Check connection for accuracy. It is flexible, durable, and high-density. We did some online research and found out that you need TWO pipe wrenches one to turn the pipe youre removing, and one to turn the threading its screwed into in the opposite direction. Using a circular saw, reciprocating saw or jig saw Even with a Diamond tip blade you only get a few cuts and you get a lack of usability / maneuverability/ speed /safety the angle grinder will give you. Click Inbox. You definitely need at least two trays that can catch water if youre working on a project like this. Increasing the length of the pipe wrench increases the force proportionally, a handle twice as long doubles the force, 3 times as long will triple the force, 4 times = 4 times the force. Can you connect copper to galvanized pipe? Tip for Stubborn/Rusty Galv. Spray it onto the joints where your pipe is connected, and try to get some of it to go into the threading. Its been in the attic for probably 4 years now with zero problems. Good tips! 1. suggest a 5 gallon bucket also, to dump those trays into. To answer your question, even though PEX's inner diameter is slightly smaller than the equivalent copper size or your existing galvanized pipe and PEX's fittings go inside the pipe which reduce flow slightly, the theory is that due to the smoother inside walls and fewer fittings needed for PEX, using the equivalent sizes is acceptable. Well. Love the details I think I will try some pex now myself. All Rights Reserved. So we decided to just keep all the faucets on the on position and Evan ran to Home Depot to get a water meter key so we could turn off the water at our meter too. Next youre supposed to run all your faucets, showers, etc until no more water is coming out. great article, thanks. Also, that device sounds pretty interesting! 4) Insert the end of the PEX over the end of the fitting. You are using an out of date browser. - Evan & Katelyn, http://www.americanvintagehome.com/plumbing_heating_air_conditioning_information/why-you-need-to-swap-out-your-galvanized-pipes/, How to Connect PEX to Galvanized Pipe | A Step By Step Guide, DIY Cat Feeding Station (with splash shield), Finding 2-player loopholes in the Raft Finale (pt.15), Raft went from tropics to snow covered islands?! We found several tutorials and sorta spliced together bits and pieces from each. Not likely to happen. 2- Plastic sheeting. Insert the second pipe into the coupling and center the coupling between the two drawn lines. Oh imaginary British person, because we were working on the PEX piping project I mentioned in our last post of course! Aw man I wish we had tried PB Blaster- the wd-40 did technically work but it definitely required elbow grease. Align the coupling end with the drawn line on the pipe. Oops. And that did it!!! Thank you! Thank you! Then you screw the adapter into the joint that you unscrewed your pipe from. Gather as many as you have, attics are dark. A galvanized pipe replacement for an average 2 bathroom home costs between $8,000 and $10,000 when installing copper in its place. Before we could add the PEX piping, we first had to remove our old galvanized pipe. Well done on the project overall! 1) Use crimp ring or cinch clamp fittings for a cheap way to connect the tubing. S03E04, The crazy Subnautica Below Zero FINALE (pt.11), Husband & wife try open-world vampire survival game (V Rising), Whats the Nether like with 217 mods? I used the more reliable source, http://www.epa.gov for information, but I wanted to share this one, too, for the photos: Yep, anything that is 5/8 or 7/8 OD. Did the Teflon tape provide all the needed barrier? First off, we prepped the adapter by wrapping it with Teflon tape the same way youd wrap a shower head before installing it. I have did this many times w/success. :-), Thanks! You will feel like you didnt accomplish anything, but internally you did. For permanent capping, you've to solder the cap with the galvanized pipe. DIYcauseIcant. Second, when using the 2 pipe wrenches, you want to keep the good pipe from moving (so it doesnt loosen at its other end), so the one wrench holds it in place and the wrench on the bad pipe is the one that should move/turn. Referring to the comment about brass and galvanized being "completely compatible", Well, that's good to hear! Then we got to actually attach our new PEX! We loosened it enough for Evan to do the rest by hand! For permanent capping, youve to solder the cap with the galvanized pipe. There are two spots you can do this- at your main water valve where the supply line goes into your house (usually around one of your hose faucets outside) or near the street where your meter is. To be safe, do it at your main water valve AND at the meter using a water meter key. Cross-linked polyethylene, commonly known as PEX, is made of plastic, flexible tubing. Hopefully no more leaks in your near future. Galvanized pipes can last up to 60 -70 years, put not always. Leave them open til youre