An Article About "Uses of Copper"

Real Estate Reporter Monthly magazine of property matter 

Copper, the soft reddish-brown metal, finds wide application in various fields. Having an universal appeal, it has become an integral part of our everyday living. For the urban residents of India, owning a house is a lifetime dream and investment. For this reason, much planning is done, giving lot of importance to quality construction. The basic parameters for that are internal and external cosmetic appearances. The term quality, in a broader sense in the construction industry is determined only if all the criteria governing the building of that structure withstands the test of time. A building has both dynamic forces and static forces. The only two dynamic forces are the electricity and water, while all the rest of the material is static. This proves and emphasizes the point that electrical installation and plumbing are the most salient requisites for enhancement of the life of the structure.

Using Copper

With continuously increasing construction activities in the country, we are witnessing building up of apartments, malls, multiplexes and hospitals. The electrical safety awareness is extremely important.  Being public buildings, the risk to life and property of citizens is very high.  Using copper for safety should become the watchword for further aspects of safety to life, for homes and to property.

Electrolytic grade copper wiring which is of 99.9% purity is the only assurance of safety from hazardous short circuits and electric fires. Bangalore becoming a mega city, it is imperative that all safety measures are followed. New constructions and buildings must have quality copper wiring for a safe future. Copper has higher conductivity, lesser resistivity, is corrosion resistant, has a higher melting point and is more flexible than aluminium.  The conductivity of copper is about 40% more than that of aluminium. This shows that, copper has higher short circuit capacity as it can withstand overloads, therefore increasing the conductor life. In this way, the danger of fire hazard is greatly reduced.

Copper is used at homes not only for wires and cables but also as water carrying pipes. Copper plumbing is the most proven plumbing system in the world. The usage of copper dates back to over 5000 years.

Even though the initial cost is marginally higher, copper plumbing system has many unique benefits such as leak proof jointing and corrosion resistance which ensures a maintenance-free system. This actually means there are no repair costs for replacing leaking parts, repairing broken tiles, etc for the entire life of the plumbing system.  Unlike the conventional plumbing that does not last more than 15 years, the copper plumbing system has a life of over 60 years. Going for copper plumbing is definitely a wise and price-value proposition.

Leakages

In the conventional plumbing, leakages occur mainly due to the threaded joints and corrosion. With the copper plumbing's soldering process, which is fast and simple, both these problems are solved. As copper has superior strength, copper plumbing can withstand higher pressures without springing leaks.  In most of the developed Nations, copper plumbing has a high market share due to its unique features. Due to its negligible co-efficient of linear expansion and ability to withstand high temperatures, it is widely used in hot water systems. Copper pipes arrest the growth of the E. Coli bacteria, present in pipe water.

Indian homes traditionally were using copper utensils. They were aware of its medicinal value. The Vedas mention the enrichment of potable water preserved in copper pot. The Tamba-kata market in the country has been doing fairly good business because of the ethnic image of copper utensils now becoming favourites as decorative pieces among upper / middle class and fashionable hotels. Copper articles are seen at the hotels like Le Meridian, Chennai and Mumbai, Hotel Oberoi in Delhi, Taj in Bangalore, Maratha Sheraton in Mumbai, Fort Aguada in Goa, Hotel Leela, Orchid, Grand Hyatt etc.,

The International copper promotion council [India] has been pressing for copper as replacement for stainless steel in surgical equipments. Copper is the only metal which should be used in surgical applications where the chances for equipment attracting infection are more. The use of copper may prevent bacteria from dwelling on equipment and through that, entering the body.  The council is also promoting the use of copper in air conditioners, structured wiring, green building and wiring in railway coaches and also on curbing the used recycled copper in electrical applications.

Copper  Wiring  the  Best  Option

Using copper cables, wires and pipes for electrical and plumbing purposes has many added advantages.

The material copper has got many inherent and better properties than aluminium.  The main reason for opting for aluminium wiring is its comparatively lower price.

In most of the high-end projects, copper cables and wires are used. Bench marking of amenities are apparent in the branded construction houses projects. There is no compromise in quality. Among all metals copper and aluminium are used as conductor materials in cables including house wiring cables.

In India, the housing sector is making rapid strides and along with it, demand for house wiring cables in increasing. Many projects utilize copper cables and wires for copper has numerous advantageous properties. Copper has higher conductivity, lesser resistivity, is resistant to corrosion, has a higher melting point and is more flexible that aluminium.

The conductivity of copper is about 40 percent more than that of aluminium. This naturally implies that copper has higher short circuit capacity as it has got the power to withstand heavy overloads, thereby increasing the conductor life.  Due to this, the danger of fire hazard is greatly reduced.

Copper has dominated not only the domain of wires and cables, but also the water-carrying pipes are preferred in copper only. Many are opting for copper pipes and fittings instead of the conventional GI and PVC plumbing materials. Copper, comparatively lower in cost to the other metals, is now extensively used in kitchens, for bathroom fittings, and external water and drainage pipes.

Because of the non-corrosive and long-lasting nature of copper, leakage is impossible in buildings if the concealed fittings are of copper.  Biological researches have proved that copper in plumbing arrests both bacterial and fungal growth. Copper pipes and fittings could be selected from a wide range of sizes. They are available with protective plastic finishes or nickel, chromium, silver

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