OT: Plumbing with Pex!

Remodeling the bathrooms sure is a lot of work just to have an excuse to build a couple custom cabinets, but hey.

It's been about 15 years since I built my previous home and had to deal with water supply. I'm using this PEX plastic pipe and some of the SharkBite/GatorBite fittings and valves and may I just say, holy freakin WOW!!! Is this stuff the $h!t or what? Talk about fast and easy.

Now, I'm sure there will be a few of you geezers who will tell me all about the dangers of this newfangled technology, like whoever it was who said they preferred board lumber sub-floors over plywood. I'm still LMAO at that. Whatever. Go chase the kids of your lawn.

Anyway, just had to shout from the rooftops about how easy plumbing water is compared to days gone by.

Reply to
-MIKE-
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-MIKE- wrote in news:jhho4i$qn1$1 @speranza.aioe.org:

It's probably OK, but I prefer stuff that has been tested over a longer time span.

I bought some grey plastic plumbing tubing for a non-plumbing application about 25 years ago. 10 years ago, I wanted to get some more. I did a search on-line, and all I found was law suits. Not a good sign...

Apparently after about 10 years it got brittle and exploded. It was very popular in RV & mobile homes, and millions of dollars worth of vehicles & homes were severely damaged by the stuff.

We just had our bathroom remodeled, and the bulk of the plumbing was done with copper. The one place they used Pex was to hook a radiator into the hot water heating system. Getting the fittings just the right spacing was a pain in the neck, and using Pex gave them a little leeway. I think we've got about 1 foot total in the house now.

Reply to
Doug White

No kidding, and I'm an old geezer, but not one of those. :)

The ease with which you can fabricate a PEX manifold system to do plumbing "home runs", like electricians do with wiring, makes getting both hot and cold to all areas of a home a piece o' cake, and much cheaper, meaning you can put money elsewhere, where it can be seen by the buyer/customer.

Too bad there are still municipalities where you can't use PEX. Like the area I've built most of the homes in the last ten years. ... it's against code here. :(

Still, I use PEX whenever, and wherever, I can.

Reply to
Swingman

as been tested over a longer

PEX has been in use in EU for forty years. While there is no such thing as the "perfect" plumbing material, PEX does have a few drawbacks, but the pluses far outweigh the drawbacks.

One thing about PEX is that it does deteriorate with exposure to sunlight. It also must be protected from rodents. There were some initial connection issues when it was first used in this country due to plumbers not being familiar with the material ... that has been overcome for years now.

It is doubtful what you bought was PEX.

Once again, this was not the product PEX.

That should not concern you in the least, and it will most probably outlast the rest of the plumbing.

Reply to
Swingman

Yeah, it is great stuff indeed! I was surprised when I pulled up a few floorboards to move a radiator last time I did some plumbing and found that the water mains supply to the loft was plastic pipe - don't know what brand it was as this must have been done about 40 years ago. The central heating was still copper though.

This winter, the garden tap supply burst on the only section of copper pipe there was (about 6 inches from the water company's plastic supply pipe to the tap itself). Needless to say, this'll be replaced with PEX when it warms up a bit!

I have to admit though, there is a lovely glow of satisfaction to be had from a well-done bit of copper plumbing! And my grandad still doesn't believe anyone has the right to call themselves a plumber unless they know how to properly wipe a lead pipe joint!

Reply to
David Paste

Plumb is latin for lead so he is spot on

Reply to
steve robinson

Not to mention, it expands 10% IIRC so it is less prone to break if it freezes and most new homes, like mine, have a 10 year warranty on the PEX plumbing. Then there is the ease of repair should you need to patch it.

Reply to
Leon

Sure you did not buy conduit???

Color makes a difference, some of that stuff was used in the wrong application.

And PEX has a relatively long track record.

Reply to
Leon

Yes, it's a little strange to be able to spin a valve around the pipe and not see any water. :-) I've heard that developments are in place to make those connection more "secure" even if only to pacify the installer's doubts. I will probably use the crimp-on valves because that spinning might drive me nuts. :-)

Blame the installer, right? I saw a wonder looking manifold installation on This Old House, all labeled and clipped and run in straight lines. It really tickled my OCD. :-)

Reply to
-MIKE-

The houses in my tract (circa 1970) were plumbed from the street using this grey PVC-like pipe. It deteriorated completely within the first 10 years and had to be replaced at _every_ house (fortunately the interiors were galvy).

scott

Reply to
Scott Lurndal

Nope. What he bought was most likely polybutylene.

Reply to
Larry Blanchard

Just out of interest, do the houses in North America have their water supply through metal or polyethylene pipes now?

Reply to
David Paste

Both ... metal is still prevalent in many municipalities' _supply_ lines to the residential cutoff.

CPVC is now very common from the house side of the cutoff in new construction; with a mix of all three (CPVC, galvanized and copper) still in common use.

Reply to
Swingman

I have the manifold in my home/laundry room. A valve for every hot and cold connection in the house, 20 of the IIRC. In Houston we don't often get a freeze that will freeze exterior pipes but it happens. Now instead of leaving my water dripping or all water turned off with drained lines I can simply turn off the exterior hose bibs and open those valves leaving water in the rest of the house.

Reply to
Leon

I used PEX on my parent's farmhouse. Laying on the dirt in the two foot tall crawl space and stringing gray plastic pipe was a lot easier and quicker than trying to solder copper joints. Doesn't burst when it freezes. Mostly I use CPVC and glue when adding in plumbing now. Its easy to work with too. But I do some copper soldering when required. I get some satisfaction out if it. Using the torch and melting the solder and actually having the dang pipe not leak. I hate plumbing. Love electrical, hate plumbing.

Reply to
russellseaton1

Having dug a few holes for my Uncle the plumber, and needing to dig one here to fix the cast iron feeding the septic tank, I will say amen to the devil once more.

Reply to
Markem

Car is short for carriage, as in, horseless, but I don't see too many mechanics needing to know how to change broken spokes in wooden wheels. :-)

Reply to
-MIKE-

I ran the lines to the guest lav and toilet and couldn't believe how easy it was to pull (much, much easier than romex wire). I connected up a T in the line and the stub-outs all using the copper ring crimps and again, couldn't believe how fast and easy. It felt like I was cheating.

If it was copper or CPVC it would've taken me all day to run it under this weird dropped ceiling section of my basement. I have no idea how I would've sweated or glued it, short of tearing the ceiling out.

Reply to
-MIKE-

_That_ is when you hire the teen down the road.

-- The ultimate result of shielding men from folly is to fill the world with fools. -- Herbert Spencer

Reply to
Larry Jaques

The pinch rings for the Watts PEX system sold at HD here are top of the line. Tool is $30, the crimped joints will turn around many turns inside the joint without a drip, can be released easily with a needle nose pliers and sharp screwdriver, and the pinch can be done in a tight corner without the tool needing to be around the ring. Cheap and reliable in the 5 years I have been using them. Never had a leak yet in a house full of them.

Lead free solder doesn't work and I have had several "professional joints" done by 40 year veterans leak already. PEX is always welcome here. Over 4000' of it in my house.

I ran the lines to the guest lav and toilet and couldn't believe how easy it was to pull (much, much easier than romex wire). I connected up a T in the line and the stub-outs all using the copper ring crimps and again, couldn't believe how fast and easy. It felt like I was cheating.

If it was copper or CPVC it would've taken me all day to run it under this weird dropped ceiling section of my basement. I have no idea how I would've sweated or glued it, short of tearing the ceiling out.

Reply to
m II

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