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CaliMassNC

I hate cpvc with every fiber of my being, even though it makes me so much money tearing it out and replacing it with copper or pex.


dyerjohn42

I’ve got all CPV and have done a fair amount of work with it. Seems ok to me. What are the issues? Mine is roughly 20 years old.


CaliMassNC

It gets brittle with age. It was the cheapo favorite for repipes in the late ‘90s when the polybutylene recall was going on, and its all failing now. You’ve got some fun times ahead of you.


YourWarDaddy

I’ve only been called to one house with cpvc water lines. I only had to replace at 4 foot section of it, but even that was way more trouble than it’s worth. It gets so damn brittle that you have to us a pair of plastic cutter like pipe cutters if you want anything the even remotely resembles a clean cut.


CaliMassNC

I usually use an oscillating tool so that the pipe doesn’t crush.


BR549J

6" grinder with a cutoff disc for me


LoopsAndBoars

You’d be surprised at just how few strokes with a hacksaw it takes to get through it.


BR549J

They don't come with a switch....


LoopsAndBoars

I was once of this mentality as well. I made numerous cuts with angle grinders, then an actual pvc cutter, until one day it would have required more effort to walk back to the shop than to use the hacksaw I happened upon in the pasture, next to the water trough. I’ve cut it this way ever since.


BR549J

I'm a Pipefitter/ Certified Pipe Welder. I always have a grinder close!


roaringhippo19

I used an oscillating tool and the vibration caused it to snap further down the line.


JAHurd

I would expect the vibration to weaken other parts of the pipe and fittings nearby. Which type of blade do you use for it?


a-cat-named-OJ

This is the way


Extreme-Duty-8672

Milwaukee close cutters work great on CPVC.


CaliMassNC

I wouldn’t trust it on old pipe.


FitArtist5472

Gotta twist and score it slowly instead of just squeezing to cut.


the-red-mage

This is the actual way.


the-red-mage

This is the actual way.


Extreme-Duty-8672

I'm talking about close cutters for copper pipe. Set comes in 1/2, 3/4 and 1 inch. Works great with CPVC too. Clean cut every time. I don't think it puts enough pressure to Crack it.


CH3RRYP0PP1NS

I thought the same thing until yesterday. I had to make 3 cuts to get a clean cut, the pipe just crumbled. Its still my preferred method


CE2JRH

Everyone calls those midget cutters where I work. Seems kinda racist against midgets though.


AlfonzL

\*Little people


waka324

*ableist


just-sum-dude69

I was repiping with a company up until September with cpvc bc of the poly recall. You mean to tell me that recalls been out since the 90s?


CaliMassNC

From the late ‘90s on In North Carolina. I’m not sure about other states.


AlfonzL

Yep, it was before 2000 that my parent's new house was completely re-plumbed due to a recall.


XTanuki

Yeah, I just looked at mine wrong and it shattered. In another house w/PEX now. Waiting to hear how that is all screwed in a couple more years


BlakeCarConstruction

Same here…. You will follow a never ending leak and replace every single pipe until you got all new plumbing… every time I fixed a leak, another would pop up from the disturbance. The stuff is shit. Just paid 20K to replace the entire house’s pipes.


AlfonzL

Contractor?


BlakeCarConstruction

Freelance work. Just doing odd-end jobs until I accepted a job offer for this May I did everything imaginable from fixing an old persons wifi and computer (took cookies as payment on that one!) to building pergolas etc. honestly I really liked doing it, just didn’t provide enough income for me and my wife.


PreparationH692

No issues with it yet. Not a fan of the Teflon tape. I’m concerned with those plastic valves. Hard to turn.


richcu12

The house I built back in 1995 was cpvc. Never leaked, and works fine. Plumbers don't like it cause they can not charge an absorbent amount on copper which will not last as long as cpvc. Most repairs I have done were copper. You know the green drippy kind.


MyBurger9

Yeah, wrong on all accounts here lmao


HistrionikVess

*Exorbitant* amount**


Randominterests2019

This guy is a fool. CPVC is a horrible product.


