When we realised we needed a light tent for our product photography, we knew the only thing to do was to put our own products to the test! Read more to find out how it went!

If you have ordered from us before, you will know that we have been delivering our products to you in polythene bags up until this point. Now, however, we are trying to be more environmentally friendly!

You might have noticed some informative videos dotted around our website - these come from our own YouTube channel, which is stocked with far more videos!

Read on to find out more.

We have been adding more helpful information to some of our website pages! Read this blog post to find out more.

Introducing our YouTube channel: PlasticPipeShopTV

A description of clear PVC pipe systems including imperial and metric.

We have a new catalogue available!

We have recently bought in a stock of large, green combi slide valves!

You might have noticed a change in our product images in the PVC category. We are currently in the process of updating the majority of our product images so that they all fit the same standard and are as accurate as possible, ensuring that our customers are confident they will be receiving the same product that they saw online.

There are a few different methods for replacing a broken piece of pipe in your pipe system. They depend on the amount of pipe movement your system will allow, how quickly you would need to get your system up and running again, and at what pressure your system operates at. Read this blog post to understand each method and help you decide which one suits you best.

If you love our furniture grade pipe but aren't really interested in the rest of our products, we have a sister company dedicated to the DIY market and furniture grade PVC's place within it! Read on for more information.

Measuring the diameter of a plastic pipe might seem quite straightforward at first – you just measure the diameter of the pipe. However, it's important that you measure the right diameter with the right unit, so you can tell exactly what size it is, and make sure that when you're reordering fittings or more pipe, that you choose the right size.

A union is a three-part fitting. The first part is a section which has a large thread on it and an O-ring inside which makes the seal. On the other side of this first part is a plain socket. The other half of the union consists of two parts: a union nut and a socketed section. The nut slides over the socketed section and, together, they pair up with the threaded section of the union. The O-ring sits against the flat surface of the socketed section to give you a good seal.

Double union ball valves have both advantages and disadvantages – figuring out where you need the valve in your pipe system and what kind of control you want to have over the flow will help you decide whether a double union ball valve is the right choice for you.

A PVC gate valve is quite a complex valve compared to more simple valves, like a ball valve, but is fantastic for fine control of flow. The wheel at the top of the valve has about eight/eight-and-a-half turns from fully shut to fully open, which allows for very small movements in the internal workings of the valve. This gives you fine control of your flow.

We have recently added a new range of coloured Furniture/ Display Grade PVC pipe and fittings to our website.

This video demonstrates the difference between standard PVC and Furniture/ Display Grade PVC pipe and fittings.

We are regularly asked what is the best way to connect metal threads to plastic threads.

There are two main options. Firstly, using a standard threaded fitting and a metal thread, just to thread it straight on. The second option would be to use some special fittings, which are composite unions. With a composite union, there is metal on one side and a plastic socket on the other.

ABS plastic has several characteristics that makes it the material of choice for many specialist applications. ABS has a high ductility, which is the ability to deform and reform to the items original shape. The best known application of this is in the use of ABS for making LEGO bricks.

Spears PVC gate valves are, in our opinion, the best valve for fine control of flow rates.

The handle has to be turned many times between fully closed and fully open states which gives the ability to set very accurate flow rates.

PVC ventilation systems can be joined by either solvent weld, hot air welding, or using a temporary sealer such as silicone / mastic. PPS system can only be hot air welded.

A summary of the difference in ratings between pressure and drainage or soil pipe.

Alternative plastic pipe system to Durapipe

New videos on our YouTube channel, including a full description of how to cement plastic pipe and fittings together.

Y Strainers are an often overlooked fitting for a PVC pipe system. Strainers should be installed to catch the occasional bit of debris in a system. If you have a water supply which is constantly full of large particles, a larger, more substantial filter system should be installed. If your water source is generally clean has any possibility of being contaminated by biological matter, bits of string, cable ties etc swept from floors or gantries, or even a tool dropped into a sump, the fitting of a strainer in your line can be invaluable. With mesh sizes of 0.9mm in strainers up to 63mm, and 2mm in the strainers over that size, there is very little affect to water flow rates, pressures etc.

Some hints and tips when buying pipe for hydro schemes.