Qest PEX plumbing

[Kim]

I just bought a house and did not find out until I moved in that the entire house has been re-routed using this Qest tubing . It supplies the whole house with hot and cold water - it goes through the attic to all of the bathrooms and kitchen. Is this good/bad? Thanks for letting me know -previous owner!!

 

[Dunbar Plumbing]

I'd have another name for "previous owner".

You'll need special tools to work on this piping......and it will be hard to fix it in tight spaces. Other than that.....absolutely no mice infestations are allowed in your home. Make sure that the piping is not exposed in the basement to UV rays from the sun and you should be okay. Don't spray any foam fill around this piping where it penetrates the floors; the chemicals in that foam will leach into the plastic piping.

If any repairs are done make sure you use the correct crimps/tool when making repairs.....no compression connections are allowed in concealed areas.

I just turned down a mobile home call a few minutes ago in my area..........busted plastic line under the trailer and they need it fixed fast. I told them no like the capital one commercial and gave it to some guy that will say the same thing. Easier ways to make money and I can't stand working on that piping. It usually is more than just one leak and the snowball effect triggers more than just a headache.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Jadnashua]

I'm pretty sure PEX and Quest are two different animals...

 

[Kim]

It's called PEX or Qestpex Plumbing by Zurn Company.

We don't have water to our basement.

I am worried about the tubing, although I have been told that it expands to accommodate the water flow.

Isn't that something that should have been in the seller's disclosure? I would think that it diminishes the value of the home?

 

[Jadnashua]

PEX is cross-linked polyethylene

the pipe that had all of the problems was the Qest polybutylene.

They are two different animals. PEX has been in use in Europe for probably 20-years, and here for maybe 10. Polybutylene is a problem.

 

[Jimbo]

QestPex is a brand name. PEX is recognized by almost all jurisdictions these days in single family residential, and there would be no basis to expect an owner to disclose it. I WOULD have expected a home inspector to comment on it, but that's a different story.

NOW, Qest Polybutylene is a different story. But I gather from your post that you are sure it is PEX, not PB.

 

[Cass]

What color is the piping?

 

[Lancaster]

Scratching my head here because maybe I am missing the point about the evil evil house seller.If his plumbing was not causing him any problem,and there's no reason to suspect he was covering up the fact the house had Quest tubing,why is he a villain for not disclosing same? i would wager a large percentage of homeowners know little or squat about their plumbing if it is not problematic.
On the other hand,a home inspection prior to sale,which I thought was just about mandatory nowadays,would have disclosed this by definition.And on the other other hand,i have heard that some/many "inspectors" are woefully uneducated about plumbing matters.
So overall,why the rush to judgement as pertains to the seller?

 

[Kim]

The PEX is not the problem - obviously, by some of the responses. If it is trusted and effective to do it's job.

The problem I have with it not being disclosed is this - Why was the plumbing (that was once in the slab) REROUTED, as I stated in the original post. Was there a slab leak? Will that cause further problems? Should I have been notified so I could purchase additional insurance in case there is a leak that could damage walls, floors, etc?

FYI - The color of the tubing is red and blue. It is covered most, but not all, by a black insulation type wrap. We have noticed a couple of things: 1.During the day, the sink water does not run cold from the cold side. It begins hot then gradually goes to warm. It takes a good 3 to 4 minutes to get cool. 2. The guest bath does not have a lot of pressure and the toilet does not seem to flush all the way down. Are there pressure problems associated with this type of plumbing?

 

[King3244]

I have had PB in my house (Canada) for 18 years and no problems....I think most of the problems were with the plastic fittings and not the pipe. I was told when I put mine in to use nothing other than copper fittings.

I don't think that your other problems are related to the piping.............where do you live? Maybe you have a cross connection problem.

 

[Cass]

Red and blue is PEX not PB. PEX is fine and should not cause any leak problems as long as it was installed right, like other forms of piping.

As far as notifying you that the lines were removed from beneath the slab and rerouted I think you should have been told so at sometime future someone didn't cut a line because they didn't know it was there.