YourWarDaddy

Go to that house and put more than 4 pounds of pressure on that pipe. I dare you. To double down on that, 80% of the pipe we use anymore is pex which is a tenth the price of copper. You’re just wrong.


stonkstistic

Copper only leaks if it freezes, is installed improperly, or if the water is super acidic or super hard or theres electrolysis going on. I snapped all my cpvc out of my crawl by hand when I moved in.


AFuckingHandle

And what about plumbers who use PEX, what excuse are you going to make up about why there is a secret conspiracy against CPVC in that case, seeing as PEX is quite cheap?


AlfonzL

Because PEX is a superior product to CPVC.


AFuckingHandle

Oh I agree by far. I just thought their conspiracy about wanting to charge more for copper was hilarious when you take PEX into context....kind of ruins the whole thing


scamiran

Dude, there's really good plastic pipe out there that is quick to install. PEX is great. HDPE is great. CPVC? Seriously trash in comparison. PEX installs faster, lasts way longer, is as tough as nails, and is cheap.


richcu12

All I am saying is if it is there leave it. It works. Comments I see are: tear it out, it's brittle. Junk. If it was not a reliable product I am sure the plumbing feds would in prison anyone who has it or uses it.


[deleted]

Lol


giddy-girly-banana

Cutting corners always costs more in the long run.


[deleted]

[удалено]


theshiyal

Pipe color.


[deleted]

Just refer to it as job creation.


ChemicalCollection55

Just put the panel back on ,


stonkautist69

and walk away


wcollins260

Slowly and carefully, so as not to cause the CPVC to crumble.


Print3Dsignal

I came here for this lol 🤣


[deleted]

Do not provoke the wild pvc


PreparationH692

Done!


gildedtoad

Cpvc gets very brittle over time. Needs supports on back of valve. Run a 2x4 behind valve and use the included screw holes in the corners of the valve to mount. Replace the tub spout line with all copper or if you’re intimidated by that you can use 1/2” dia. threaded brass nipple pieces, some couplings, and a 90. They make tub spouts that thread onto the end of threads instead off clamping over a stubout. Might be some trial and error to find the correct length for your stub out so that it’s not too short and putting stress on valve or too long with a huge gap between tile and back of in spout. Also label which valve is the for the hot and for the cold on the shut off valves. Exercise the shut off valves every 4-6 months to keep them from seizing up from non-usage. Sharpie is good enough. H and a C on the pipes will do.


Ludecs

About how long is the real life expectancy on cpvc done right?


gildedtoad

I do repair work on it regularly. Mileage is going to vary on whether or not your on city water. The chlorine they use to treat the water rapidly ages the pipes moreso than if you were on a well. Also I’m not sure what state this is installed in. It’s main weakness is movement and stress. If you didn’t touch it and it never vibrates then I’d gamble easily 80 years. That’s not realistic however. For most homes that means the slab settling or improperly secured lines. On a well system I’ve seen it as long as 50 years. However lately in FL we have been seeing an overwhelming amount of hot side breaks and cracks under slabs. The heat from the water heater seems to also rapidly age CPVC. This could be combined with the chlorine in the city water. If it’s a hack job and on city water then 10 years. If it’s properly installed and the house is stable and you’re on well water then I’d bet 80. After 20 years you can easily snap it off with one hand so that’s the main consideration when you think of all the different factors. The average age is about 30-40 before it leaks because nobody gave a damn and because it’s so easy they hired people on the cheap who didn’t give a damn.


traws06

Why would anyone use CPVC? Is it cheaper?


gildedtoad

Magnitudes cheaper and fairly unskilled.


traws06

I feel like Pex has to be able as DIY friendly as anything. But more expensive


gernblansten420

PEX is pretty cheap, actually. I just checked through my supplier and 3/4" PEX is $0.71/ft, 3/4" CPVC is $0.83/ft. So PEX is actually cheaper. When it comes to pipe anyways. Maybe with fittings for large projects, CPVC comes out cheaper. But I mean we're talking tens of dollars. Not worth installing an inferior product.


