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Started By
Message
Bathroom remodel, PEX advice
Posted on 4/14/18 at 11:49 am
Posted on 4/14/18 at 11:49 am
OT plumber baws. I am about rework the bathroom, roughly about 10x12(OT poor)
Will be installing a new shower stall, new toilet, and a bathroom vanity sink. Bathroom will be sitting above ground. Currently have old PVC pipe running. I want to eventually go with PEX for the whole house, since house is sitting above ground, it will basically be the washing machine and kitchen sink.
Several questions:
Should I go to somewhere like Lowes, Home Depot to get my supplies or should I go to a plumbing house(some place like LCR...)
I want to get a good quality PEX tubing that I don't have to worry about from now on.
Whats a good name brand of PEX to get?
Is PEX-A the best route to use?
What about the fittings & crimps? Push type, compression? Brass or poly...
What size tubing? 1/2" or 3/4"?
Should I insulate the PEX and if so, with what?
House is located in northeast Louisiana, Ouachita parish. Remember, it will be sitting above ground under the bathroom.
Any other unknowns that I need to consider.
I will hang-up and listen.
Thanks in advance.
Will be installing a new shower stall, new toilet, and a bathroom vanity sink. Bathroom will be sitting above ground. Currently have old PVC pipe running. I want to eventually go with PEX for the whole house, since house is sitting above ground, it will basically be the washing machine and kitchen sink.
Several questions:
Should I go to somewhere like Lowes, Home Depot to get my supplies or should I go to a plumbing house(some place like LCR...)
I want to get a good quality PEX tubing that I don't have to worry about from now on.
Whats a good name brand of PEX to get?
Is PEX-A the best route to use?
What about the fittings & crimps? Push type, compression? Brass or poly...
What size tubing? 1/2" or 3/4"?
Should I insulate the PEX and if so, with what?
House is located in northeast Louisiana, Ouachita parish. Remember, it will be sitting above ground under the bathroom.
Any other unknowns that I need to consider.
I will hang-up and listen.
Thanks in advance.
9
Posted on 4/14/18 at 11:50 am to Reubaltaich
Bathroom board.
Posted on 4/14/18 at 11:57 am to Reubaltaich
In my professional opinion, Only use wirsbo brand pex. It's more pliable and less likely to burst during a freeze.
Insulate it if it's exposed to weather, I've repairs burst pipe of every type. If it freezes it can erupt.
Buy a crimping tool and use rings. Shark bite fittings are a future disaster waiting to happen. The crimping tool is cheap and pays for itself.
When in doubt just run 3/4" and branch off to each fixture with a short run of 1/2".
Always use supply house when possible, the hardware stores generally carry grade "B" product.
Insulate it if it's exposed to weather, I've repairs burst pipe of every type. If it freezes it can erupt.
Buy a crimping tool and use rings. Shark bite fittings are a future disaster waiting to happen. The crimping tool is cheap and pays for itself.
When in doubt just run 3/4" and branch off to each fixture with a short run of 1/2".
Always use supply house when possible, the hardware stores generally carry grade "B" product.
This post was edited on 4/14/18 at 12:00 pm
Posted on 4/14/18 at 11:57 am to Reubaltaich
Have done 2 houses with PEX, have only used compression fittings, have only insulated the hot water to keep the temp. Have never had the pipes freeze under the house. I bought supplies from Stine because they were cheaper than plumbing stores. Would only use PEX again if needed.
Posted on 4/14/18 at 12:07 pm to Reubaltaich
I will answer what I can...
1/2" for most interior runs is fine. Maybe go with
3/4" for a high flow tub faucet.
Any brand should be fine. A,B or C designated what "method" was used to make the tubing. Here is a informative link with simple explanations...
PEX info
I like the solid crimp rings such as these...
Crimp rings
Insulate as you would any other pipe.
I am not a professional plumber.
1/2" for most interior runs is fine. Maybe go with
3/4" for a high flow tub faucet.
Any brand should be fine. A,B or C designated what "method" was used to make the tubing. Here is a informative link with simple explanations...
PEX info
I like the solid crimp rings such as these...
Crimp rings
Insulate as you would any other pipe.
I am not a professional plumber.
Posted on 4/14/18 at 12:07 pm to Reubaltaich
There's no reason to run 3/4 anywhere but your mainline or a tub. Or a shower with multiple heads. Everything else has restrictors and 1/2 is more than adequate.
