Plumbing?

[Snotter]

The new heat pump is installed and the electrical upgrades will be finished soon. It is time to start planning my next project on the old morgan (which is also my home).

I would like to get rid of the crappy butyl plumbing in my boat that is constantly weeping drinking water. Since the the mobile home industry quit building homes with the crap, it is veeery dificult getting replacement fittings.

My neighbor just re-plumbed his boat with 1/2 pex pipe and fittings. He did his whole Tartan 37 in just a few days. His work looked sweet and he was happy with the results. I was impressed.

Wishing to learn more, I searched for 'pex' in the SBO archive and nothing came up. I was wondering if this technology is suitable for a marine environment. I wonder what Maine Sail would say about the stuff and to learn what technology he prefers.

Also, I moved the AC pump further aft, requiring me to re-plumb the forward AC unit. I used 5/8" reinforced rubber to plumb my new aft heatpump. The stuff was both expensive and bulky. I wonder if a hybrid raw-water line consiisting of both reinforced rubber and pex would be appropriate.

Any comments?

 

[Maine Sail]

Pex is great stuff but don't buy it from a chandlery! Find a local plumbing & heating wholesaler and get it from them. You can buy the 1/2" stuff at Home Depot in red for hot, and blue for cold and then use Shark-Bite fittings. I prefer the plastic shark-bite type fittings and Lowe's stocks them. I would not waste the money on the compression tools as boats are very, very low pressure. All you need is a tube cutter and some fittings...

If you can find a local wholesaler who stocks 3/8" pex you will find it considerably easier to run and work with in the boat compared to the 1/2"..

 

[KD3PC]

2nd vote for the pex... a slipmate redid his using 1/2 inch and the reusable connectors. he actually used the old gray stuff to pull in the new pex...

I am gearing up to do the same in the spring, and the only change I am going to try is to use both a cold and hot manifold of copper or pvc so that I can isolate or turn off a section of the boat and hopefully make it easier to winterize..

keep us posted and I would be interested in pictures or strategy if you do it in PEX.

thanks
dave

 

[RAD]

I have not done my system yet but having to see this stuff installed on job sites and talking to my brother the plumber this is the way to go...I have mended my old plastic system that Oday installed and it too is a hybrid of hose and plastic and looks like sh..t also have this stuff feeding water to a shed in the back yard and if I ever forget to winterize I won't have to worry

 

[Blitz]

so if my old PEX gray lines say 3/8" they can be serviced with the stuff from lowes? assume it is 3/8" inside diameter.

 

[Maine Sail]

so if my old PEX gray lines say 3/8" they can be serviced with the stuff from lowes? assume it is 3/8" inside diameter.

The old gray Quest polybutylene pipe may leak in 3/8" pex fittings as the tube wall thickness are not the same as pex..

 

[Blitz]

The old gray Quest polybutylene pipe may leak in 3/8" pex fittings as the tube wall thickness are not the same as pex..

Bummer - sorry if this is a hyjack but is there a a way to tie in?

 

[Snotter]

Thanks, all for the responses. Sorry for the day or two of silence. I was traveling over the holiday.

I was thinking that upgrading from 3/8" to 1/2" would increase the flow to my wash-down hose at the anchor. I haven't looked at the pressure pump to see what size the native fitting is on the working end of the pump. (And, yes, I clean the anchor with fresh water. The kind of sailing I do doesn't warrant me to put in a separate pump and strainer in at this time.)

Maine Sail, I am not familiar with the shark bite fittings. Do they sell them at the big-box stores? Do they sell them in 3/8?

My friend plumbed his boat with the copper fittings and metal rings, using a compression tool. I was concerned that since the fittings and rings were metal, and the piping plastic that the different rates in expansion and contraction would cause things to leak over time. Are the shark bite fittings plastic?