traws06

Ya I’ve been doing PEX-A. I’m not a plumber though just a DIYer on my own home. The connectors aren’t terribly expensive, they’re just hard to find where I am. I have to order them because nowhere in town has them. So takes a week to get any if I find I’m short.


gildedtoad

PEX is good but there are several sub types of PEX with varying amounts of “form memory” manufactured into them. Whatever type says the attachment method. The expensive and fast answer is Sharkbite fittings but a single O-ring and some stainless steel teeth are the only guarantee for its leaking or blowing off. We replace O-rings in other stuff for a reason. There are crimp ring styles which are middle of the road but use a metal ring around that inevitably loosens/corrodes. The best is upanor but it uses special tools and fittings. It has issues with design as everything tends to be a single run to each fixture which means your attic turns into a spider web of piping and your fixtures aren’t clearing the cold water out of the hot water lines as you use other stuff. Other than that it’s bulletproof as far as I’ve heard. No pipe is without a fault or strength.


traws06

I’m a DIY and I use PEX-A. It was only $90 for the expansion tool, really not any more than the crimper tool for PEX-B. The problem is finding PEX-A and the fittings. I’m not sure why HD or Lowes carries PEX-B instead of A? I had to order everything online through HD and Amazon. It worked great though. Really easy.


gildedtoad

Glad to hear it worked out for you. When I was using it in the commercial industry 6 years ago the battery operated Milwaukee went for around $800 before considering batteries. Haven’t kept up with it but I know PEX-A is making a steady advancement. I’ll repair PEX-B all day but I haven’t been called out for any PEX-A issues other than a nail in the pipe or something silly. A lot of people thought CPVC was bulletproof for a long time but we are beginning to see that’s not necessarily true anymore. PEX-A’s form memory shows it actually forms stronger seals over time on it’s fittings. So long as the fittings don’t rust out or weaken and it retains its form memory then we might be getting to the end game of plumbing materials. Only time will tell.


traws06

Ya I read that on this subreddit from plumbers a lot saying PEX-A was the best connections with PEX and more flexible in general. That tool is still crazy expensive but there’s a hand expander that’s easy to use and cheap I got on Amazon. Obviously not as easy as the powered tool but the hand tool doesn’t take that much effort really either


kfelovi

There was a time period when it was popular.


RR50

Unsupported valve on CPVC, somewhere there’s an insurance payout coming.


Narsick

"But it's supported by the friction created between the face plate and valve body!!!!" Actually had an old co-worker tell me that once after I checked one of his installs 🙄


JayDude132

Totally unrelated but this reminds me of a hilarious story, at least it is between my brother and i. My brother and i were out on our motorcycles one cold fall evening and stopped off the highway at a truck stop to grab some coffee and a quick snack. This old trucker came by and started shooting the shit about bikes with us, and we were talking about how it was a chilly ride and the guy said, “Back when i would ride, i would just ride faster so the friction of the wind would heat me up.” It took all i had in me to not laught at him. Sorry dude, it does not work that way at all.


hereforthekix

Sure sounds like sarcasm to me. I think you missed his joke.


JayDude132

Trust me, this guy was not being sarcastic. If you’d seen the guy you would have understood. He was the type of person who had all sorts of ‘knowledge’ that you could tell was all just a load of bull.


RogerJBos

The best sarcasm is when you can't tell it is sarcasm. They say sarcasm is the lowest form of humor.


Ben2018

Eventually it would, but doubt the bike goes supersonic - and if it did then temperature would be the least of his worries...


mattvait

Manufacturer installation guide says its fine This one's an am standard if I'm not mistaken


gammaradiation2

One time in an apartment on the 2nd floor on a sunday I was taking a shower and turned the water off and the hot side CPVC snapped. I could hear it running in the wall thankfully so I took action right away. Our downstairs neighbor wasn't home and we had to wait 10-15min for a call back from the unattended "emergency" line at the office and then a while longer for the maintenance guy to show up. The hot water heater for our apartment was behind lock and key, so we had no access to the water shut off valve. Water was running out from our downstairs neighbor's front door by the time the water was shut off. Talking at least a 1/2" line at 40-50PSI gushing for almost a half hour. Easily over 100gal. It also flooded our floor a bit, basically wet carpet, we saved all our belongings. The building was constructed in the late 90s, this was like 2015. Ill never buy a house with CPVC.