Use a crimp tool, more expensive investment by like $25 but worth it and saves in the long run.
Pex is not the end all be all that a lot of young lazy plumbers act like it is. It has plenty of issues and unless you are doing a manifold and not running and connections between the manifold and your stub out then a lot of the benefits are moot outside of it being very flexible and the freezing ability.
I've seen plumbers run more connections on pex then they would on a copper run just because they were lazy and didn't want to put in the extra work to use less connections.
Use a crimp tool, more expensive investment by like $25 but worth it and saves in the long run.
Pex is not the end all be all that a lot of young lazy plumbers act like it is. It has plenty of issues and unless you are doing a manifold and not running and connections between the manifold and your stub out then a lot of the benefits are moot outside of it being very flexible and the freezing ability.
I've seen plumbers run more connections on pex then they would on a copper run just because they were lazy and didn't want to put in the extra work to use less connections.
Posted on 4/14/18 at 12:12 pm to Reubaltaich
quote:
Should I go to somewhere like Lowes, Home Depot to get my supplies or should I go to a plumbing house(some place like LCR...)
For a small job I'd probably just go to lowes/hd.
quote:
I want to get a good quality PEX tubing that I don't have to worry about from now on.
There are two types pex you can use, typeA and typeB. TypeA is the best/expensive and works with a system called uponor/wirsbo. This system is overkill for someone DIY IMO. The second type is typeB and is what you'll find at the big box stores. It is a crimp fitting system and is sold under a variety of names. All the tubing I've ever seen is certified and I would guess created equal. Don't know I'd order any direct from China though. Stick to the bigger names and you be fine.
quote:
What about the fittings & crimps? Push type, compression? Brass or poly...
As said, I believe the best route for you is a crimp system. This is the system where the fitting is inserted into the tubing and a copper ring is crimped over the fitting using a special crimping tool. There is also a company making what everyone calls "Sharkbite" fitting. These are just pressed onto the tubing and use magic to hold tight. Problem is that every fitting is like $6 so that adds up real quick when doing a lot of work. In contrast, the crimp fittings cost around $1.50 apiece. Always use brass when using crimp sys.
quote:
What size tubing? 1/2" or 3/4"?
1/2" will serve basically every fixture if run on its own line. i.e each fixture having its own individual line run direct from the main.
quote:
Should I insulate the PEX and if so, with what?
You don't have to but it I probably would. Pex can survive a freeze but I don't think it's intended to do so on regular basis.
No offense but it sounds like you know nothing about Pex and whatnot. A few hours of googling would go a long way and answer a lot of your questions.
eta supplyhouse.com is a great website for pex stuff
This post was edited on 4/14/18 at 12:20 pm
Posted on 4/14/18 at 12:16 pm to Reubaltaich
PEX is great because it can expand if frozen and potentially not break. It’s really easy to run and make connections.
The downside is that rodents love it and love to chew on it so there is that potential. House above ground increases the rodent potential.
The upside is it’s pretty easy to fix if the rats do get to it.
For what you are doing Lowe’s/HD tools and supplies are fine.
Insulate the hot water lines.
The downside is that rodents love it and love to chew on it so there is that potential. House above ground increases the rodent potential.
The upside is it’s pretty easy to fix if the rats do get to it.
For what you are doing Lowe’s/HD tools and supplies are fine.
Insulate the hot water lines.
Posted on 4/14/18 at 12:28 pm to Reubaltaich
i have used pex for several years. i started using copper crimp rings copper rings, but switched to the stainless clamps pic of stainless rings because the difference in tools.
the compression tool for the copper is a giant pair of pliers that circles the ring. copper tool the one i bought had to open very wide, so i could only work in wide open spaces. and it took a separate tool for each size ring/pipe.
i still use it when i can, but mostly use the stainless rings because one tool fits all sizes and it fits in small spaces. it squeezes, then rachets back open for another bite. squeeze the handle 3ish times and it clicks and releases. tool for stainless
code says don't bury it because you can cut it with a shovel. exposure to sunlight destroys the pex. i have had a home in baton rouge with uninsulated pex for 8 years with no problems.
i use a size larger than i would for copper, because the fitting is restrictive. the ID of the pex is 1/2", and the fitting fits inside the pex, so your effective size may be 3/8". i have one outdoor faucet done with 1/2" and one done with 3/4." the difference in flow is very obvious.
