Hello folks, My only comment on this is that it is always a good idea to try to come close to the code when possible.
If you should ever have a problem such as a fire or the like and it turns out that the disaster was caused by "illegal" creative engerneering your homeowner's insurance may not cover the problem. Cy, the Anasazi From: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com [mailto:blindhandy...@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Michael baldwin Sent: Friday, August 20, 2010 7:42 AM To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [BlindHandyMan] PEX? UPC: 604.11.2 PEX tubing shall not be installed within the first 18" of piping connected to a water heater. Of course, if the area adopts other codes, this may be different. 2006 PEX Design Guide: PEX tubing may be connected directly to residential electric water heaters, if the local code and manufacturer's instructions allow. Not sure what the IRC has for this, so it is best to check with the building department. Of course, if your not getting a permit, it is probably not a big deal, but those codes are put there now because people thought stuff wasn't a big deal and they suffered property and life damage due to "not a big deal" when building or remodeling. IMO it is always best to build to at least code, even if your not getting a permit. Michael _____ From: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> [mailto:blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> ] On Behalf Of Dale Leavens Sent: Friday, August 20, 2010 7:43 AM To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] PEX? It probably can be bent more severely than i said with care or supported with a spring. As someone else said, it used to be thought that PEX should not come within 6 feet of a water heating system, I don't know if that is still true. The newer materials are probably more forgiving. One of the main advantages is that you can pull it up through partitions without needing to splice in elbows and now they are running it in loops to provide under floor heating so the radius must be better than I first stated. I'll try to find out later. ----- Original Message ----- From: NLG To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> Sent: Thursday, August 19, 2010 10:09 PM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] PEX? Thanks for the reply. Not sure where I got the impression that PEX 3/4 inch could be coiled into a loup of 7 inches...Like I said, I never worked with PEX before and with new technology coming out every day, maybe they have a braded PEX or some product that can be? ----- Original Message ----- From: Dale Leavens To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> Sent: Thursday, August 19, 2010 9:48 PM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] PEX? PEX is flexible but only to an arc of maybe 3 feet diameter. In your situation you might consider a loop or an arc allowing you the extra length when/if you need it. With a hundred feet though you should be able to replace it when that occasion arises. ----- Original Message ----- From: NLG To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> Sent: Thursday, August 19, 2010 9:18 PM Subject: [BlindHandyMan] PEX? I have never worked with PEX before. Under the impression that PEX was flexable, I thought I had an application here where PEX would be ideal. Last year I added a hot water coil to my wood/coal furnace to heat my domestic hot water. This setup consisted of a stainless steel loup, approximately 24 inches long and installed into the fire box of my furnace. Being approximately 20 feet away from my electric water heater I could not utilize a thermo-syphon, so installed a small circulating pump to move the water from the bottom of the electric water heater through the loup installed in the wood furnace back to the top of the electric water heater. I used 3/4 inch soft copper to make the run from the electric water heater to the wood furnace and back. This setup worked great last winter, reducing my electric bill considerably. This summer, my electric water heater had to be replaced and like always, the inlet, outlet, drain valve, as well as the pop valve are never in the same location on the new tank as it was on the old. Not wanting to plumb the system again with copper (knowing a few years down the road) I will have to do it all over again, I thought I would connect PEX from the copper I have in place overhead in the floor joyste to the electric water heater, thinking that PEX would be more flexable and when the next time I have to replace a water heater, the hook-up would be easier. I bought the crimping tool, copper crimp rings, the fittings I needed and 100 feet of 3/4 inch PEX tubing. From examining this PEX tubing I know that it is not as flexable as even soft copper of the same size. All that having been said... Did I purchase the wrong type PEX? Without installing elbows / 90 degree fittings, is there a way to accomplish a substancial bend in this type PEX (perhaps type C). perhaps using a heat gun? Or would heating the PEX enough to accomplish my goal diminish the integrity of the PEX tubing? Thanks :) However, [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
