Year(s) which saw end of lead, steel installs in favour of copper?

[WaterTight]

Anyone know roughly when lead stopped being installed for domestic pipework and then again when steel was replaced by copper? I know I can google but it misses out on the warmth and colour of lived human experience and interaction. Plus I can't be arsed. Thanks

 

[Last Plumber]

It was a slow process like everything else in Plumbing.
Lead water mains, my guess for stopping it would be some time after the 30's?
Slowly!!
Gas pipes in lead probably after the 40's
There, that's the first random guess.

 

[Best]

No, it was used much later than that.
Lead underground mains was still sometimes used in the 1950s, despite underground copper being easily available.
Copper pipe inside homes was used about the war time onwards. So a house in the 1930s was lead usually.

 

[Last Plumber]

No, it was used much later than that.
Lead underground mains was still sometimes used in the 1950s, despite underground copper being easily available.
Copper pipe inside homes was used about the war time onwards. So a house in the 1930s was lead usually.

That's why I said after the thirties. I know houses around here that were built in the thirties have lead. I know pre war semi-detached houses have it, so that takes you up to 1939 ish. I know my relatives in the 50's used lead but they also used copper. I don't know that there was a definite 'stop' was there?
Did it not slowly reduce as copper and black alkathene took over?
When was the definite stop on lead solder on drinking water? was it the mid to late 80's ? that was when it was 'OUTLAWED' for good!
in total, for ever, no lead in drinking water supplies at all!

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Battle of the Zimmer frames

 

[Best]

Battle of the Zimmer frames

During the war......

 

[Best]

Yes Last Plumber, lead and copper plumbing was both used for a few years. Some old plumbers also didn't want to change over to the completely different way of having to bend & solder copper.

 

[Last Plumber]

Yes Last Plumber, lead and copper plumbing was both used for a few years. Some old plumbers also didn't want to change over to the completely different way of having to bend & solder copper.

ha ha, and I don't blame em

 

[Last Plumber]

Battle of the Zimmer frames

Meaning ?
come on funny man, what does that mean?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Meaning ?
come on funny man, what does that mean?

Thinking back to the Good old days

 

[Last Plumber]

Thinking back to the Good old days

Why Battle and why zimmer frames ? How old is old Shaun lol
Did my post read wrong? it was not meant to sound argumentative.

 

[Last Plumber]

Yes Last Plumber, lead and copper plumbing was both used for a few years. Some old plumbers also didn't want to change over to the completely different way of having to bend & solder copper.

If my post sounded argumentative Best, then you have my most humble of apologies. It was not supposed to read that way at all.
I was more asking than telling. I does look a wee bit odd now I re read it. Forgive me, I was on my way out when I wrote !

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Why Battle and why zimmer frames ? How old is old Shaun lol
Did my post read wrong? it was not meant to sound argumentative.

How old do you think I am

And no it's just me

 

[Last Plumber]

How old do you think I am

And no it's just me

If I had to guess your age going off your written work I would say 25?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

If I had to guess your age going off your written work I would say 25?

Now that's strange spot on

 

[Last Plumber]

Now that's strange spot on

I'm good aren't I?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

I'm good aren't I?

Spookily good

 

[Last Plumber]

Spookily good

I remember when I was 25.
Back when all this were nowt but fields.
Way back in eighteen hundred and frozen to death.

Have you ever heard of a knocker upper Shaun?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

I remember when I was 25.
Back when all this were nowt but fields.
Way back in eighteen hundred and frozen to death.

Have you ever heard of a knocker upper Shaun?

Didn't you have a pet pterodactyl when you were a we lad And yes I have

 

[WaterTight]

I has assumed lead was replaced by steel which was replace by copper. So copper was being used same time as lead was being phased out?

 

[Best]

I has assumed lead was replaced by steel which was replace by copper. So copper was being used same time as lead was being phased out?

Lead pipes inside houses were used for all homes, up into the 30s, except I guess the odd mansion that might have had copper (and maybe iron for heating).
Copper pipes was the replacement of lead pipes.
Some homes had iron mains pipes, which I always think of as strange.
Copper pipe was used in the 40s and beyond, but some new lead pipes were still being installed in the 50s and probably 60s.
My house is 1950s and was all copper, including underground copper mains, which is still in use, but 1/2" beyond boundary was originally all lead, until modernised

 

[Best]

If my post sounded argumentative Best, then you have my most humble of apologies. It was not supposed to read that way at all.
I was more asking than telling. I does look a wee bit odd now I re read it. Forgive me, I was on my way out when I wrote !

I knew you weren't being argumentative, so no worries LP
Besides, there's no rules that say you can't be!
Although I know elderly people can be grumpy at times. We understand you.

 

[Last Plumber]

I knew you weren't being argumentative, so no worries LP
Besides, there's no rules that say you can't be!
Although I know elderly people can be grumpy at times. We understand you.

Like Victor Meldrew ? lol, Cheers Best.

 

[WaterTight]

Lead pipes inside houses were used for all homes, up into the 30s, except I guess the odd mansion that might have had copper (and maybe iron for heating).
Copper pipes was the replacement of lead pipes.
Some homes had iron mains pipes, which I always think of as strange.
Copper pipe was used in the 40s and beyond, but some new lead pipes were still being installed in the 50s and probably 60s.
My house is 1950s and was all copper, including underground copper mains, which is still in use, but 1/2" beyond boundary was originally all lead, until modernised

Very interesting.

But how does steel fit into this picture? I still see quite a lot of it in houses but very little lead. It sounds like people stopped using lead but instead were installing steel for decades after copper was available. Was this just because of the cost?

I'm in SE, btw.

 

[Best]

Very interesting.

But how does steel fit into this picture? I still see quite a lot of it in houses but very little lead. It sounds like people stopped using lead but instead were installing steel for decades after copper was available. Was this just because of the cost?

I'm in SE, btw.

Must have been down to cost. But copper wasn't very expensive years ago and there wasn't much pipework in majority of houses, - usually just basic plumbing. Strange that a slight saving in materials was opted for.
In this part of UK there isn't much steel pipes. Some farms would have had mains supply across fields.
A few homes have the stainless steel pipes on heating systems and there were some steel pipes with copper coating done about 50 years ago to penny pinch