More and more stainless steel pipes are used as household drinking water pipes. This is what we now call food-grade stainless steel pipes. However, not all 304 stainless steel can be used as drinking water pipes. In the market, there are many 304 stainless steel decorative pipes used as drinking water pipes, pretending to be inferior and deceiving consumers. Today we will learn about the difference between 304 stainless steel decorative pipes and hygienic food-grade stainless steel 304 water pipes.
Different production processes of the two kinds stainless steel pipe
The wall thickness of the sanitary food grade stainless steel 304 water pipe is 0.6mm-0.8mm. The allowable deviation does not exceed ±10% of the nominal wall thickness. In addition, the welding seam requires relatively high quality. At the same time, the performance requirements for flattening, flaring, bending and tensile testing are very high. The test water pressure should be above 2.5Mpa. The production efficiency is generally 1.5 meters/minute. Moreover, online eddy current flaw detection must be carried out during the production process. Sometimes a hydrostatic test must be done.
The wall thickness of 304 stainless steel decorative pipes is not clearly defined. The quality requirements for the welds are not high. And there are no clear requirements for the pressure the pipes will bear. Therefore, the production speed is very fast and the production efficiency can reach 20 meters/minute.
The standards adopted are different
The standard used for hygienic food-grade stainless steel water pipes is GB/T29038-2012. The heavy metal migration amounts of the heavy metal are within the standards. And it will not accumulate scale or be stained by bacteria after long-term use. So there is no need to worry about the water quality being affected. It can also prevent secondary pollution of water.
The standard used for 304 stainless steel decorative pipes is GB/T18705-2002. Therefore, it cannot be in direct contact with food and used as drinking water pipes.
Different application fields
Food grade stainless steel 304 pipe mostly serves in water supply and drainage. Besides, it is the good material for food process. But general 304 stainless steel pipes mostly serves in industry, home decoration and other fields.
Nowadays, many things are used in the home. But now there are many unscrupulous merchants. Unless you are professional, you can’t tell the good and bad products. In general, it is difficult to identify the quality of stainless steel products. Because you can not detect the material. Then you can only judge the quality of the product simply by its appearance. So at this time, it is necessary to choose a reliable hose supplier. Then the quality can be good. For example, Orientflex.