Join ABS to PVC with a transition coupling, not glue. The IPC and IRC allow glue at only one joint, where the building drain meets the building sewer, and only with ASTM D3138 transition cement.
Rigid black plastic, glued joints
Rigid white plastic, glued joints
What fits
A transition coupling, or one glued transition joint where the code allows it
On the package: Plastic x plastic coupling, e.g. Fernco 1056-44 or Proflex 3005-44 for 4 in.
ABS and PVC drain pipe of one size have the same outside, so one coupling size fits both
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Keep water out of the drain while it’s open: don’t run the fixtures that empty into it.
Coupling: Fernco’s 1056 couplings and its shielded Proflex 3005 couplings join plastic to plastic, such as 4" ABS to 4" PVC.
Glued, at one place only: the IPC and IRC allow a single solvent-cement joint between ABS and PVC where the building drain ends and the building sewer begins, made with ASTM D3138 cement. Oatey’s green ABS to PVC Transition cement meets ASTM D3138.
Tighten the clamps to the maker’s torque (60 inch-pounds on Fernco’s) and test the joint before it’s buried or closed in.
ABS and PVC each take their own cement, and the codes join two kinds of plastic pipe with an approved adapter fitting except at that one sewer joint. Your local code decides where that joint can be.
Fernco’s 1056-22 coupling takes 2.20" to 2.50" on both ends, which covers 2" ABS and 2" PVC drain pipe (both 2.375" across).
Where the one glued joint can go
In the IPC, the building drain is the lowest drain piping, which collects the drains inside and runs to 30 inches (762 mm) past the building’s outside walls. The building sewer starts where it ends and carries the waste to the public sewer or a septic system. So the one ABS to PVC solvent joint sits outside the building, where the house’s drain pipe meets the sewer line.
The IPC 2018, 2021 and 2024 and the IRC 2021 all have this rule. Your state or city may change it, and its building department decides what applies.
Which cement
ABS to ABS: ABS solvent cement to ASTM D2235 (IPC 705.2.2).
PVC to PVC: a purple primer to ASTM F656, then PVC cement to ASTM D2564 that isn’t purple (IPC 705.10.2). IPC 2021 and 2024 allow cement alone, with no primer, for PVC drain pipe up to 4 inches when the cement is third-party certified to ASTM D2564; the 2024 edition also asks for the joint to be made to ASTM F3328. Georgia’s 2018 adoption calls for primer only if the cement’s maker requires one.
The one ABS to PVC joint: cement to ASTM D3138. Oatey’s ABS to PVC Transition cement meets it, and its green color shows where it was applied.
These couplings are for drain, waste and vent pipe. Never use one on gas pipe or a water supply line. Work on a buried sewer line, or one under a slab, is usually a job for a licensed plumber.
Not under the IPC and IRC. A sink drain is inside the house, so they call for an approved adapter fitting there, such as a transition coupling. Your local code can differ.
Can transition cement be used on pressure pipe?
Not Oatey's: it makes its ABS to PVC Transition cement for non-pressure transition joints, in drain and sewer pipe up to 6 inches.
The code text is from the IPC and IRC as adopted by the states named in the list, the couplings and cement from Fernco’s and Oatey’s own product pages, and the pipe sizes from Charlotte Pipe. Checked against published data from Charlotte Pipe, International Code Council, Fernco and Oatey.
See all 8 sources
Charlotte Pipe, Plastics Technical Manual (2026), product data: average outside diameter and minimum wall of PVC Schedule 40 and 80, PVC DWV, PVC and ABS foam core, 4" sewer and drain pipe, and CTS CPVC
Charlotte Pipe, Cast Iron No-Hub Submittal Package (2026), Table 1: barrel and spigot outside diameters (CISPI 301, ASTM A888); shielded hubless couplings
Charlotte Pipe, Cast Iron Service Weight Submittal Package (2025): hub and spigot pipe barrel outside and inside diameters (ASTM A74)
International Plumbing Code 2018 (as adopted in Georgia and Oklahoma), 2021 and 2024 (as adopted in South Carolina), section 202 (building drain, building sewer) and sections 705.2, 705.3.2, 705.3.3, 705.10, 705.16 and 705.16.4: ABS, cast iron and PVC joints, joints between different materials, plastic to other piping, the one ABS to PVC solvent-cement joint (ASTM D3138)
International Residential Code 2021, sections P3003.13 and P3003.13.4: joints between different drain materials, plastic to other piping, the one ABS to PVC solvent-cement joint (as adopted in South Carolina)
Fernco, Standard Flexible Couplings page: series by pipe pair (1002 clay, 1056 cast iron, plastic or steel), outside diameter ranges per part, above and below ground, Strong Back RC for buried joints, 60 in-lb torque, ASTM C1173, not for pressurized water
Fernco, Proflex shielded couplings page: above-ground DWV transitions, stainless steel shield, ASTM C1460, 3000 series cast iron to plastic and 3005 series plastic to plastic
Oatey, ABS to PVC Transition Medium Bodied Green Cement product page: DWV-sewer, non-pressure transition joints up to 6", ASTM D3138
General guidance from manufacturer and standards data. Parts vary by brand, so check the size printed on the package against what you measured. For gas lines or anything inside a wall, use a licensed plumber.