Shark bites

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Leweezo

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Wanting to know what you professionals think about them.I am wanting to use a 1 to 3/4 on both sides of a big blue filter

Thabks
Mike
 
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I use them in temporary (few months) fixes as I'm re-plumbing my entire house and they make easy transitions from copper (existing) to pex.

I would not suggest using a sharkbite on the sides of a filter. When you open the housing to change the filter you're going to be putting a significant amount of stress/torque on those fittings, and they aren't really made for that. I would find a more permanent binding solution between the filter and the pipe.

If you mention what piping and filter fittings you have, it will make it easier to make some suggestions for you.
 

Reach4

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The housings are usually mounted to steel brackets screwed to a wall. The housings are usually each secured with four 5/16 x 1 inch lag bolts.

Brackets are available for 1, 2, or 3 housings.

The plumbing fittings are not carrying the weight. I would not choose Sharkbites for this, but if Sharkbites were used, they would not be carrying the weight.
pentekbbbracket_w.jpg
 

Cacher_Chick

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I always use rigid copper and throw the mounting bracket away.

If you have copper in your home, spend 30 bucks and learn how to sweat pipe and fittings. It is a skill that is not hard to learn, but may be very useful down the road.

If your piping system is bonded to the electrical panel, don't disregard installing a jumper across the filter housing when you are done.
 

Leweezo

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I have not purchased the Sharkbites yet so I probably won't now.. (Thanks for the advice) I have 3/4 CPVC and my Big blue has a 1" inlets.. I have plenty of room to do any setup
 
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Cacher_Chick

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If I had CVPC in the house, I would thread brass pipe nipples into the housing and tie it into the plumbing with CVPC to copper transition fittings.

cpvc-female-2.jpg
 
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Leweezo

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excuse my ignorance, but what is the advantage of the CPVC to copper transition?

Thanks
Mike
 

Terry

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They make a CPVC female adapter that has metal threading. They also make a female fitting without the reinforcement, which can split.

Since the water filter is exposed, the SharkBite could also be used. I won't use them in hidden walls. I sometimes will use them in crawl spaces in a repair, or for shutoff valves.
 

Leweezo

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Thanks Terry.. I really wanna try the sharkbites just because I like testing stuff.. It is on a bare concrete wall in the unfished basement so "if" I got9 a leak not much would be hurt
 

Cacher_Chick

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My concern with the sharkbites (and any plastic piping) is that sometimes we REALLY have to wrench on the filter housing to break it loose when servicing the filters. The mounting brackets are too flimsy, but when we use ridgid copper for mounting, it provides a solid mount that plastic pipe and sharkbites cannot.
 

Craigpump

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I've used Sharkbites and keep them on the truck because we run into copper, CPVC and different types of Pex and can not stock everything for every job. As a matter of fact, I've seen a 1/2 horse pump hung on coil Pex with Sharkbites! They work, I've never had one fail, but I'd be much happier if every house was done in copper and I could use my Pro Press.
 

Jadnashua

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The magic with any of these push on fittings is to ensure that you have a clean pipe end...no burrs or sharp edges. It doesn't take a lot to cut the O-ring, but if it's intact, it should last a very long time.
 

FullySprinklered

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I've used a truckload of sharkbites and have had only a few problems with them. They are EXTREMELY useful in awkward situations. Last week my helper held my ankles while I went headfirst down a hole to resection a waterline which leaked due to a split female adapter on the pvc line where it connected to the copper male adapter just outside the foundation of a house with a poured concrete foundation. The hole was maybe two feet across and around forty inches deep, and naturally, had an irrigation pipe running across the middle of the hole just below ground level. Hell, in other words.

I cut the bad stuff out and called up to my helper and he would drag me up out of the hole. I would get some parts ready and on command, he would lower me back down. I'm sure a video of this "three stooges go a-plumbing" event would go viral.

So, I went from pvc to crimp pex to sharkbite to make the repair. It worked and it will continue to work as many others have in the past. If it doesn't work at some point in the future, I'll go back and do it again. If I'm dead, someone will have to dig up both of us to cash in on the lifetime warranty.

I can elaborate on the very few failures if anyone out there squeals.
 

hj

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well, a GOOD plumber would NEVER have used PVC female adapter to a male copper fitting, but I use a brass nipple to the copper, in this case it would also have needed a brass coupling, and a Smith Blair/Dresser coupling to join it to the PVC.
 

FullySprinklered

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I learned to hate female pvc fittings early on. Was it because they were pvc, or was it because they were female? I'm still trying to work that out.
 

FullySprinklered

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well, a GOOD plumber would NEVER have used PVC female adapter to a male copper fitting, but I use a brass nipple to the copper, in this case it would also have needed a brass coupling, and a Smith Blair/Dresser coupling to join it to the PVC.
If I ever find out who did it, I'll hunt him down like a dog.
 
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