Pex best practices in Marine us.

[Eddieclemons]

I some places in my fresh water system that drip/leak and are nest of connections. I plan to replace them with pex. There are a few questions I am researching.1. I was told that stainless crimp clamps are considered to have more corrosion resistance than the brass compression rings?2. Brass vs plastic fittings? Not all fittings are even found in plastic.3. If the brass fitting barb allows room for a double crimp clamp, shall I double up? There is a minimum clearance for the clamp to fitting down the pex.

 

[Briankinley2004]

I wouldn't use plastic pex fittings in my house what more a boat. The only time I use the plastic is for pressure testing caps or something temporary. If you are able to get two clamps on I don't see where this would hurt. I have no experience with the stainless fittings. I was going to use pex on my boat but wound up going with the flared copper that lasted 35 years. Also went back with the tubing and clamps in a couple areas where Hatteras used this. Personally I don't find PEX faster or cheaper in areas where there are alot of fittings. I think long runs with more pipe and less fittings is where PEX makes sense.

 

[bostonhatteras]

For what its worth, pex is not uv stable. installation allows for 60 days exposure to uv. The manufacturers intend for the product to forever live in the dark, as in enclosed within wall cavities. Exposed runs along even basement ceilings, where there is very little sunlight, are required to be covered in pipe insulation to maintain warranty. If you're concerned about crimp rings rusting, do away with them entirely and use uponor/wirsbo Pex A. Uponor Pex A has memory and is an expansion type connection as opposed to a crimp type. the pex tube is cut, a collar is slid onto the tube, the expander tool slides into the tube and expands the tube and then the tube is slipped over the fitting returning to its natural size and forming its own compression. Uponor has all manner of low lead brass fittings. Only uponor has Pex A, that is pex tubing with expansion memory. All other brands require crimp rings
As for glass filled plastic fittings, they are pretty tough little items. I would still use brass onboard, because its a hatteras and we do things belt and suspenders style, but to eschew glass filled plastic in a home is just to ask for higher costs with virtually no return. as for freeze up protection, pex will expand to accomodate a bit of freeze and cast copper, tube copper or cast brass fittings will break from freeze before the glass filled plastic will due to the overall design of the system.

 

[Scarlett]

After chasing down 2 water leaks in the apex on a friends boat that turned out to actually be holes in the tubing where no apparent chaffing had occurred. My new boat also has it and I just installed a new galley faucet and cannot get a fitting to stop dripping so now I am going to have to remove it all and start again with new fittings, another words I hate the stuff. John

 

[Pascal]

I have redone all The plumbing on my 53 with new copper and Sharkbite fittings. Easy to use and bulletproof. I tested the first few connections by shaking them and misaligning them. Not a single drip.

 

[brettportzer]

New Nordhavn 41 water lines.

 

[Captain Ralph]

Wow
You did not show this pic on the other forum.
You have 4 or more types of plastic plumbing styles in there.

Looks like one of those picture games; How many FUBARS can you find in the picture?

 

[BOATER BOB]

Replumed my boat with Pex 3/4 and 1/2 tubing brass fittings and Im pretty sure the crimp rings are made of copper and they should last as long as copper tubing.

 

[Eddieclemons]

On another forum, SS crimp clamps, and brass compression rings were not well thought of. I order some Aqualock fittings to try. I really think the SS crimped clamps would have been fine.

 

[jim rosenthal]

I guess when you buy the boat, you also buy the mistakes of the previous owner(s) and service people. For what it's worth, the copper plumbing in my boat is fifty years old last month and 99% of it is original. What isn't is because of mistakes I made when winterizing it. We DID remove all the copper tubing for the Hynautic system- that was kind of a WYIT as the engines were out and it was easy to get to. That is now high-pressure nylon tubing. But the FW plumbing is still copper and works fine, at least until last fall. We'll see when I recommission it this spring.

 

[rsmith]

The brass pex fittings will not connected to the bonding system electrolysis will eat them up.

 

[rsmith]

The brass pex fittings will not connected to the bonding system electrolysis will eat them up.

Bite the bullet and use copper

 

[steve c]

I re-plumbed the water system on my 41 convertible a year and a half ago. I used pex and sharkbite connectors. 2 people, one measuring and installing and the other cutting. I added shut off valves everywhere and so far so good. ( about 200 hours ) The project took about six hours to complete. Additional supports were added for the tubing,

 

[rwaldrop13]

I re-plumbed the water system on my 41 convertible a year and a half ago. I used pex and sharkbite connectors. 2 people, one measuring and installing and the other cutting. I added shut off valves everywhere and so far so good. ( about 200 hours ) The project took about six hours to complete. Additional supports were added for the tubing,

PO started replumbing with PEX/Sharkbite fittings on my boat but ran it in parallel with a lot of the original copper lines. Where I had inherited issues was in midships passageway where he ran crossover line from his homemade dock water connection/tank pump and accumulator tank, to supply water heater and also run cold water to aft and midships heads. I had a recurring puddle under the starboard engine room door and finally was able to trace it to a crack in the PEX install where he tried to do a long run from the outboard side/forward bulkhead of the starboard engine room to the outboard side/aft bulkhead of the port engine room. I replumbed that section, finding plumbers helper wrapped around the two pex lines that went under the passageway, with elbows, new PEX line and securing the lines with clamps. Eliminated the puddle problem, and water pressure is actually better both on tank and dock water. Once I get tank level monitor installed on FW tank, I can turn my attention to replacing the homemade shore water connection he built out of dishwasher and shower head hose.