copper, without the electrolytic corrosion that
tings. when running pipe between copper fittings with a seating depth of 1⁄2 in., for
usually occurs when you join dissimilar metals.
example, add 1 in. to the overall measurement. rigid 3⁄4-in. copper fittings have a
3⁄4-in. seating depth.
Valves are specialized fittings with moving
as important, after you dry-fit pipes so fittings point in the correct direction,
parts. Gate valves are the most common type of
use a grease pencil or a builder’s crayon to create alignment marks on the pipes and
shutoff valve, although lever-handled ball valves
are gaining popularity because they are easier to
fittings. That way you’ll be sure the fittings are pointing in the right direction when
operate. Hose bibs have a threaded outlet for
you make the final connections. alignment marks are particularly important when
attaching a garden hose. Angle stops are shutoff
cementing plastic pipe because you must turn plastic pipes one-quarter turn after
valves that control water flow to lavatories, sinks,
inserting them into fittings; the marks tell you when to stop turning.
bidets, and toilets. Temperature- and pressure-
relief (TPR) valves are spring-loaded safety valves
plumbing
325
tool too aggressively, you will flatten the pipe or
score erratically, thus creating a weak joint.
CuTTINg aNd
When the cut is complete, clean the end of the
SoLdeRINg CoPPeR
pipe with the deburring attachment on the cutter
so that you get a good, solid joint. Leftover burrs
also increase turbulence and thus decrease flow
through the pipe. Use plumber’s sand cloth or
emery paper to polish both ends of the pipe, and
a round wire brush to clean the insides of fittings.
To solder copper pipe, first use a flux brush to
apply self-tinning flux (soldering paste) to the
outside of the pipe and the inside of the fitting.
Then slide the fitting over the pipe. If the fitting
is a directional fitting, such as a tee or an elbow,
make sure that the fitting points in the correct
1. Hold the tubing cutter square to the pipe and score it 2. Ream the inside of the pipe to
direction.
lightly at first. once the cutting wheel tracks in a groove,
remove burrs left by cutting.
gradually tighten the cutting jaw as you revolve the tool.
Heat the fitting ( not the pipe), moving the sol-
dering torch so that all sides of the fitting receive
heat directly. The flux will bubble. From time to
time, remove the torch, and touch solder to the
fitting seam. When the fitting is hot enough, the
solder will liquefy when touched to it. After a few
trials, you’ll know when a fitting is hot enough.
When the fitting is hot, some fluxes change color,
from milky brown to dull silver.
Two passes with the solder, completely around
the joint, will make a tight seal; more than two
passes is a waste. The solder is sucked into the
joint, so don’t worry if you don’t see a thick fillet
3. use a strip of plumber’s sand cloth 4. use an acid brush to apply flux liberally to the outside
to polish the pipe ends slightly
of the pipe ends; put a thin, even coat on the inside of
of solder around the joint. Let solder cool before
beyond the fittings’ seating depths.
pipe fittings, all the way to the bottom of the fitting
putting pressure on a joint. After a soldered joint
Put on clean disposable gloves after
sockets.
has cooled for a minute, you can immerse it in
polishing because skin oils can
water to cool it completely, but be careful when
interfere with a solder bond.
handling hot metal.
Soldering in tight spaces can’t always be avoided.
P R O T I P
If a fitting has several incoming pipes—at a tee,
for example—try to solder all pipes at the same
Quality solder, such as a silver
time. Reheating a fitting to add pipes will weaken
alloy, is easier to work with than
standard 95/5 solder: you’ll have
earlier soldered joints. Clean and flux the pipes,
a wider working temperature
insert them in the fitting, and keep the torch
range, better void filling, and
moving so you heat both ends of the fitting equal-
fewer leaks. Quality solder can
ly. If you must reheat a fitting to add a pipe later,
cost 50% more than standard
wrap the already soldered joint in wet rags to
types, but it’s worth it.
keep solder from melting. When soldering close
to wood, wet the wood first with a plant spritzer
filled with water, then use a flame shield to avoid
scorching or igniting it.
5. Heat the fitting—not the pipe—
When space is tight, presolder sections in a
and apply solder to the lowest fitting
vise. Then, when placing the section in its final
hub first. Periodically remove the
position, you’ll have only a joint or two to solder.
torch and touch the solder tip to the
If one of the materials being joined might be
fitting joint. When the fitting is hot
damaged by heat, solder the copper parts first,
enough, the solder will liquefy and
disappear into the joint. (Note: The
allowing them to cool, before making mechanical
flame shield behind the fitting
connections to the heat-sensitive material. For
was set aside temporarily to get a
example, if you need to connect copper supply to
clearer photo.)
a pump outtake with plastic or adapters, solder
the male (protruding) or female (receiving)
326 Chapter 12
adapter to the copper pipe before screwing it in
(or on) the pump outtake.
