To + Infinitive vs For+Verb(ing)

For is commonly used with nouns to express individual purpose

• I popped into the supermarket for some apples on the way home. (Not: I popped into the supermarket for buying some apples…)

To express individual purpose with verb we use To + Infinitive

• I popped into the supermarket to buy some apples on the way home.

To express purpose of object we use For + V(ing)

• Schools are for learning. Life is for living.

References

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv284.shtml