Anonymous wrote:10' of 3/4" pipe at Home Depot:

Type L copper: $46.67
Type M copper: $34.32
Type B PEX: $4.10 (300 foot roll, prorated)

Isn't type A better?

10' of 3/4" pipe at Home Depot:

Type L copper: $46.67
Type M copper: $34.32
Type B PEX: $4.10 (300 foot roll, prorated)

Anonymous wrote:There are reports of rodents chewing through PEX.

Hate to break it to you but rodents chew thru a lot more than pex.

I do HVAC/ Plumbing for a living. My current home has CPVC (becomes way too brittle over time) and my vacation home has PEX (no issues but I've seen first hand what a mouse can do to it). If I was going to build a new home it would be domestic copper (experience has taught me not to trust the stuff from Korea/ Brazil).

There are reports of rodents chewing through PEX.

TLDR; problem with plastic pipes: 1. Leaching, 2. Permeation. 3. Wildfires.

As op, 2 and 3 don’t apply in my house or locally even as pex isn’t used in ground and we don’t source water from wildfire prone areas. And, the research and consensus is mixed on 1 but I tend to agree as it’s logical, I just don’t know to what extent I agree or the actual (mitigable?) impact. I tend to agree with NSF as they evaluate and certify many products for restaurant or home use.

The Va tech quote seems to indicate legionnaires isn’t due to pex or copper alone but ph and phosphate levels. Granted I didn’t read that study or maybe I interpreted it wrong and the pex affects the ph and phosphate?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pex should be banned. Using Type K (thick wall) copper eliminates pinhole leaks.

Okay, I'll bite. What's so terrible about PEX?

Legionnaires disease? This seems like a balanced article:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/replacing-lead-water-pipes-with-plastic-could-raise-new-safety-issues/

Que?

Pipe material-related factors beyond those in the principles document can also contaminate drinking water. A July laboratory study by civil and environmental engineer Marc Edwards of Virginia Tech and his colleagues revealed that the growth of Legionella pneumophila, the water-borne bacterium that causes Legionnaires’ disease, varied with the pH of water, whether that water was in contact with cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) or copper pipes, and the presence of phosphate, which is used to control corrosion.

Should you use Pex A or Pex B?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pex should be banned. Using Type K (thick wall) copper eliminates pinhole leaks.

Okay, I'll bite. What's so terrible about PEX?

Legionnaires disease? This seems like a balanced article:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/replacing-lead-water-pipes-with-plastic-could-raise-new-safety-issues/

Anonymous wrote:Pex should be banned. Using Type K (thick wall) copper eliminates pinhole leaks.

Okay, I'll bite. What's so terrible about PEX?

Pex should be banned. Using Type K (thick wall) copper eliminates pinhole leaks.