Plumbing is one of those things that seems to fly under the radar during home construction and renovation. Many people feel like as long as everything works, the plumbing must be good.

While that’s true in the short term, getting your home’s plumbing up to snuff for the long haul is not so simple. You first need to know the basics of bathroom function so that you can make educated choices about what’s done in your home. It also takes quality products to keep everything flowing smoothly for years to come.

Of course, the better the products, the bigger the price tag, so it’s no wonder that many people are tempted to go cheap on plumbing. Manufacturers know that, so they are always seeking ways to lower the cost of their products so that homeowners will upgrade their choices and get a better outcome.

There are a number of strategies they use for this. One of the most important is product fabrication. Plumbing includes items made of copper, iron, and several types of plastic. The more a company can do to get the best performance from the machinery processing those materials, the better your service will be at home.

Not surprisingly, the machinery handling iron pipe, in particular, is under a lot of stress, but all manufacturing equipment operates under demanding conditions. The pace of the assembly line requires high speeds, and the moving parts of a machine can wear out quickly.

As plumbing parts manufacturers choose the equipment for their work, they are looking for durability. Machinery that incorporates a chromium carbide plate instead of ordinary materials will last much longer, use less energy, and yield a more exactly-built product. This alloy has greater life and lower wear than ordinary steel, so the machine becomes much more effective.

Quality control is important in other ways as well. Not only should the pipes and fittings be the correct thickness, size, and durability, the materials used to join them must be excellent as well. Pipes can be cemented, soldered, or even welded together, and while the pipe manufacturers don’t necessarily manufacture those materials, they know what will work best on their products and will provide specifications that a contractor should be following for best results. After all, if there is a leak, everybody will hear about it.

When something goes wrong, companies typically hear from contractors or even homeowners, and the best companies will follow up on those incidents to find out what caused the problem and what can be done to address it in the future. With all the research and testing they do in-house, there is still no substitute for the incredible variety of circumstances seen in homes. 

The most successful companies are those that not only do the targeted work in the laboratory but who also listen to customers and contractors about problems they encountered. This can be time-consuming because there are so many variables involved that it can be difficult to establish causation. However, when there is a widespread occurrence of some type of problem, it is typically pretty easy to trace. 

Plumbing is an incredibly important part of the home. It is also one that homeowners think little about during construction, so they are often tempted to go cheap on it. The companies that manufacture their products efficiently enough to be priced competitively will find their products and fixtures making their way into most construction budgets, giving the owners better results and greater durability for that essential but hidden plumbing system.