the compression tool for the copper is a giant pair of pliers that circles the ring. copper tool the one i bought had to open very wide, so i could only work in wide open spaces. and it took a separate tool for each size ring/pipe.
i still use it when i can, but mostly use the stainless rings because one tool fits all sizes and it fits in small spaces. it squeezes, then rachets back open for another bite. squeeze the handle 3ish times and it clicks and releases. tool for stainless
code says don't bury it because you can cut it with a shovel. exposure to sunlight destroys the pex. i have had a home in baton rouge with uninsulated pex for 8 years with no problems.
i use a size larger than i would for copper, because the fitting is restrictive. the ID of the pex is 1/2", and the fitting fits inside the pex, so your effective size may be 3/8". i have one outdoor faucet done with 1/2" and one done with 3/4." the difference in flow is very obvious.
Posted on 4/14/18 at 1:02 pm to piratedude
I'd definitely go a size up. I can tell a difference from the copper when switching to the 1/2".
Posted on 4/14/18 at 1:43 pm to diat150
quote:
I'd definitely go a size up. I can tell a difference from the copper when switching to
That’s because the ID for 1/2” is smaller then 1/2” Copper, if you are using Crimp fittings and NOT expansion (Uponor) you HAVE to upsize your lines.
Posted on 4/14/18 at 2:03 pm to Reubaltaich
I'm not a plumber but I replaced all of my galvanized pipe with PEX 3 years ago and have had no issues.
I bought all of my materials in a plumbing store. Price wasn't bad and they had everything I needed, including answering questions I had.
I recommend Uponor (formerly Wirsbo) PEX A materials. I talked to plumbers and plumbing stores and they all liked the Uponor the best. Downside is you have to have a special battery operated tool to install their fittings. I bought the Milwaukee brand tool for $400 and it paid for itself. For a small job you would have to borrow or rent a tool to come out.
Again, I liked the poly rings that Uponor uses. I didn't have a single drip when I pressured up the system. And that was utilizing a manifold and the "Home Run" method versus a "Trunk and Branch" installation. So a butt load of connections.
I ran 3/4" supply to my manifold and 1/2" on the runs. If I had to do it over again I would run 1" supply to the manifold and 3/4" from the manifold to the kitchen. Both are long runs and there would be less pressure drop when sizing up.
I'm in Houston and didn't insulate.
Rodents, sunlight or close proximity florescent light, and misguided nails are you're only enemies. Rodents don't like the PEX itself, they are after the water inside. Manufacturers warn about using rat poisons that drive them to water. I put out traps and didn't get any takers. After a few months I quit worrying about it. Mine is in my attic.
I bought all of my materials in a plumbing store. Price wasn't bad and they had everything I needed, including answering questions I had.
I recommend Uponor (formerly Wirsbo) PEX A materials. I talked to plumbers and plumbing stores and they all liked the Uponor the best. Downside is you have to have a special battery operated tool to install their fittings. I bought the Milwaukee brand tool for $400 and it paid for itself. For a small job you would have to borrow or rent a tool to come out.
Again, I liked the poly rings that Uponor uses. I didn't have a single drip when I pressured up the system. And that was utilizing a manifold and the "Home Run" method versus a "Trunk and Branch" installation. So a butt load of connections.
I ran 3/4" supply to my manifold and 1/2" on the runs. If I had to do it over again I would run 1" supply to the manifold and 3/4" from the manifold to the kitchen. Both are long runs and there would be less pressure drop when sizing up.
I'm in Houston and didn't insulate.
Rodents, sunlight or close proximity florescent light, and misguided nails are you're only enemies. Rodents don't like the PEX itself, they are after the water inside. Manufacturers warn about using rat poisons that drive them to water. I put out traps and didn't get any takers. After a few months I quit worrying about it. Mine is in my attic.
Posted on 4/16/18 at 10:51 pm to umop_apisdn
quote:
Shark bite fittings are a future disaster waiting to happen
I can't say much as this is my first time working with PEX but I having been reading about 'shark bite' fittings and a lot of plumbers don't like them.
Stopped off at Home Depot and Lowes and shark bite fitting is all they had.
Guess I need to check out a couple of plumbing houses. IDK, just don't want to go back in a couple of years and do it all over again.
BTW, thanks for all the other responses .
Posted on 4/17/18 at 2:25 am to piratedude
That’s how you post a reply, damn good job!
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