PEX: Is it that easy?

Users who are viewing this thread

Footman_75

Renovating
Messages
42
Reaction score
0
Points
6
Location
Ontario, Canada
Hi folks,

Just did my first PEX installation. It was a fast process. Each crimp passed the go/no go test, and the water is back on with no leaks.

I'm still a bit leery that this method actually works. Waiting for the day when a tube pops off the barbs and my house floods at 65 gpm....

QUESTIONS:

1) Are there any signs I should look for that reveal a bad crimp (not including the go/no go)?
2) Do crimps ever start off as water-tight and then eventually come loose? Or, is a crimp either good or bad, meaning a good crimp is and stays water tight, and a bad crimp leaks immediately. (Hope this makes sense)

Note: I'm using crimp rite crimp rings.

Thanks again and kind regards,
Footman
 

Jadnashua

Retired Defense Industry Engineer xxx
Messages
32,771
Reaction score
1,191
Points
113
Location
New England
If you insert the tubing properly on the barbed fitting, and the crimp ring is applied in the proper location; if it passes the go, no-go test, it's not going anywhere. Well, maybe if you had a couple hundred pounds of pressure, but that would never happen in a domestic, residential setting and the tubing would likely go before the tubing came off the fitting. There are billions of feet of pex installed over the world...installed properly, it works.
 

hj

Master Plumber
Messages
33,599
Reaction score
1,037
Points
113
Location
Cave Creek, Arizona
Website
www.terrylove.com
Yes, it IS that easy. Why do you think plumbing companies like it? They do not have to hire "professional" tradesmen since all they need is one person to "layout" the tubing and then any "knucklehead" can crimp the joints closed. And, since many install it like spaghetti, it takes a lot less time to do it, since neatness doesn't count.
 

Footman_75

Renovating
Messages
42
Reaction score
0
Points
6
Location
Ontario, Canada
Jim, Thanks. This is my seventh bathroom reno. In my ten years of upgrading and maintaining apartments, I've always used solder....until now.
 

Footman_75

Renovating
Messages
42
Reaction score
0
Points
6
Location
Ontario, Canada
HJ, I've only posted a handful of times here, and you've replied to pretty much all of them. Always appreciate your comments.

And sarcasm.

Cheers
"Knucklehead"
 

Jadnashua

Retired Defense Industry Engineer xxx
Messages
32,771
Reaction score
1,191
Points
113
Location
New England
Reality is NOT sarcasm, and what I posted also applied to the polybutylene installations in the 70s and 80s, and we know how those went.
Since pex has been in use around the world way before that pipe came about...if there were going to be widespread problems, I think they would have shown up by now. Not all pex manufacturers make a great product, I'd want to pick one from a company that has been doing it for awhile as there are lessons to be learned. Personally, I like pex-A, but -B, and -C (they're manufacturing techniques that produce slightly different pex properties) are less expensive, and if made properly, work, too. pex-A has the smallest bend before it kinks, and is the only one that can recover from a kink. The others require you to cut out the kink and install a fitting (at least if you follow the manufacturer's instructions!).
 

Craigpump

In the Trades
Messages
2,436
Reaction score
158
Points
63
Location
Connecticut
Unfortunately, it's really hard to compete pricewise against the guys doing Pex and shark bite plumbing work. All the customer cares about is that water comes through the faucets with no leaks anywhere at the cheapest price possible.
 

Bluebinky

Member
Messages
588
Reaction score
16
Points
18
Location
Des Moines, WA
It will be a sad day when you can only get some guy with a roll of pex in his trunk to come out when you have a plumbing problem. At least the price will be low...
 

MushCreek

New Member
Messages
34
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
Travelers Rest SC
My first experience with PEX was not good. I plumbed a small bathroom in my barn, checked the crimps with the gauge that came with the crimper and- it leaked! Several places, in fact. I'm a very meticulous worker (I'm a tool maker by trade) and was pretty upset. On a whim, I bought another gauge, and, lo and behold, no more leaks! It turns out that the gauge that came with the crimper (Lowes) was too small, and I was over-crimping the joints. I actually measured the two gauges; the one that came with the tool was smaller by a fair margin. I'm going to go ahead and do my house with PEX, fingers crossed that it holds up over time. There's always resistance to new technologies; sometimes justified; sometimes not. I'm sure when copper first came out, there were plenty of naysayers. In our FL home, built in 1981, we've had several leaks develop in the copper from erosion. I don't know if it's the water, the quality of the pipe, or what, but I worry about the pipes buried under the concrete slab.
 

Tom Sawyer

In the Trades
Messages
3,625
Reaction score
34
Points
48
Location
Maine
Since pex has been in use around the world way before that pipe came about...if there were going to be widespread problems, I think they would have shown up by now. Not all pex manufacturers make a great product, I'd want to pick one from a company that has been doing it for awhile as there are lessons to be learned. Personally, I like pex-A, but -B, and -C (they're manufacturing techniques that produce slightly different pex properties) are less expensive, and if made properly, work, too. pex-A has the smallest bend before it kinks, and is the only one that can recover from a kink. The others require you to cut out the kink and install a fitting (at least if you follow the manufacturer's instructions!).

There have been many many problems with pex in Europe. It's just that their legal system is different than ours and allows for settlements to be kept hidden from the public view. There are many problems here as well that don't get much press and we have a problem that most of Europe doesn't ant that's chlorinated water which degrades pex in pretty short order.
 
Top
Hey, wait a minute.

This is awkward, but...

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. If you'd like to support the site, please allow ads.

If any particular ad is your REASON for blocking ads, please let us know. We might be able to do something about it. Thanks.
I've Disabled AdBlock    No Thanks