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+-- Thread: Flooded kitchen (/showthread.php?tid=7160768)
Flooded kitchen - whatline - 12-05-2015
Our. House built early 90's had grey PB plumbing....everyone in our development does. I knew about the failures and that the class action suit had expired or ran out of money. In our case the valve stem and knob blew right out of the valve. Ruined kitchen floor. And basement....my shop is minus a bunch of tools. After the water restoration people dried the house out I am paying to get re piped. The plumbers I had quote all said...at the very least replace all valves...that they failed more often then the pipe. So just a PSA for others.....not a meter of if...just when. Ours ran from midnight til 6:00 am.
Re: Flooded kitchen - K. L. McReynolds - 12-05-2015
Pick the auto shut off valve you like and install one.
Re: Flooded kitchen - Robert Adams - 12-05-2015
My parents house and some others in the neighborhood where they live have PB between the house and meter. Theirs was built in the early 80s next door was built in the early 90s and also had PB. Allot of builders and others used PB for the main as it was cheaper than copper and when running a line over 100' it adds up.
The neighbors broke at the meter one day. I saw it when pulling up and turned his water off and called to tell him. My parents had developed a hole in theirs due to a rock rubbing the pipe lots of rock there. Unfortunately I was out of town and they had to have a plumber gouge them. $500 for a repair on it and the pipe is not even 8" deep...
One of my projects one day will be to dig it out and replace it with pex. If I were you I would re plumb the house but like you were told it's mainly the connections that fail.
Re: Flooded kitchen - meackerman - 12-05-2015
my boss's house has it. He's been replacing it with copper as it fails.
I almost bought a house with it. glad I didn't.
Re: Flooded kitchen - Pirate - 12-06-2015
When inspecting the 3/2/2 house we bought a year ago, I found PB tubing. House is on slab and all tubing runs in attic.
I had the seller reduce the price of the house by $3000, which was the cost to have it replumbed with PEX, and all new valves. It included a 9 year elec. water heater.
Re: Flooded kitchen - Bob10 - 12-06-2015
I often read about pex and PVC plumbing here I am a copper person and have found no reason to change as the expense of the pipe once seems to be way less expensive than the others
Re: Flooded kitchen - Robert Adams - 12-06-2015
Bob10 said:
I often read about pex and PVC plumbing here I am a copper person and have found no reason to change as the expense of the pipe once seems to be way less expensive than the others
Where are you getting your copper pipe that cheap. PEX is far cheaper than copper tubing and way less fittings to leak. I don't know of anyone who still uses copper in residential anymore and even most commercial is going to it as well.
I can get 300' rolls of pex for $80 which is on the high side. 100' of copper cost $140 that but you still need to add in all the couplers and solder and added leak spot possibilities. Course some of the pex items do add a little price back like the stub outs etc.
I'll never understand why certain parts of the country allow pvc for potable water. Just not durable enough for me.
Re: Flooded kitchen - Curlycherry - 12-06-2015
I home ran all my new fixtures with PEX to the basement on a manifold. So I have one connection in the basement, and one at the wall of the fixture. Once installed there is zero reason for a leak in between unless a nail or screw gets driven into it, and that is easy to watch for my leaving the lines pressurized during construction. Someone puts a nail in it they find out right away.
I've seen lots and lots of copper joints let go in walls and cause major floods. I've recently seen not one but two of those plastic clips on the end of toilet feeds break and flood a house. Those cheap $5 connections seem to be a very weak link in a very important water line.
Re: Flooded kitchen - Bob10 - 12-06-2015
I never said it was cheap up front but long run is what I am after. On properties I rehab the portions I rewire get done in conduit even if it isn't code required
Re: Flooded kitchen - theeviltwinn - 12-06-2015
35 yrs of construction and I never remember a copper fitting letting loose and flooding a building.
Twinn