Architect Frank Lloyd Wright created some of the most iconic structures in the U.S.: Fallingwater, a private residence on a waterfall in Pennsylvania; the Guggenheim Museum in New York; and the headquarters of consumer products company S.C. Johnson & Son in Wisconsin.
Water and sewer infrastructure may not be as high on the list of his achievements, but at his Arizona winter home and studio, Taliesin West, pipes and drainage fields are a center of attention currently as the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation launches a massive project to replace 80-year-old systems and replace them with PVC.
When I was in Scottsdale for the Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum, I took a brief side trip to Taliesin West in the hills overlooking the city. While I was impressed with the buildings and the grounds, I was surprised as I heard the official guide mentioning PVC specifically when talking about the importance of the ongoing infrastructure work.
"Our new water system will have large diameter PVC pipes and smaller lines made of copper," it says on a website post about the project that began this summer. "The new sewer system will be entirely PVC."
In addition to replacing a "patchwork" of materials for previous project — and eliminating leaks — plastics limit damage to the land and buildings, it noted.
"In most areas, we'll be digging trenches to replace the pipes, but in some areas, we can't do that," the foundation said. "It would disturb the historic structures or concrete in a way that can't be repaired."
Trenchless pipe replacements using plastics will have a minimal impact on structures while still improving efficiency, it said.