and CPVC glue meant is designed to be used with CPVC pipes. For those of you that don’t know, the big difference here is that PVC pipes are fine to use with cold water, whereas CPVC pipes are also used for hot water. PVC glue does not stand up to heat well and if used with hot water piping will come undone.
Materials
Although these adhesives will likely also bond with other materials, the PVC glue is designed to be used exclusively with PVC pipes and CPVC cement is designed to be used exclusively with CPVC pipes.
Strength
In terms of bond strength and structural integrity, both of these glues are about the same, but the big difference is that CPVC cement is also heat resistant, whereas PVC glue is not, which is why PVC glue cannot be used for hot water pipes.
Cleanup
Generally speaking, both PVC and CPVC glue are susceptible to dissolving via solvent. Specifically, both of them will come undone with the application of some acetone, or in other words nail polish remover.
Health Warnings
Both of these types of glue should not come into contact with your skin and in no circumstances should they be ingested. Moreover, because they both melt the PVC and CPVC pipes, they create very noxious fumes and it is definitely recommended that you wear a mask if not a full scale of respirator to work with these glues.
Differences Between
The main difference between the two is really just that CPVC glue can be used for both PVC and CPVC pipes and that it dries and cures much faster. On the other hand, PVC glue takes a lot longer to dry and to cure, and moreover it cannot be used for CPVC pipes.