done with the project, just to be safe. Joining galvanized iron fittings to galvanized steel pipe requires pipe dope or PTFE tape and two pipe wrenches. If possible unscrew the supply tube at the bottom only, so it remains attached to the faucet or toilet above. But before we pushed it into the adapter, we needed to straighten it the best we could. Its not in the picture, but you 100% will need it if youre trying to remove galvanized pipe. Can you use a PVC compression coupling on galvanized pipe? So far, not more signs of mice- fingers crossed they stay away! Add a new galvanized steel pipe length (nipple) at each end and solder in your copper. But then we decided to try unscrewing the other end of the pipe, just to see if it was easier to get than the first end we tried. As galvanized pipes age, the zinc coating erodes and pipes corrode. We used Evans jigsaw with a metal-cutting blade, but you could also use a hacksaw, a reciprocating saw, etc. Pipe wrenches work better on lugs and what not. 11*- Water meter key. Meanwhile, I hung out in the attic scooping water out from the original tray, having flashbacks to a previous plumbing experience that involved scooping lots of water with a plastic cup I finally got enough out to move it, then Evan came back and shut off the water at the meter. That is awesome! Look you can see the blade going through the pipe! Yes, weve used those in a couple other minor leaks around the house, but this one was a larger leak so we felt more comfortable replacing it :). That was only the tip of the iceberg. My wife and I will be tackling a similar project soon and this was helpful to see. Use two pipe wrenches pulled in opposite directions, one gripping the pipe you are unscrewing and one gripping the joint youre unscrewing it from. No more almost-flooding our attic! How do you connect galvanized pipes without threads to PEX? . Im looking to replace some old pipe in my house and this will surely help me. Celebrate with late night cheeseburgers! STEP 6: Unscrew the pipe ends. In other news, after reading your imaginary British person conversation above, I decided you would be someone awesome to hang out with in real life. Connecting Galvanized and PVC Drain Pipes If you have to make a transition in the middle of a pipe, you can do it without re-threading the pipe. We are about to replace all of our galvanized pipe on the home we just bought two days ago because they are corroded inside, which releases lead into your wateramong other things. You guys are crazy brave and have some mad skillz. Like I said in the last post, when our plumber mentioned replacing this pipe with PEX piping, we started doing research on PEX. We might be able to do something about it. This is to drain any water that was hanging out up in your pipes. Yes you definitely should. Thanks! Thank you! I know this is an old post but being as freaked out as I am right now (gotta check paint and soil, too), I couldnt not share. So consider this kind of a do as we say, not as we do deal. Copper and Brass If an installation requires contact between galvanized materials and copper or brass in a moist or humid environment, rapid corrosion of the zinc may occur. Easy easy. To break loose difficult pipes increase the length of the pipe wrenches. There was a steady stream of water trickling from our pipes filling up our tray surprisingly fast. Newb question: Was there any issue with using brass Sharkbite adjacent to galvanized pipe? Luckily its pretty flexible. We chose white). How do you cap galvanized pipe without threads? Solder the pipe and cap joint at 350 degrees celsius with super alloy-1. We needed 25 ft of 3/4 piping, so we got a 50 ft roll just in case. Its not in the budget to replace all of our galvanized pipe but we do keep an eye on it. We started by prepping the area- we picked an easy to reach section of the pipe we were removing, laid out lots of plastic underneath, and set a tray under where we were going to cut. If you are experiencing signs that your galvanized pipes are failing, it may be time to replace them.Jun 13, 2019. So, would this coupler be ok for potable water, and be a reasonably permanent repair? Thanks for this guide. Dont forget your hose faucets outside too! Simply cut the pipe with a hacksaw, making as straight a cut as possible, then fit a Fernco flexible connector with the appropriate diameter over the end and tighten it down. Im honestly surprised it took so long for Evan to fall through the ceiling. But it was worth it! They were recommended to us by the folks at our local hardware store so I think in Texas they meet code, but best to check with a professional in your area. Better hope they dont chew through the new pex pipe! , Use two pipe wrenches to tighten the cap on the pipe. And no problem with possible oxidation caused by mixing brass and galvanized? When doing any plumbing, leave all facets open when the water is turned on to relive the air pressure out. Third, you can