Why Choose Recycled PVC Blocks Instead of Concrete?

Many fundamental choices are too often made by making a mathematical price comparison, between two elements taken into consideration that apparently seem to have the same characteristics and the same functions.

In the field of construction, an activity that has an important environmental impact and where the circularity of the products used has not yet reached full capacity, very often two products to be used only on the basis of price, often choosing the lowest one.

The decision to lay the cheaper one, often the concrete one, comes from the conviction that the two products are replaceable between the concrete block and the recycled PVC block and that we have the same technical and durability functions.

Although the cost of the two products is on average close between the two, the choice of using the cheapest one creates an apparent saving, but in reality the cost per square meter over the years of the concrete element can be significantly higher than that of recycled PVC.

In the weighted decision between one product and another, the price variable alone cannot condition the purchase, as it can rightly be taken into consideration when all the other differences have also been analyzed and evaluated economically.

Let's see some:

• The recycled PVC brick has a weight per square meter lower than those in concrete. Each designer should take into consideration the greater environmental impact that a greater number of transports, with the same surface laid, affects the carbonization count.

• The recycled PVC block is not damaged by road salt, damage that affects the concrete blocks with maintenance costs in important years.

• The recycled PVC block is an electrically insulated surface and can also be used in industrial contexts where leakage current could be a danger.

• The recycled PVC brick has a good bending value, this allows the product to absorb small and medium imperfections of the substrate without breaking.

• The recycled PVC block has a decidedly reduced installation cost compared to the paving in self-locking concrete blocks, as the stratification it needs, on compact ground , it is only about 5 cm. of sand. This also affects the environmental impact of the transport of raw materials which are decidedly against the concrete block. It also has an intuitive and comfortable pose, typical of DIY, so as to allow anyone to create the required flooring.

• The recycled PVC brick can be easily cut with a non-professional hose or saw, concrete one needs equipment with professional grade diamond blades.

• The recycled PVC brick is composed of plastic waste derived from the processing of electrical cables, which are shredded, selected and extruded, contributing to the full circularity of the raw material. Furthermore, the solid PVC laid at the end of its life can be recycled again. Each flooring made with solid PVC helps to reduce the amount of waste we produce daily.

• The recycled PVC brick is waterproof, this involves a lower risk of breakage in freeze and thaw cycles.

• The recycled PVC brick, as it is non-porous, cannot be stained with oils or fuels that can lose the means of transport, which happens indelibly with the porous concrete pavement. Diesel, oil or petrol stains remain permanently on the cement surfaces, while those made with a solid recycled PVC block can be easily washed with a jet of pressurized water.

• The traditional flooring brick is normally composed of cement, which derives from the processing of natural stones by excavation, then undergoing a firing process that uses fossil energy in great quantity. Cement is combined with sand to form a cement mixture, sand that comes from excavating land or dredging rivers, irreparably consuming natural resources. The third element necessary to produce concrete blocks is water, which normally affects a percentage of more than 40% per gram of cement used. So the environmental impact of a square meter of concrete blocks is incredibly higher than one made of recycled PVC.

• With regard to the resistance to compression, driveability, tire torsion, reaction to fire, cigarette burns and slipperiness, the two products are on average equivalent.

In the light of these data, the price comparison between a solid recycled PVC and a concrete one must take into account all these points, which are accounted for, economically and morally, they bring PVC brick to a much lower overall cost than concrete or asphalt paving.

Automatic translation. We apologize for any inaccuracies. Original article in Italian.