I am thinking about using PEX lines for my new basement bathroom. Are there different grades of PEX and if so which should I use. Is the PEX that a Home Depot or Lowe's sell any good.

Thanks

Basically the only real requirement for PEX tubing used for potable water is that it be 'PEX A', which should be printed on the pipe.

As for the PEX tubing sold at Lowe's or Home Depot, it's generally 'Zurn PEX', which isn't a product I would recommend.

I'm not a big fan of crimped fittings.

The product I would recommend is Wirsbo's ProPEX, but this is a product sold only to qualified installers.

Which means you either hire a qualified installer and specify ProPEX pipe and fittings -- Or you do it yourself with an inferior (in my not so humble opinion) product.

Just my two pence.

For a small DIY project, it is hard to beat PVC/CPVC. Clean stuff up good, use primer, and it is difficult mess up. What kind of piping are you starting from?

My house is all galvanized pipe. I do have 3/4" lines running from the hot water heater for the first 20 feet. I was planning on replacing the galvanized pipe from the end of the copper pipe to the new bathroom with either copper or PEX.

I have not heard great things about CPVC from people in this area. I did get a couple quotes for this work and they were all copper or PEX

Who are you talking to about CPVC? Some pros bad mouth anything that makes too easy for people to be successful doing their own work. What ever you use, it is easy to go from copper, PEX, or CPVC to another one using Shark's Tooth connectors.

Actually, a lot of "pros badmouth" CPVC because when compared to other products available for the delivery of domestic potable water it is an inferior product and because the proscribed installation procedures are often not known or followed by the installer.

I find it very telling that in all the times I've seen you recommend CPVC, not once have I seen you describe any of the proscribed CPVC specific installation procedures, Labman.


Nor have I ever seen you provide a list of common substances found around the home that even the manufacturers concede will damage the piping, fittings and recommended supports.

Hands down, I would recommend PEX tubing over copper tubing.

Would you even recommend PEX over copper if the PEX was the Zurn PEX from Lowe's?

I would like to see a couple of things.

1 A list of common household materials that will damage CPVC

2 A url for a question here where somebody is asking for help with a CPCV problem.

In this forum, where cost and 'do it yourself' concerns are often a mitigating factor?

Absolutely.

Labman, Growler'e responses were URLs.

Cheers,
Stew

And there's the rub, Labman -- Your over simplified answers don't have an immediate impact.

It's years later when the chemical reaction has taken place or the pipes have sheared off at the plate line due to thermal expansion that the real issues with the product come up.

You may turn your nose up at the "pros" now for whatever idiotic, predjudicial reasons you may have -- But it's the "pros" who come in years later and tear the crap out you're recommending and make the big bucks replacing it with products worth recommending.

I kept four Journeymen Plumbers busy for three solid weeks this past summer ripping out and replacing CPVC that had been improperly installed in a six unit condominium.

Risers that had sheared off at the plate line from thermal expansion, fittings and piping had burst from expansion after being fastened too tightly to adjacent framing, threaded fittings that had deteriorated from improper pipe dope applications and burst piping at critical fire caulked penetrations, just to name a few of the improper installation practices that led to catastrophic failure only four years after the initial installation.

CPVC is a great product -- So long as you heed the proscribed (and impractical) installation requirements.

There are lots of household things that are harmful to cpvc, I do have a list. I do not prefer pex but will use it to repair poly. Pex has insert fittings and that means some flow restrictions.
But nate, ask wirez about plastic piping and contamination by plastic gasses.

That's a good point.

However, if you use a manifold system and pull continuous (minus any fittings whatsoever) 1/2" home runs from the manifold to the fixture being served, any flow restriction is more than made up for by the absence of friction loss producing 90's and tee's.

Here's my 2 cents...

As long a the NSF stamps and UPC stamps (not the barcode UPC, by the way) are printed on the materials you are going to install, you can be assured they have actually been tested by an INDEPENDENT testing/standards agency for the proper performance under, what is to be considered, correct installation and handling methods. It is the user/installers responsibility to do the job correctly. Don't just go and blame the manufacturers, like ZURN. Perhaps there are serious defects in those elbows etc... However, I have done several jobs, with ZURN products, and many others, including WATTS, WIRSBO, AQUA-PEX, and just about every other brand sold on the east coast. In other wards, what the supply house had that day by whoever the brand was, has worked for me; pipe and fittings. I am in the new construction field and do lots of plumbing installations from the septic tank inlet pipe and the domestic water inlets, up and through the roof vents and everything in between. (I also do some remodeling and have had to adapt from copper, galvanized, etc... all with success.) The average market price (until our stock market crash) for the 3 bathroom custom kitchen etc... new house with a Jacuzzi and PEX water supply and PVC wastelines was about $400,000 and up. (Total home price) Have done many 5,6,7 and 8 bathroom mansions/houses with PEX type materials and had great success. Just like auto brake lines, don't let them move and rub on anything. Do not put any extra stress on them either. Keep chemicals and gasoline away from the PEX. Don't keep in direct sunlight. Don't kink it. Be careful with heat where ever it is. If using cinch tools, make sure the crimpers are in proper calibration and crimp the rings correctly. Use a good cutting tool that leaves a squared edge. Don't abuse the PEX tools. They are precison instruments. Keep all fitings covered and in a clean environment when not in use. Dirty crimp rings and fittings should be avoided. I am going on 10 years in this business and have been hands on since day one. I am not the boss, ( I am foreman) but the guy he relies on to get that 8 bath mansion up and through a pressure test, so he can get the " next Draw ". Started when I was 21 and now will be 31. Some people incorrectly assert that PEX can be installed by anyone or any " Dummy". It should be that PEX can be " F'd Up" by anyone or any "Dummy". Remember, ZURN had to submit their products for testing and verification BEFORE they are sold on the shelves. So shame on the testing companies, they should have the best engineers on hand to really predict failures etc... Its all part of receiving the NSF/UPC stamp for just about any plumbing part. Also, don't forget to winterize your house if you are away. No plumbing is safe from the effects of extreme cold, it's a fact of life.

Hope this reply gives any kind of insight...

:rolleyes::rolleyes: