SharkBite on polybutylene

[Rsmith99]

I’m just curious how many people use SharkBite connections on polybutylene?

 

[bill emery]

i have used the sharkbite fitting that goes from polybutylene to pex and it worked great

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Rsmith99]

i have used the sharkbite fitting that goes from polybutylene to pex and it worked great

Anyone tried one of these?

 

[bill emery]

Anyone tried one of these?

I just used one of those for the toilet connection. Changed the bathroom over to pex

 

[Jadnashua]

As you've said in another thread, the ID of pex and polybutylene are different. As far as I could tell, Sharkbite only makes one fitting, the transition one, to go from polybutylene to pex, copper, or cpvc. Similar to a compression fitting, pex and polybutylene both require a stiffener of the right size to work right - it also helps to keep the fitting aligned with the pipe to keep stress and movement out of the seal.

Polybutylene proved to be somewhat problematic years ago, so isn't really used today. That makes finding stuff to work on it tougher as most of it is being replaced by other materials. PB was banned in 1995, so over two decades since it was used. One has to ask, how long will anyone support dealing with it? It's time to start budgeting to repipe the house and to be really careful of the stuff until it is gone...it gets more and more brittle as it ages and can lead to catastrophic failures. It also will likely have an affect on the resale value of the home. Hope your homeowner's insurance stays in effect.

 

[Plumber69]

Im pretty sure i used them on pb when sharks first came out. Or atleast 10 years ago. And yes a regular sharkbite. Not a transition one