It was most likely rerouted due to an underground/slab leak.

What part of the country are you in?

Your cold water starting hot and going to warm and not getting cold could be a few things . In summer water can be down right warm right from the street. If the piping was rerouted through the attic or a wall that is heated by the sun this could also add to the warm water problem.

The toilet not flushing well has nothing to do with the rerouting of the lines. It may be an old toilet in need of replacement.

Pressure in the lines should be constant through out the house but you may have low flow of water. Check and see if you have a pressure reducing valve. You may be able to increase the pressure some. Low flow could be the due to the pipe size that was used.

I would also see if you can find out if the lines were replaced by a plumber or the home owner. If a plumber see if he will come out and discuss things with you.

 

[Norcal1]

I just bought a house and did not find out until I moved in that the entire house has been re-routed using this Qest tubing . It supplies the whole house with hot and cold water - it goes through the atic to all of the bathrooms and kitchen. Is this good/bad? Thanks for letting me know -previous owner!!

There's nothing "bad" about the type of plastic tubing being used.

What's bad is that the pipes are running thru your attic...makes it tough to get cold water on sunny days.

 

[Jadnashua]

When I lived in Kuwait, there was a water tank on the roof to account for the times when the supply was interrupted. The water would get so hot it would scald you. During about 8-9 months of the year we turned off the hot water tank and used it for cold, and the cold for hot. God help you if you ran out of "cold" in the hot water tank when taking a shower...what you have is okay. If you want to keep your attic cooler, put a reflective layer of foil covered paper under the roof framing. It will decrease the attic temperature in the summer by about 20 degrees and decrease the a/c load as well. When I did that, my ceiling went from being hot to room-temp, and that was with R-40 in the ceiling. Insulation slows transfer of heat, not stop it. A reflective barrier stops 90%+ of the long wave radiation and prevents it from getting into the attic if installed properly, and it is cheap.

 

[Cass]

If you want to keep your attic cooler, put a reflective layer of foil covered paper under the roof framing. It will decrease the attic temperature in the summer by about 20 degrees and decrease the a/c load as well. When I did that, my ceiling went from being hot to room-temp, and that was with R-40 in the ceiling. Insulation slows transfer of heat, not stop it. A reflective barrier stops 90%+ of the long wave radiation and prevents it from getting into the attic if installed properly, and it is cheap.

Yes but won't the roof temp rise even higher and shorten the life of the roofing? The heat has to go eomewhere.

I would think a power roof ventlation fan blowing the heat out would be best for lowering the temp all around.

 

[Jadnashua]

If you've got the proper eve and ridge vents, no, it doesn't appear to get any hotter than normal. I live in a townhouse...lots of identical units. You're keeping heat from soaking all of the rest of the structure and insulation. In the winter after a snowstorm, I have snow on my roof for as much as a week after everyone else's has melted off...less icicles. It really does work.

 

[Geniescience]

since we are now talking about long wave radiation from the sun, i'll say that this is the reason why the roof is not affected, because it is long-wave radiation from the sun, which would have gone into the ground. The roof is too close to be affected. It's long wave stuff.

David

 

[Jimbo]

The roof is too close to be affected. It's long wave stuff.

David

The roof doesn't get hot because it's closer to the sun than the ground? Perhaps you have spent too long in the sun?

 

[dave007]

What is the purpose of running water pipes through the attic
anyway?

Do you put pipes in an outside wall?
Then why would you put them in the attic?

Is it that the plumber was just to lazy to run it some other way and wanted
to take a short cut?

just curious..........

 

[Jadnashua]

Getting water from one end of the house to the otherthrough the walls usually requires a huge mess, plus, they often aren't as thick, so you risk them freezing much more than you do if you run it in the attic next to the ceiling. You are less likely to poke a hole in it in the ceiling than you are in a wall, too. Notching all of those studs or trying to thread flexible tubing that far would be a real pain, as would then adding all of the nailing plates.