One of life’s most needed refuges wouldn’t be much of a sanctuary without castings.


Shannon Wetzel, Senior Editor


High-end shower heads, like this “rain” version, may feature individual cast brass nozzles, rather than a stamped faceplate with dimples. The individual cast nozzles provide consis- tent streams of water. The shower arm, connecting the shower head to the wall mounting, also is often a brass casting plated or coated in another finish, such as chrome.


Many shower drains are produced via sand casting in a copper-base alloy and shot blasted for a smooth finish. The gasket for the drain is also cast.


Like tubs and sinks, some toilet tanks are cast in iron. The flange that mounts the toilet to the floor and connects it to the drain pipe also may be cast in iron, brass or stainless steel. Additionally, the handles for flushing can be cast zinc.


Many plumbing components directing water to your sink, tub and toilet are cast in copper-base alloys. Traditionally, the components have been produced in leaded red and semi-red brasses in green sand for the alloys’ aqueous corrosion resistance. However, due to health concerns, lead-free alloys have been developed that feature similar corrosion resistance and machinability properties.


July/August 2010 MetAl CAsting Design AnD PurChAsing 45 45


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