How to Avoid the Most Frequently Occurring PEX Installation Mistakes

06/20/2016 0 Comment(s)

Observations provided by an old plumber

How to avoid mistake in PEX plumbing installationSeeing and hearing about installation mistakes provides me the opportunity to help you avoid them. I use my forty three years of plumbing experience to help people avoid costly mistakes.

The results of mistakes fall into two categories. First, I will focus on how you can avoid money/time wasting mistakes; next, I will explain mistakes that cause unsafe plumbing.
This article is focused on the most common (traditional) type of PEX pipe installation.

 

Carefully select the highest quality installation tools and always test crimps

Cut pipe squarely and cleanly by using a top quality cutter. Hack saws and other rough cutting type cutters can leave burr that can get caught between the pipe and the fitting.


I recommend tools I think are reliable and durable, if you click my text links, you can see some.  PEX crimpers must provide a not too tight and not too loose crimp.  The crimper must be durable and reliable if you want perfect crimps. Occasional drops or mishandling will take place. If a tool fails to provide a perfect crimp every time, cutting out and replacing crimp rings will waste lots of time and material. [Note: Click here to see the best tool to remove a crimp ring.]  Be aware that there are probably too many tools available for the installation of PEX. Some tools are poorly made or poorly designed. Innovative tools usually come with risk. It takes many years to determine the reliability and durability of tools.

 

The “Go-No-Go” gauge is the most important tool for checking PEX ring tightness. Even with the best tools, every ring should be tested with a “Go-No-Go” gauge. Crimper kits usually come with a gauge, but it is always good to keep a “4 in 1” Go-No-Go gauge available (that way you can check various sized pipe with one gauge).

The go slot on a “Go-No-Go” gauge should slide over the crimped ring. This proves the ring is tight enough. The no-go slot of the “Go-No-Go” gauge should not be able to slide over the crimped ring. This proves the ring is not too tight.
Failure to use the “Go-No-Go” gauge is one of the most frequently occurring installation mistakes and one of the most costly (long-term). Overly tight or overly loose rings can easily cause unsafe plumbing and extremely costly property damage.

Be aware of hidden (long-term) dangers created by small mistakes.

 

PEX installation seems so easy that it is hard to focus on small details. Improper crimps rarely leak short-term. Often, it takes a few years for leaks to develop. Unfortunately, if crooked, too tight or too loose rings cause leaks, the whole house might have to be re-piped to make it safe. Testing each ring, as soon as it is crimped, is fast and simple. Defective ring installations can be detected easily. Sometimes installation tools need to be adjusted or the installer just needs to pay a little more attention to what they are doing (a little slower, straighter or more carefully).

 

Don’t let a helpful trick create unsafe plumbing.

 

One seemingly simple installation trick can cause major problems years later.  Some installers use plyers to lightly squeeze crimp rings to hold them the proper distance (1/8”- ¼” from the end of the pipe).  Installers do this because it is difficult to keep the ring in the proper spot while squeezing the crimping tool. Normal plyers have little teeth that create weak spots in rings. Tooth marks in rings (especially on hot water pipes) can crack years after being installed.

Don’t let little tooth marks cause big long-term problems. Find toothless plyers or grind the teeth off of plyers before they are used to stabilize crimp rings. Hot and cold cycles cause repeated expansion and contraction of crimp rings. After years of flexing takes place, rings can break at weak spots created by tooth marks.
If you can learn from mistakes, you can avoid repeating them. I hope I can convince you to learn from the mistakes others made.

By Mike Quick / MikeQuick.com

 

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