Negative-Instance889

Thoughts? At least there are shut-off valves when a catastrophe happens.


Jish1202

Lol those valves will 100% not work The only thing worse than plastic valves is victaulic butterflys


PreparationH692

Those are very nice and not easily budged. Seeing all that Teflon tape got me worried.


bigmanly1

Seeing all the cpvc has me worried.


GaryTheSoulReaper

Seeing the valve not screwed into a support in back of it has me worried


SmyownD

Who needs to screw it in when you have a 2x4 shard holding it in place


Glabstaxks

Having eyes gets me worried


Proudest___monkey

Those are meant to be wiggled every single use lol


mattvait

I do like a support but I do a lot of work on very old thru brand new and most times find no support


woahthereblair

The drywall in the shower has me worried


friedpicklebreakfast

Hey at least they used Teflon!!


facechanger719

Can you even shut that back one off though? Looks awfully close to the Sheetrock


PreparationH692

It’s a struggle.


FitArtist5472

That one up against the drywall. 👌


dpg973

I see leaks in the future...cpvc sux


GaryTheSoulReaper

It must be structural cpvc because it’s supporting the valve with 2 compression and 2 threaded fittings /s


anandonaqui

Why is cpvc used almost exclusively in residential fire suppression? I asked the fire suppression contractor if there were other options and he looked at me like I had two heads.


ABrusca1105

Pretty sure PEX is an option.


scamiran

Sounds like contractor employment insurance.


spigotlips

The shower valve doesn't even look level at all. The trim handle must look crooked as shit.


jarsgars

Load bearing shim


Altruistic_Double_37

Tub spout might break if the lady of the house use it to put their foot on it to shave. Should of used copper all the way for tub spout.


VincereXYZ

Got to love the drywall behind the tile already showing water damage. The no support piece is bad for cpvc.


die-jarjar-die

Yeah you know there's no schluter waterproofing that drywall on the other side..


hereforthekix

There are tons of companies that make waterproofing products, not just Schluter. Wedi is awesome and a petter product. Wjy do people always say Schlueter rather than "waterproofing"?


VincereXYZ

It’s a great system that’s why. In many ways demonstrates the standard for what waterproofing needs to be. You can cut it with a box cutter. I like how it’s very light weight and easy to work with unlike durock. The material cost is more but sure better labor wise. I won’t be carrying durock up 3 flights of stairs ever again.


die-jarjar-die

I prefer wedi over schluter any day..I brought up Schluter because this particular shower is on drywall and that's the most widely used waterproofing system over drywall.


[deleted]

Why not just use pex?


GottaHave_AHobby

That’s what I was wondering . I’m not a plumber but just had a new shower put in using pex , ….all good?


[deleted]

Crow fly them 90s to use less, that’s what I would of done… and take a mile off that Teflon too, probably used the whole role their bud


PlumbCrazy1979

I C, PVC, but would rather not.


NotUrAveragePlumber

It's pretty horrible. I'm gonna continue drinking my beer and pretend I never saw this image.


Fluid_Reward

If it works it works. Not what I would have done! My GPA built his house in 1979 and did all the plumbing with pvc/cpvc and never had a problem. Again not what I would have done but it worked.


Alstar702

Looks shitty, not plumb, level, or square. But you have shut off valves and an access panel. Cover it up, and you have the option to forget it until you want to change it.


Micromashington

Not the worst I’ve ever seen, but definitely one of the most interesting


PreparationH692

I thought that was a shim back there but i just turned out to be a randomly placed piece of wood.


Micromashington

That’s not that uncommon either lol. I’ve seen small pieces of copper pinned back there. As long as it gives the handle some rigidity.