Copper pipe: Disconnecting,
Finally, before soldering pipe to a ball valve
or a gate valve, close the valve completely. Other-
reconnecting, and repairing
wise, solder can run inside and keep the valve
from closing fully. However, when soldering a
To disconnect a soldered fitting, apply heat until the solder melts, then gently
shower’s pressure-balancing valve or a tempering
tap the fitting off the pipe. when the metal is cool, clean the pipe end, reflux,
valve, follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
reheat, and solder on a new fitting. unless the fitting is an expensive one, such as a
Finally, it’s helpful to have unions near most
gate valve, don’t reuse fittings that have already been soldered.
valves so that sections can be disconnected with-
when disconnecting a fitting on an existing supply line, drain the pipe first;
out needing to undo soldered joints.
otherwise, the solder won’t melt. Draining and reconnecting will be much easier if
the pipe section can be isolated with a shutoff valve, but sometimes old valves don’t
FlexIBle Copper TuBIng
sh
ut perfectly. In that event, ball up a piece of white bread and stick it in the pipe
Because flexible copper tubing can be bent and
to block the trickle while you solder. once the water runs again, the bread will dis-
run through tight spaces, it’s used primarily
solve and flush out.
for short runs to dishwashers (1⁄2 in.), ice makers
Finally, here’s a fix for split pipes that doesn’t require soldering at all: Cut out
(1⁄4 in. or 5⁄16 in.), and in similar situations.
the damaged section of pipe and slide a compression repair coupling over the cut
Chromed copper tubing is commonly used when
pipe ends. (The coupling’s inner diameter is the same as the 1⁄2-in. rigid copper’s
supply risers will be exposed because it looks
outer diameter.) use a pair of adjustable wrenches to tighten the compression fit-
good. Flexible tubing is softer than rigid copper
tings on both ends of the coupling, and you’re done.
pipe, so take pains when you cut it not to col-
lapse the tubing walls by turning a pipe cutter
too aggressively. And use a special, sleevelike
tubing bender to shape it so you don’t crimp it, as
shown in the bottom photo at right.
Flexible copper tubing is most often connected
either with compression fittings or flared fittings.
A compression fitting has a ferrule of soft metal
that is compressed between a set of matched
nuts. A flared fitting requires that you flare the
tubing ends with a special tool. When using
either type of connector, remember to slide nuts
onto the tubing before attaching a ferrule or flar-
Repairing pipes split by freezing water is no big deal
ing an end. Both types of connection are easy to
with a compression repair coupling. each end of the
disconnect, so they are used where repairs may
coupling compresses a brass ferrule to create a
watertight seal without soldering.
be expected, such as the supply line to a toilet.
Don’t reuse ferrules, however; replace them if you
need to disconnect fittings.
use a tubing bender to shape chrome
supply risers; the wire coils of the
bender support the soft tubing and
zzzzzz a Compression Fitting
3/8-in. chromed
keep it from buckling as you
copper tubing
gradually shape it.
Compression
nut
Compression
ferrule
Angle stop
plumbing
327
In most situations, braided stainless-steel
supply lines are a better choice than flexible cop-
FiNdiNg pex ONLiNe
per tubing: Braided lines are strong, look good,
and can be connected and disconnected as often
To ensure that their products are correctly
as needed.
installed, many PeX manufacturers offer on-site
training and certification and sell only to certi-
PEX Supply Pipes
fied installers. But you can easily find supplies
PEX is a flexible tubing system that’s been used
online. a recent Fine Homebuilding survey of
in Europe for radiant heating and household
favorite sites included:
plumbing since the 1960s. It wasn’t widely used
www.pexsupply.com
in potable-water systems in North America until
www.iplumb.tv
the late 1990s. But within five years, it had cap-
www.mvsupply.biz
tured 7% of the market, even though it was unfa-
www.houseneeds.com
miliar to most plumbers and cost roughly the
www.blueridgecompany.com
same as copper. Every year, PEX gains a larger
share of residential installations, and it is now
approved by all major plumbing codes—though
not by all states. As PEX tubing, tools, and tech-
Fewer leaks. PEX tubing runs to fixtures
niques become more widespread, more and more from hot- and cold-water manifolds with
weekend plumbers will be installing it. There’s a
multiple takeoffs. Most of the fitting is simple,
lot to like.
consisting of crimping steel or copper rings
onto tubing ends. Because most leaks occur at
pex aDvanTages
joints, fewer fittings also mean fewer leaks.
