Safe drinking water in PVC pipes (migration and bacterial growth)
PVC is used all over the world for water distribution and is considered as one of the safest materials for the transport of drinking water
Migration: Different methods are used to detect the migration of substances present in PVC formulations. First of all the leaching behaviour is assessed by prolonged direct contact of the potable water with the products in very severe conditions. Then the "migration water" is checked using different techniques, including searches for traces of molecules below the level of a few µg/l.
Virtually nothing leaches out: the leachates are very similar to the blanks used when analysing them with techniques like gas chromatography combined with mass spectroscopy (GCMS)
Lead is used less and less as a stabiliser and such stabilisers have never been a source of lead in drinking water, as the stabilisers are immobilised within the PVC pipe structure during the manufacturing process. The new stabilisers being used as alternatives to lead are fully assessed ("positive listing") and do not affect the drinking water characteristics in any way.
Microbial growth : PVC pipes are known to perform perfectly according to the different methods used in Europe for the assessment of microbial growth of products in contact with drinking water (Germany, United Kingdom and The Netherlands).¹
Many field studies confirm this good behaviour. This is linked to the absence of migration and the very good surface properties of these piping systems
Taste and odour: Due to absence of migration and low bacterial growth in PVC, the organoleptic properties of PVC pipes are generally very good. This is also confirmed by regular testing in different European institutes.
