I agree that the life expectancy of PVC is greater than it is for steel.
My question is about how difficult it is to seal the connections in large diameter PVC?
I know my confidence on perfect seals for pressure applications goes down when I am working with 4" PVC. Can an experienced dirt contractor easily work with 12" or larger PVC by utilizing specialty tools, using experience, etc.? Are tiny leaks acceptable since it is not a pressure application or a siphon pipe?
I took a little two hr course one time on PVC pipe gluing, its amazing what that stuff does and is capable of if done correctly, a 4" pvc pipe, properly glued, will hold nearly twice what the pipe is rated at if put under pressure. and larger diameter pipes are pretty much the same way, the problem is the size is a little harder to deal with because of the volume of coverage that is required, but can easily be done with bigger brushes, primer cannot be allowed to dry before adding the glue and socketing the two together, which on large pipe will probably have to be done with a machine to get it to bottom out quickly.
I had to redo an overflow one time where a pond builder had used socket joint pipe but didnt have the dam properly compacted on the back side and the dirt slid a little as it was settling and pulled the pipe apart so we had to start completely over with the overflow pipe. I used 14" socket joint waterline in my pond without any problems because I know how it was compacted, and as insurance I stuck several stainless steel lag screws thru the pipe joints right behind the gaskets, in effect bolting the two pieces together.
