I want to make an arch out of 3\4 p v c. It will stay outside for serveral years and be exposed to all of natures elements. What if anything can I treat it with to keep it from getting brittle and cracking? It will eventually be partialy covered with climbing vines. Thanks for any reply Herb

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 13:38:01 -0700 (PDT), herb white
wrote:

I want to make an arch out of 3\4 p v c. It will stay outside for serveral years and be exposed to all of natures elements. What if anything can I treat it with to keep it from getting brittle and cracking? It will eventually be partialy covered with climbing vines. Thanks for any reply Herb

Paint it. That will protect the PVC from the UV light.

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 13:38:01 -0700 (PDT), herb white
wrote:

I want to make an arch out of 3\4 p v c. It will stay outside for serveral years and be exposed to all of natures elements. What if anything can I treat it with to keep it from getting brittle and cracking? It will eventually be partialy covered with climbing vines. Thanks for any reply Herb

paint.

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:01:48 -0400, wrote:

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 13:38:01 -0700 (PDT), herb white
wrote:

I want to make an arch out of 3\4 p v c. It will stay outside for serveral years and be exposed to all of natures elements. What if anything can I treat it with to keep it from getting brittle and cracking? It will eventually be partialy covered with climbing vines. Thanks for any reply Herb

The PVC will get brittle but it is not going to crumble to dust. There
are PVC arbors around here that have been in the Florida sun for 20
years or more. As long as you are not trying to bend it, you will be
OK.

He said it was going to be an arch!

If you used the gray "electrical" PVC it will be OK for decades.
Like the others have said a coat or two of paint will reduce the UV
damage.

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:28:15 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:01:48 -0400, wrote:

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 13:38:01 -0700 (PDT), herb white
wrote:

I want to make an arch out of 3\4 p v c. It will stay outside for serveral years and be exposed to all of natures elements. What if anything can I treat it with to keep it from getting brittle and cracking? It will eventually be partialy covered with climbing vines. Thanks for any reply Herb

The PVC will get brittle but it is not going to crumble to dust. There
are PVC arbors around here that have been in the Florida sun for 20
years or more. As long as you are not trying to bend it, you will be
OK.

He said it was going to be an arch!

So? He could make an arch without any bending by using short straight
segments between the appropriate number of elbows based on their
angle.


If you used the gray "electrical" PVC it will be OK for decades.
Like the others have said a coat or two of paint will reduce the UV
damage.

Gordon Shumway wrote:
On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:28:15 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:01:48 -0400, wrote:

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 13:38:01 -0700 (PDT), herb white
wrote:

I want to make an arch out of 3\4 p v c. It will stay outside for
serveral years and be exposed to all of natures elements. What if
anything can I treat it with to keep it from getting brittle and
cracking? It will eventually be partialy covered with climbing
vines. Thanks for any reply Herb

The PVC will get brittle but it is not going to crumble to dust.
There are PVC arbors around here that have been in the Florida sun
for 20 years or more. As long as you are not trying to bend it, you
will be OK.

He said it was going to be an arch!

So? He could make an arch without any bending by using short straight
segments between the appropriate number of elbows based on their
angle.

And what a waste of time, money and energy that would be. PVC bends just fine.

On 6/25/2015 4:38 PM, herb white wrote:
I want to make an arch out of 3\4 p v c. It will stay outside for serveral years and be exposed to all of natures elements. What if anything can I treat it with to keep it from getting brittle and cracking? It will eventually be partialy covered with climbing vines. Thanks for any reply Herb


I'd say that if you start out with UV-reistant pipe and fittings (PVC-UVR)
in the beginning you should be home free. If you can't find the proper
stuff locally, try for outdoor-rated PVC conduit which will certainly stand
up for decades and is much more easily identified as outdoor material by
its grey color. Paint whatever you choose with a plastic-rated spray to
achieve your desired color.

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:28:15 -0400, micky
wrote:
years or more. As long as you are not trying to bend
it, you will be OK.

He said it was going to be an arch!

I hadn't thought about painting our pvc arch we installed in our
garden. We zip tied 1x2 inch cage wire overlapping the ends to our
pvc arch. I had wondered if that would be enough reinforcement to
strengthen the pvc. It's too late to paint the pvc now, though.

--
rebel