PE foam insulated pipe is a product within the PU direct-buried insulated pipe family, used mainly for thermal insulation of potable-water and hot-spring lines and other pipelines with high water-quality requirements. Heat is conveyed in a PE inner pipe. PE is a plastic that does not rust or produce odor; the actual water temperature is only tens of degrees Celsius down to ambient, so service life is very long. A simple example is that plastic buried underground for decades can be excavated intact. It is, however, sensitive to ultraviolet light and ages rapidly under UV exposure—in this respect similar to PU direct-buried insulated pipe.

　　2. Main differences in manufacture:

　　There is no major difference in overall practice between PE foam insulated pipe and ordinary PU direct-buried insulated pipe; the main difference is in the joints reserved at both ends. For PU direct-buried insulated pipe, a 15 cm weld allowance at each end is sufficient, whereas PE foam insulated pipe requires a weld allowance ranging from 20 cm to one meter—the larger the pipe diameter, the longer the reserved joints. This is because PU direct-buried insulated pipe is joined by welding machines, and 30 cm of total space between facing joints is adequate, while PE foam insulated pipe is joined with a heat-fusion machine, which requires sufficient joint distance as determined by the equipment's capability.
　　3. Same specification and model but different diameters:

　　Another major difference between PE foam insulated pipe and ordinary PU direct-buried insulated pipe is that, for the same specification, the diameters are different—this must be noted in particular. Do not confuse the fact that the OD of a PE pipe corresponds to what is specified as the ID of a steel pipe. For example, DN400 PE pipe has a diameter of 400 mm, whereas DN400 steel pipe has an ID of 400 mm and an OD of 426 mm. Both are called 16-inch insulated pipe, but the actual diameters differ considerably.

　　4. Material cost:

　　The difference between PE foam insulated pipe and ordinary PU direct-buried insulated pipe is also closely related to price. For insulated pipe of the same national-standard quality, the steel pipe is typically only a few millimeters thick, whereas the PE pipe is about ten times as thick, so one should not assume that PE pipe is necessarily much cheaper—that is a misconception. Fabrication cost in summer is similar; in winter PE pipe heats more slowly and needs more preheating time, so fabrication cost rises accordingly. Users are advised to order the insulated pipe that best suits their actual conditions.

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