PVC primer?

Is it important to use PVC primer on all joints when plumbing your fish tank? I spoke with a professional who sets up over 20 high end systems a month and he said that he never uses primer and not to worry about it. My father-in-law cements millions of PVC joints a year and he always uses it. He said that primer is important if the pipes are under pressure and no big deal if the pipes are not under pressure (but he still uses it on everything).

Did you use PVC primer on all your joints? Please let us know if you've ever had a leak at a cemented joint and whether or not primer was used there.

As a side note, I'll share something that I just learned... Until last week I always thought Purple when thinking about PVC primer. Now I know that the Purple primer is only Purple because it has dye added to it so that the plumbing inspector can easily verify that the plumbers used primer on their job. If you are doing your own work on a fish tank, you can get clear PVC primer and have a much neater look .

 

Some people swear by it and some don't bother, I have never used it as I have never had to,no leaks with just cement. I even dry fit some of my pvc if its in or right above the sump incase I get the itch to change or add something( i know there's unions for that but didn't have any at the time and it didn't leak so it's still going )

 

I would never NOT use it, the 3 dollars it cost to buy it is well worth not having to deal with what could happen if not used IMO

 

I have always used it just to ensure a clean joint when actually cementing the pieces together, you can watch it clean the lettering right off the pipe.... never had a single leak in any pipe that I cemented this way

 

What I've come to understand from asking many folks in the field (ie. plumbers) is that the sole purpose of primer is to clean the PVC of any impurities like oil, or other substances that might impede the PVC glue from bonding as well as it can.

The consensus from what I've heard, is that it's not necessary if the PVC pipe you use is new.

That said, I don't suppose it's ever a bad idea to use it, and certainly an insurance policy--so why not?? FWIW, I've never used it on any of my hard plumbing, and have had no issues.

Had you included the choice "It might be necessary, but I didn't use it," I would have chosen that one.

 

As a former plumber's assistant, I can verify that is the case, that it is used to clean the pipe from any impurities. You can skip that step, but you also risk having a leak.

Home inspectors do look for the purple primer ring.

If you want you can use the clear stuff, but if you are careful, the purple is barely noticeable.

The real question is best asked by Dirty Harry..

"Do you feel lucky, punk?"

 

". . And considering the purple stuff can blow a man's head clear off, I guess you have have to ask yourself just one question. . . . .(insert horkn's quote here). . . well do ya?... . . punk?"





Photo Credit: from this site

 

Sparky, you are just too cool!!

 

no he's not, he have a 44 pointing in your face lol