It installs quickly. Because lengths of
It’s safe: no open flame, no flux, no
flexible tubing easily turn corners and snake
solder, no pipe cements—in short, nothing
through walls, PEX systems require far fewer
toxic to leach into the water supplies.
connections and fittings than do rigid
Therefore, there’s no funny taste. Because it’s
materials. For that reason, it’s particularly
chemically inert, PEX won’t corrode, as metal
well suited to renovation work.
pipe will when installed in aggressive water
In PeX water-supply installations, central manifolds
(home-run manifolds) distribute hot and cold water to
individual fixtures or fixture groups. Flexible tubing
Submanifold Systems
requires far fewer fittings than do rigid materials.
zzzzzz submanifold system
3/8-in. tube
Submanifold
1/2-in. tube
Use 3/4-in. tube
to supply the
3/8-in. tube
manifolds.
PEX tubing employs manifolds to supply water to individual fixtures, with a shutoff valve for
each. There are many ways to lay out PEX plumbing, of course. In a home-run manifold system
such as that shown, at left, a single 3⁄4-in. trunk line feeds into a single manifold, from which
1⁄2-in. tubing feeds all the fixtures. This drawing shows a submanifold system, which requires
less tubing and less drilling to route it.
328 Chapter 12
conditions. Extremely acidic water, for
example, can cause pinhole leaks in copper.
It can take the heat. PEX can withstand
water temperature up to 180°F at 100 psi,
which is 40°F hotter than recommended
water-heater settings. And hot water will
arrive faster at the tap because, unlike metal
pipe, there’s minimal heat loss through
conduction. Thus it’s also less likely to sweat
during hot weather.
It’s quiet. The tubing expands slightly,
minimizing air hammer—the banging that
takes place in rigid piping when taps are
turned off suddenly and running water stops
abruptly. That ability to expand also means
less-pronounced pressure drops (fewer
The beauty of working with PeX is that it requires
scalding or freezing showers), and PEX tubing
relatively few specialized tools. Here, an inexpensive
PeX-cutting tool with a replaceable blade produces a
is less likely to rupture if water freezes in it.
clean, squared-off end.
It’s easier to repair. Because tubing
connects to an accessible manifold with a
bank of lever valves, you can shut off water to
one side of a fixture as simply as flipping an
Clamp-ring fittings are quick and leakproof.
electrical breaker.
after slipping a steel ring onto the PeX, slide
It’s increasingly cost-competitive. Per
a ribbed brass connector into the tubing.
lineal foot, PEX costs about 40% less than
copper, given copper’s soaring cost in the last
few decades. PEX fittings are more expensive,
but fewer are required. Labor costs are lower,
too—anecdotal evidence suggests that a three-
day installation with copper will take two days
with PEX.
pex DIsaDvanTages
PEX systems tend to be exclusive, with
many brands requiring proprietary connectors
and crimping tools. Moreover, some
manufacturers will sell only to installers who
are certified in its procedures, although that’s
use a proprietary crimping tool to
likely to change now that PEX is sold online.
squeeze the steel ring and compress the
tubing onto the ribbed connector.
PEX will break down when exposed to
UV light (within 30 to 90 days), so get it
installed and covered quickly. You can buy
PEX with UV inhibitors, but it’s more costly.
Although PEX can withstand high water
This compression tee joins PeX tubing,
temperatures, it will melt when exposed to
rigid CVPC pipe, and copper—very useful
open flame. It must not be directly connected
in renovation plumbing. Because
to gas- or oil-fired water heaters and must be
compression fittings don’t crimp pipes,
kept away from flue pipes, recessed lights, and
they are reusable, allowing you to make
other sources of excessive heat.
adjustments as you splice new supply
pipes to existing ones.
PEX can also degrade if exposed to some
oil- or solvent-based compounds, so avoid hand-
ling oils or greases while working with PEX.
plumbing
329
workIng wITh pex
will take place between the two metals, and cor-
rosion will accelerate.
Although PEX fittings and connection tools dif-
Today, galvanized pipe is largely limited to
fer, there are basically three types: clamp-ring,
gas-supply service. Because of safety consider-
push-fit, or compression fitting.
ations and the difficulty of threading pipe with-
Clamp ring. After cutting PEX tubing squarely,
out a power threader, have a licensed plumber
Renovation 4th Edition Page 76