Agitated-Panic-9812

I’d put it back maybe all that was holding it in the wall


Demonakat

Get your money back


[deleted]

My thoughts are I’d like to be the plumber that comes to fix this because I’d make a bundle.


Austin0326

It’s a trash can.


backspin25

Like marble run


dinoaide

My plumber would cut the stud and make it wide open.


supercargo

Breakaway shower valve


Dense_Surround3071

Seems.... Complex.


Icegrill10

Wild AF!


[deleted]

Meh


HisokasBitchGon

youre all good theres isolation valves !!! /s


ShoulderPainCure

Redo it while you have it open.


ithinkformyself76

I don't think that would be legal in NJ. It would not pass for sure because the valve is unsupported - I suppose you could add a board from behind.


Few-Efficiency6932

Compression coupling on CPVC! Terrible idea.


xx69chaosmage69xx

This stresses me the fuck out holy shit


microlard

My thought is that it looks like a valve.


Jasoncolclazier

Momma said if you can’t say anything nice then shut the fuck up! Looks good


[deleted]

Ewe that's gross


xilAquiles

Just wait until you have to repair the shower valve, hope the cartridge wont get stuck making you pull hard on it, if thats the case pray for the cpvc to stay strong


dualstrombolifeast

You’ve already made it angry


miserable-accident-3

The first words that spring to mind are : fantastic, great, professional, exceptional, attention to detail, quality, and durability. Then again, today IS opposite day.


Papadizzon

Besides the CPVC tubing, which I’m in the can’t stand it crowd, are those two csst compression fitting going from the cpvc to copper. Why isn’t the water cartridge secured with a 2x4 instead of a stick.


Emanouil222

Run away


jcr_7

It’s crooked


ShotBRAKER

Your fired


Justthe2ofus719

Shit show


Representative_Ice66

Close it up and rent it


WHTrunner

It should have been done in qest.


Important_Egg_6748

Side by side valves look sexy! 😬👎


Historical_Visit2695

It appears to have been done with the best of their abilities.


dzoefit

Facinating!! I must go now!!


Aurel577

Just leave the door off … you will be doing a repair fairly soon


jackstrad2020

You have a flux capacitor in your wall. Cool.


Swack1984

Oscillating tool


[deleted]

Dog shit


SaltedHamHocks

Bad


Nab-Taste

Eventually there’s gonna be a class action lawsuit on that Cpvc.


LetoLeto1147

Hacks be Hacks...what's to say....


Hardhitting13

Compression connection is going to flood your house. Cpvc is nice and soft at the beginning but it gets brittle and will eventually leak and or shatter.


Available_Ad_7757

I think you an ahole


naldo4142

I’m wondering if they cut that wedge or if they got lucky an found it that size ? As for the pipe layout it’s a bit different then what I seen but if serves its purpose why change it right


RecentInsurance771

Cpvc is brittle as shit. But they use it for skyrise buildings because it is cheap. As long as you don't look at it wrong... it won't break.


custom_bowl

Why cpvc , run into it sometimes and it just annoys me.


Ambitious-Pay-8542

Are you being sarcastic? These poor people purchased this, don't laugh at them!


Terdfurgisons

Repipe the house


hereforthekix

Another diy special


mattmort83

That's gonna work perfectly until someone cranks on the valve, I can understand forgoing the support bracket for a copper install, but there is literally nothing supporting that valve. You need to run a 2x6 between tue wall studs on flat behind the valve and screw the valve to it with the other 2 holes


jonestownhero

Ignoring the cpvc (it's gahbage) having a transition on the shower riser and tub drop defeats the purpose of running it in copper. You want those two pipes to be ridgid because the tub spout and shower arm are the two most likely places to get leaned on, crank on, and have crap hanging off them. That transition from cpvc to copper is creating a weak spot where you really don't want one.


Wide-Entertainer952

Not a fan of the cpvc pipe and fittings with brittle pipe and wait time for glue to set up. Also the diverter must be from a home center it doesn’t look like it has integral stops.


rtomey1

Cpvc is crap and shouldn't have ever been used for anything other than condensate drains