Almost all mixers produced are made from a copper-zinc alloy. If the copper alloy contains more than 60 percent, then this material is called brass.
All reliable faucets used in everyday life are made from this alloy. A reasonable question arises, why not use only copper in the housings of sanitary ware. Unfortunately, pure copper is a relatively "soft" material, which, under certain conditions, will lead to breakdowns and accidents. Moreover, copper is a rather expensive product. In its pure form, it is rarely used in plumbing. Therefore, it is almost always ligated, zinc, a cheaper metal, is added. That makes the production cheaper and increases the rigidity of the products. With this, everything is clear.
Hello friends, with you Plumber - Timofey Mikhailov. Glad to every reader. Now I will tell you why such a corrosion-resistant metal like stainless steel is not used as mixer bodies.
Faucets are not made of stainless steel, why?
In all my practical work as a plumber, I have never met faucets, completely made of stainless steel alloy. I met the pipes, I even saw the valves made of food stainless steel, they are used in the food industry.
What is stainless steel?
Alloy steel, resistant to corrosion in the atmosphere and corrosive environments, with heat-resistant properties. Various types of stainless steel include carbon, nitrogen, aluminum, silicon, sulfur, titanium, nickel, copper, selenium, niobium, and molybdenum.
According to the site: ru.wikipedia.org
- Good stainless steels, excellent resistance to corrosion, concentrated acids and alkalis, but worth a lot of money. A lightly alloyed stainless steel is worse than brass in its properties.
- In addition, highly alloyed stainless steel is very difficult to process, difficult to cast. Unlike copper-zinc alloy. Those who have ever tried to cut a bar of "stainless steel" with an ordinary hacksaw blade understand what I'm talking about.
- Faucets made of high quality stainless alloy do not corrode, from the word "absolutely". This means that they will never need to be changed. Which will lead to losses for mixer manufacturers.
Conclusion: Corrosion-resistant stainless alloys are not used due to their high cost and high processing costs. And also because of the "eternity" of such plumbing fixtures ...
From SW. Timofey Mikhailov. I will be glad to every Like!