Who likes good PEX?

James331

James331

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James331
So I got some plumbing to do, got to replace some PVC, going with PEX.

Any tips?

Claps vs shark bite?

Thanks dudes
 
Look up "Matt Risinger" on Youtube. He did a series of tests on all the different PEX fittings
 
Double :yeahthat:

His other videos about home building and related products are also worth a look.
 
If you buy a coil, unspool and let it relax for a while, ideally someplace warm. I went with clamps, but that's probably just because I still consider new technologies like compression fittings and running water to be suspect.
 
Its cool stuff, get quality tools. I tried cheap pliers on the ss shark bite brand clamps and had a few leaks.
 
We’re building a house so I splurged for Wirsbo tools and the power expansion tool. It’s full flow fittings that get tighter over time vs potentially looser


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
I love the stuff. I went with the middle of the road tool from the big box store. Same fittings as the professional grade tool, but the clamp that goes in a the crimper has a hose clamp type appearance vs the wedding band looking ones pros use. Fitting are far cheaper than shark bites as those cud kill ya buying too many of those... but my math said plumbing one home, the cost savings between my style camp and the professional grade ones wouldn’t come close to paying the difference in price in the two tools. Yet to have even a dribble.

Pex is only way to go
 
I just redid all of the plumbing in my house, replacing corroded copper pipe with PEX, first time I ever worked with the stuff. Should have done it years ago. I used plastic fittings everywhere, even plastic valves where possible (my acidic water corrodes anything metal). I used the copper clamp rings, the stainless clamps have an "ear" that could make it problematic to pull a spliced tube through a hole. Around 75 connections and not one leak, try that with sweated copper!

Everything was Sharkbite brand, but not the push on Sharkbite fittings... those are for emergencies only (and expensive). I did use the push on Sharkbite service valves under the sinks, though, because that was all they had (swinging the crimping tool inside the cabinet or behind the toilet would have been tough).

Buy lots of extra fittings and return what you don't use.
 
I can’t say I’ve used a lot of Sharkbite fittings, but of the 1/2 dozen I’ve got in use, never had a drip. Going from 1/2” copper to PEX with a SB fitting is too easy not to do it. And the SB T-valves are nice. Not much more expensive than crimp-on, either, but with fewer crimps = easy to plumb in tight spots.
 
chartbundle said:
If you buy a coil, unspool and let it relax for a while, ideally someplace warm. I went with clamps, but that's probably just because I still consider new technologies like compression fittings and running water to be suspect.
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Still using a sextant for navigation? :D
 
I used pex and shark bite fittings when I put a shallow well in my shop. Worked great and have been trouble free.
 
Another advantage of PEX is the silence when a faucet is opened or closed rapidly by young humans. Not perfect, but darn close to it. No one is likely to plumb their hotwater radiators with all PEX, but I bet it would work. Good stuff. Sometimes new tech really is better than the old stuff. PEX couldn't be manufactured a hundred years ago. Before that there was lead pipe. Then copper came along, then PVC started getting used for certain things. It all depends on the application, ease of access, cost, time, etc.
 
There are high temperature versions of PEX used in floor heating and heating loop circuits. YMMV
 
MIFlyer said:
f you're doing a big job...

Here's for big pipes (I've done 2" stuff with it no problem) https://www.supplyhouse.com/Milwaukee-2632-22XC-M18-ProPEX-Expansion-Tool-Kit-with-2-XC-Batteries

or for smaller https://www.supplyhouse.com/Milwaukee-2432-22XC-M12-ProPEX-Expansion-Tool-Kit-with-2-XC-Batteries

there's also a human powered tool for even less if you're just doing a smaller job
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I second this, using this Milwaukee tool and Uponor brand Aquapex, and a manifold system on several homes, I have yet to have a leak or failure. While pricey, the Milwaukee is exponentially easier to use than the manual tool, especially in tight spaces. If you only have a small job, the tool can be resold easily for close to purchase price, and some plumbing supply shops rent them out.
 
PEX: I was skeptical at first. Especially with the catastrophic class action they had the first go-around. But now I'm sold. My only experience with PEX is a couple of small jobs and minor repairs and it really is plumbing for dummies. Incredibly easy.

SHARK BITE: The helpful guy at Home Depot introduced me to Shark Bite ten years ago when I was remodeling my wife's bathroom and mentioned that I had some tight areas I was trying to maneuver copper in. I couldn't believe it - it was incredible. Plug-n-play plumbing. I LOVED IT. Fast-forward three years and I'm reading a book one Sunday night and hear water running. hmmm, my wife is here and the kids are out. (I sometimes wonder if I'm the only one whose ears twitch when they hear things like that.) So I go upstairs to find water is pouring from the wall where the shower faucet is. I shut the water main off, tear into the wall and find where a Sharkbite fitting has come loose.

First, I keep all the lines fastened tight to the studs. I slide the fitting back onto the line and it loosely slides in, then right back off. It has lost its grip. I took it into Home Depot and they say they've never seen a fitting failure. Shark Bite warrants the fitting only for replacement, not any damage a faulty one causes. And here's the important part - the warranty is only for 20 years. How one lasts 3 years and then loses its grip is a mystery. But it's not something I'd feel comfortable ever using again.
 
Gerhardt said:
I took it into Home Depot and they say they've never seen a fitting failure. Shark Bite warrants the fitting only for replacement, not any damage a faulty one causes. And here's the important part - the warranty is only for 20 years.
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You mention this as though its a bad thing. Warranties of any type are extremely uncommon when it comes to plumbing fittings. If you had put in copper fittings, and they ended up leaking (and they absolutely can and do), about the best recourse you could hope for would have been a 'Gee sorry 'bout your luck' from the sales guy.
 
Juliet Hotel said:
You mention this as though its a bad thing. Warranties of any type are extremely uncommon when it comes to plumbing fittings. If you had put in copper fittings, and they ended up leaking (and they absolutely can and do), about the best recourse you could hope for would have been a 'Gee sorry 'bout your luck' from the sales guy.
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Did you end up replacing all the shark bite fittings?
 
James331 said:
Did you end up replacing all the shark bite fittings?
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Are you asking me or Gerhardt?

I like them for what they are and I wouldn't hesitate to use them again. If I was going to plumb an entire house I'd invest in a good tool and crimp everything. But so far I've never needed to do enough to justify investing in a crimp tool. I can come up with a long list of other tools I'd rather spend that money on.
 
About the same cost as 6 shark bite fittings can buy a very good hand power PEX tool.
 
Juliet Hotel said:
Are you asking me or Gerhardt?

I like them for what they are and I wouldn't hesitate to use them again. If I was going to plumb an entire house I'd invest in a good tool and crimp everything. But so far I've never needed to do enough to justify investing in a crimp tool. I can come up with a long list of other tools I'd rather spend that money on.
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I bet he's asking me. And hell yes I did. I couldn't get them out of there fast enough.

But you touched on something in your post. I don't get why PEX tools are so expensive, for what they are.
 
I'm not a fan of residential PEX piping and fittings. They tend to break if subjected to flex over a period of time. Now commercial fusion weld HDPE is great stuff. Not something you would put in a house though. Personally, for cold water piping I'd opt for PVC if corrosion was an issue.
 
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