many friends in the water and electricity transformation, municipal pipeline or gas engineering, often encounter a confusion: PE hot melt pipe and everyone's mouth "capacitor pipe" (actually PE fused pipe) look at the PE material, what is the difference? Choose which is more suitable for their own scene? Today we will break the difference between the two "pipe brothers" and say, after reading you can definitely understand.

1. The core difference: the connection method is very different

the essential difference between PE hot melt pipe and "capacitor pipe", hidden in the connection process -

- PE hot melt pipe: directly heat the ports of the two pipes with a hot melt machine, wait for the PE plastic to melt (the temperature is usually 200-230 ° C), quickly align and press, and after cooling, the interface and the pipe are integrated. It is equivalent to burning two candles and sticking them together, and the strength of the interface is almost the same as that of the pipe itself.

- PE electric fusion pipe: It is connected through the "electric fusion joint" - first put the pipe into the electric fusion head with built-in resistance wire, and then use the electric fusion welding machine to heat up, so that the resistance wire can heat up and melt the contact between the joint and the pipe, and finally stick it into a whole. Just like installing an "intelligent hot melt buckle" for the pipeline, there is no need to directly heat the end of the pipe, and the resistance wire in the joint is evenly heated.

2. Applicable scenarios: Who "eats" the environment more?

Although they are all PE pipes, the applicable scenarios are completely different due to different connection methods -

- PE hot melt pipes: more suitable for large-diameter, long-distance, buried projects, such as municipal water supply and drainage pipes (above DN50). The reason is very simple: the hot melt connection speed is fast, the cost is low, and the hot melt of large-diameter pipes can save a lot of labor and material money; and after burial, the pipeline is evenly stressed, and the strength of the hot melt interface can fully withstand the soil pressure.

- "Capacitor Pipe" (PE Fused Pipe): More suitable for small diameter, complex terrain or high sealing requirements of the scene, such as home improvement water and electricity, gas pipelines, indoor heating (DN50 or less). Especially in places with many turns and small space (such as the water pipe in the corner of the kitchen), the fused joint does not need to be precisely aligned with the pipe end, as long as it can be connected; and the flammable and explosive medium of gas has extremely high sealing requirements. The "factory prefabricated" characteristics of the fused joint (precise position of the resistance wire) can avoid leakage caused by human operation errors.

3. Construction Difficulty & Cost: Who is more "picky"?

pipe selection depends not only on the scene, but also on the construction conditions -

- PE hot melt pipe: high requirements for workers' craftsmanship. When the temperature is high during hot melt, the pipe will be burned and deformed, and the temperature will not stick firmly when it is low; uneven strength during docking will also lead to interface deviation, and it is easy to leak later. But the advantage is low cost: the hot melt machine is cheap (thousands of dollars), the pipe itself is also an ordinary PE pipe, and there is no additional joint cost.

- "Capacitor Pipe" (PE Electric Fusion Pipe): The construction is more "stupid" - as long as the electric welding head is well set, the voltage and time parameters are input according to the instructions, and the welding machine automatically completes the heating, almost no "craftsman". But the cost of the joint is high: electric welding head with resistance wire, the price is 3-5 times that of ordinary hot melt joints, and the overall cost of small projects will be a little higher than that of hot melt pipes.

4. Reliability: Whose "life" is more stable?

Both are PE materials (corrosion resistance, anti-aging), and can live for more than 50 years in normal use, but the reliability of the joint varies greatly -

- Hot melt joint: If the construction is in place, the strength is the same as that of the pipeline; but if the workers make mistakes (such as insufficient heating time), the joint will become a "weak point", and the soil settlement after burying may crack the interface.

-Fusion joint: As long as the parameters are correct, the joint and the pipe are "molecular level fusion" (resistance wire uniform heating), and the strength is higher than the pipe itself. Even if buried in the ground under pressure, the joint is not easy to leak, especially suitable for gas, drinking water, which cannot leak medium.

finally give you a practical suggestion

If it is a large municipal project, large diameter pipeline: choose PE hot melt pipe, saving money and efficient;

If it is home improvement, gas, small diameter complex terrain: choose "capacitor pipe" (PE fused pipe), although expensive, but worry-free and safe;

If you are not sure, ask the construction team directly: they know more about the local engineering habits and technical level - after all, the pipeline is not selected correctly, and the cost of later water leakage rework is much more expensive than choosing the right pipeline!

In fact, there is no "who is better" between PE hot melt pipe and "capacitor pipe", only "who is more suitable". Understand their core differences, and you can avoid 90% of the pipe selection pits!