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¢º Copper Gallery £¾Value of Copper
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Is copper an expensive metal?
Comparison with precious metals
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If we rank metals by value, gold, silver, and copper will stand in that order. Let us compare the value of these three metals.
The exchange value of copper is a mere 1/5900 of gold and 1/127 of silver, but what about its practical value? As mentioned earlier,
copper has not only played a major role in accelerating the development of human civilization, but it has been used most widely and
essentially until the current modern scientific days.
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Despite its high practical value, the reason the exchange value of copper decreases is because copper can be obtained more easily than
gold and silver. No other reason exists and copper is certainly a god-sent precious metal.
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Copper, an economical metal
Best choice for pipe material, Copper pipes
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Only high-quality water pipes ensure the provision of clean water. In the past, there were times when steel pipes or shoddy pipes were
used because of their low price, but these pipes caused water to become rusty and weakened the building. The use of the cheap pipes ended up
inflicting greater damages to consumers and the national economy. These pipes shortened the lifespan of the tap water pipes and buildings and
contracted the caliber of pipes, wasting much energy in order to maintain the water pressure. Scales and rusty water in pipes also helped
microorganisms proliferate, posing a threat to our health.
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Due to strong corrosion resistance, copper pipes neither turn rusty nor form scales when used for a long time. Aside from its cleanliness, copper is
easy to work with, easily bends and ducts, therefore copper pipes rarely burst in precipitously falling temperatures. Thanks to their flexibility,
copper pipes hardly damage or lead during earthquakes or external pressure. Notably, copper pipes, compared to pipes made of other materials, can
reduce pressures over the buildings during design and construction.
The U.S., Europe and Japan are already using copper pipes as tap water pipes. Australia, the host of the Environmental Olympics, also advocates
the use of copper pipes.
Starting from April 1994, the Ministry of Construction in Korea made it mandatory to use copper pipes and other rust-proof water pipes.
The Korea National Housing Corporation chose copper pipes for all indoor hot water supply piping materials.
A growing number of large construction companies and redevelopers are doing likewise.
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Copper pipes are more economical
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Many people think highly of copper, but think it is expensive. This is far from the truth, however. The price of copper pipes is not high
and the difference in the prices for the piping material is a trifle compared to the price of the houses.
As for the difference in the costs of building a house with copper pipes and less-expensive synthetic resin pipes,
the difference in the cost of material compared to that of the house is a mere 0.3%.
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If future users of the apartment complex find out that the material cost takes up a small portion of the price of the apartment sold in lots,
which material would they choose? Furthermore, owners of the apartment who have experienced the inconvenience of paying additional cost
to remove the shoddy pipes would clearly choose the better material. The apartments with copper pipes are usually traded at higher prices,
showing the importance of selecting superior piping materials for a good quality house.
Copper pipes have a high thermal conductivity, giving excellent heating capability which helps reduce fuel cost. Likewise, copper pipes
do not accumulate scales, allowing access to clean water at all times. Copper pipes are much more economical and their life span is
longer than the houses in which they are installed; and the cost for maintaining the pipes is low.
Most metals, for instance iron metals, exhaust their remaining value with the passage of time, making the remaining value to reach
zero, but copper does not exhaust and its current value is retained forever. In other words, when a ton of copper pipes are used, 1
ton of resources is stored. As a result, the more copper products such as copper pipes are used, resources will be used more economically
and efficiently.
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