Help With Old Glycerin Corrosion on Steel Pipe?

2/23/2021

Is anyone having problems with steel pipe corrosion after using the older glycerin?

Three year old condominium complex was an NFPA 13R job. About 75% of the pipe is CPVC with exposed basements installed in steel. We hydo-tested four of the buildings in the winter with the glycerin before the buildings had heat so the builder can insulate and sheetrock. We drained out what we could but did not pull any heads in the basement. We didn't think leaving some trapped glycerin in the steel basement piping would be anything to be concerned about.

The basements have developed pin hole leaks and the odor when draining is putrid! I saw the new UL-listed (Freezemaster) antifreeze states, "includes a corrosion inhibitor package".

Any help/advice is greatly appreciated in stopping this attack on the pipe.

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5 Comments

Jay Richardson

2/23/2021 09:06:19 am

Did you use an antifreeze that has been tested and listed for use in fire sprinkler systems?

JOHN M ERCOLANO

2/23/2021 01:38:57 pm

3 years ago I don't believe any antifreeze was listed. We bought the product from our sprinkler supplier and the label read approved for fire sprinkler use burst point -50 it was not UL listed. Like you, I'm sure you have been using non listed antifreeze PG for years with no issues on steel systems. Since the CPVC piping system allows only glycerin and the microbes feed on oxygen, H2O at such a rapid pace- the industry needs an inhibitor/cleaner/killing agent that stops the corrosion on the existing steel pipe systems without having to go back into finished spaces drain and pull all the heads. We used the product for testing only and when finished drained the glycerin and then filled the system with H2O - food for the microbes- now 3 years later fixing pin holes and and having to negotiate 3rd party law suites. We can't be responsible for everything! Know any good fire sprinkler lawyers?

jay

2/23/2021 06:53:15 pm

I was asking about the listed antifreeze for 2 reasons.
One was whether or not it has been tested as compatible for use with the CPVC piping as required by the pipe manufacturer and 13, 13D, and 13R.
The other was for the reason that the codes were changed to require a listed premixed antifreeze - because higher concentrations are flammable (in the drops) and will cause a fireball when the sprinkler system operates, which has been determined as the cause of at least one fire death.

CJ Bonczyk

2/23/2021 09:44:49 am

In the March/April 2018 Sprinkler Age magazine has an article directly relating to what seems to be the exact same issues you are having. Check out pages 32-33 in the link below.

https://issuu.com/sprinklerage/docs/sa180304mw

Hope that helps.

JOHN M ERCOLANO

2/23/2021 01:43:05 pm

Thanks for the heads up very useful. Sounds like I have trouble!

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