extend the power of the wrench by sliding a metal pipe (2 4 feet) over the handle. The PEX part WAS easy. wirsbo uponor pex plumbing pipe tubing aquapex ft water As promised, here is a quick guide to all the steps you SHOULD follow: STEP 1: Turn off your water. Or two. Just pop it in and stop at your inch mark. It looks like you're using an ad blocker. How do you connect galvanized pipes without threads to PVC? You must log in or register to reply here. Mentioning leaving the water on. At the end of the post Ill list the steps you SHOULD follow in case anyone reading wants to attempt this in their own home. STEP 11: Push the end of your PEX into the adapter until you reach your one inch mark. All fittings are demountable and can be reused when required. Connect the PEX tubing to the fitting using a compatible method. 2. the brass sharkbite connector should be ok, threaded into galvanized. Anybody try one yet? Hi Nathan, glad we could help! Do SharkBite fittings work on steel pipe? PEX piping is made of Polyethylene (PE) that is cross-linked (X). Seriously, if we could figure it out and still have success after all our mishaps, anybody can do it! Why, hanging out in our attic for six and a half hours of course! STEP 3: Prep your area. Notice all the asterisks. All super helpful tips though :) Thanks! If I were you, Id double check my attic plumbing work. How do you connect the non-threaded galvanized pipe to PEX? I found a link to the coupler fitting that I have, but I'd only install it as a last resort if I can't do a clean elbow removal from the galvanized pipe. Everything I read sounds positive. We were able to scoot over the full tray and put one of the 99s under the leak, but the first tray was so full that trying to remove it so that we could empty it would have made us spill water everywhere. I hope Im wrong. Those people are such snobs. Im ready to take on my hot water pipes! It may not display this or other websites correctly. But you live in Texas. Somehow, even when our main water valve was off, water still got in. pipe fitting sizes measure union The thing didnt budge. I have a galvanized section that I may need to cut and terminate and using a compression fitting would surely simplify the process. 5- Flashlight. Things I learned from other sites. To attach your galvanized pipe to Pex, SharkBite makes a threaded transition adapter to press fit. As Evan laid on the floor in defeat and I perched on the counter eating wheat thins, we talked about how we could always stay the night at his parents if we had to. I didnt think the PEX should be that hard, but Im glad to see the how-to. How much does it cost to replace galvanized pipes with PEX? We sprayed it with WD40, waited a few minutes, then with just one wrench (because it was at a T-joint) Evan was able to unscrew it!! In-line fittings are used to connect separate lengths of PEX tubing, to create a branch line, or to add a valve. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. Crazy! Maybe up to an hour of sun got on the pex during transport from the supplier, hopefully not a problem - it looks ok anyway! Eventually Ill get to replacing it all, but the rest is behind/between walls that require a lot more work to get at. Use a plastic pipe cap to temporarily secure the galvanized pipe. This is to cut your PEX. That was only the tip of the iceberg.Sep 23, 2021. The actual SharkBite push to connect fittings are not designed to press onto galvanized pipe. We started this project at 3:30pm. Then, slide the ring onto the PEX tubing and place the PEX over the adapters male end. We bought one painters tray, but luckily I had some disposable 99 baking trays because we ended up needing those too. Evan double checked our main water valve to make sure it was off all the way. STEP 12: Do the same thing on the other joint and youre done! galvanized steel pipe copper join plumbing water pipes dielectric joining corrosion tubing familyhandyman metal repair pex stop unions use diy My preference is to connect that brass pex fitting to the threaded galvanized pipe after removing the elbow, but if I run into problems or damage the threads or whatever, my backup solution is to cut the galvanized and use a (galvanized) connector (as in photo) to connect to the pex. Not so. Vice grips for pipe and PB would have knocked that part out. :). Please dont bring a blowtorch into your attic. Yay Im glad it helped! Good posting. A few years ago I did pretty much what you did by running two 30 foot sections of pex to replace the galvanized. The Sharkbite website says they do not produce fittings that are to be used with galvanized pipe. SharkBite makes a threaded to press fit transition adapter to fit your PEX to galvanized. But I thought you so confidently said, and I quote: it didnt look all that hard or expensive to DIY your own PEX.. It took a few minutes and then no more water was coming out so we assumed we were good to go. pexuniverse The problem is the fittings for pex are brass which isn't compatible with the galvanized pipe, but I have doubts about using dielectric fittings after reading some opinions online. Grrrrrrr!!!!!!! First, spray your WD-40 early in the process (perhaps before your Step 4) so it has time to work into the threads. He came back, we tried the WD40 and the additional wrench and still no dice. In the past 9 months since we did this project we havent had any problems, the teflon tape was enough and we havent had any leaks or anything (we check it periodically). 