Leaking PEX fittings

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Rman

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I plumbed my house two years ago with pex and copper. Now at my water manifold in the basement I have a copper to pex adapter with s/s pinch ring and three are dripping very slowly. I've cut the ring then cut 2 inches off of the pex and reassembled but the leak returned?! Could the adapter be bad but why after two years? I'm on well water the ph is 7.2 but water has high sodium and iron. How do I fix this properly and should I up the house insurance if the in wall connections start to drip!
 

Reach4

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Do your stainless steel clamp rings look like this?
16707872-01.jpg
It may be that your tool needs calibrating.
 

Jadnashua

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Pex has memory...when using a clamp, either a ring, cinch, etc., the fitting is an easy fit into the tubing...to make it waterproof, you have to compress it. A couple of things can cause that to fail: a defect in the fitting (scratch, porosity, bad solder or weld joint, crack), or the ring/cinch, or whatever is either placed wrong or not tight enough. IF there was a burr on the fitting, it could scratch a furrow in the tubing, and it might be tough to get it to seal.

Using an expansion fitting, you could still could have a defective fitting, but the only crucial operator action is to get the tubing and reinforcement ring properly positioned...memory takes care of making the seal.
 

Rman

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Do your stainless steel clamp rings look like this?
16707872-01.jpg
It may be that your tool needs calibrating.


Yes those clamp rings throughout the house. The tool I used is a one handed crimp tool that does not release until you get to the final press about 6 squeeze. I bought it from supply house and there is a small tool looks like a tiny feeler gauge but no explanation of how to adjust tool. If I insert into tool and compress the handles it holds the gauge tight. Should there be any clearance between the gauge and the tool?
 

Reach4

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I bought it from supply house and there is a small tool looks like a tiny feeler gauge but no explanation of how to adjust tool. If I insert into tool and compress the handles it holds the gauge tight. Should there be any clearance between the gauge and the tool?
I never used such a tool.

This is from the website:
The Crimp/Clamp Tools are user adjustable. When the tool makes unsatisfactory crimps it must be adjusted (use adjust pin).

The Crimp/Clamp Tools must be checked for correct adjustment at the start of every day. Each clamp ring shall be gauged to ensure that it has been crimped properly and for the accuracy of the tool.​

What I don't see is how to do those things. Maybe contact them to ask.

EDIT: if I had the stainless clamp and had a leak, I would try adjusting the tool and re-tighten the same clamp.
 
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