2) Screw the threaded part of the fitting onto the copper pipes fitting. If you want to rethread your galvanized pipe, you will need to square cut it. You have to wrap the threading on the adapters, the same way you wrap a shower head when you replace it. STEP 2: Run all your faucets and showers to empty them of water. From then on we were fine water-wise, yay!! Even budging it a Micro-Meter, you removed/moved rust(it might even have went squeek). Wish we had read that about spraying the WD-40 early. Like I said in the last post, when our plumber mentioned replacing this pipe with PEX piping, we started doing research on PEX. Thanks!!! This also is not in the picture, but you need it to turn off the water at your meter. So we decided to go have a snack (it seemed logical at the time). Potential chemical leaching is another downside of PEX piping. First off, we did what youre supposed to do before ANY big plumbing project: we turned off the water supply to our house. A Dresser coupling -- made by the Dresser Company -- is a compression coupling you can use to repair galvanized steel and other metal pipes. Lots of awesome tips we will keep in mind for if/when we need to do any more replacements! S03E03, Getting COVID and rethinking our lives (#83), Why we filmed a video with appendicitis (#082), #080 Lessons learned from our first house. The best way to cut old metal pipe is with an angle grinder. No, I see that the male thread on the German coupler has the same thread as a 1/2" shut off valve that I'm going to install, so it seems to be correct - the other end that goes over the 1/2" galvanized, I assume is ok, but I'm not 100% sure. Heres the supplies youll need (plus Ive listed a few more that we didnt know yet at the time of this picture yes there were a couple trips to Home Depot that night). Lots of penetrating lubricant is totally great, especially if you can put it on in advance. Before you can actually remove your pipe, you have to cut it somewhere in the middle so that youre actually able to unscrew each end. The brass to galvanized fitting creates a slight galvanic current which slowly erodes the lessor of the two metals, you have at best a temp fix, not sure if the Teflon tape cancels out that current ? So there it is, we did it! Due to its chemical composition, the PEX pipe material may leach toxic chemicals including bisphenol (BPA), MTBE, tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA), and others.Sep 26, 2018. ANYWAYS, we successfully replaced our leaky old galvanized pipe with a fresh new piece of PEX piping! Sometimes you have to join the two together while doing a repair. We use sch 80 PVC everyday for drop pipe when we set pumps, Plumbing Forum, Professional & DIY Advice. It also said WD40 helps loosen things if you spray it into the threading and wait a few minutes. 4- PVC/plastic tubing cutter. From here you pretty much do the same thing as you do on the other end. STEP 7: Prep the PEX adapter. You will need to cut the end of your galvanized pipe square and then thread it back on. Cross-linked polyethylene, commonly known as PEX, is made of plastic, flexible tubing. This slowed the leak slightly, and it was enough to allow us to figure out why the water wasnt stopping. When I did all these things on galvanized pipe not in my attic, it came loose like it was easy. This was great to have under the pipes to protect your insulation and wood. A Dresser coupling made by the Dresser Company is a compression coupling you can use to repair galvanized steel and other metal pipes. Copyrights 2022 All Rights Reserved by Home knowledge base Inc. How do you plug in a galvanized water pipe? Clamp ring connection First, attach the adapter to the existing pipe. It claims to stop calcium deposits not only on faucets, shower heads, glass shower doors, stainless steel sinks and dishes in dishwasher, but also eventually cleaning all the deposits from the inside of pipes. Silly Texas person. Simply cut the pipe with a hacksaw, making as straight a cut as possible, then fit a Fernco flexible connector with the appropriate diameter over the end and tighten it down. I don't see that in 1/2 inch at a good price. I just had a leak in my house that needed an emergency repair and this post was so helpful. I just replaced a leaky 20 ft galvanized pipe section using your shopping list and instructions. SharkBite fittings are engineered to provide an extremely fast, secure and reliable method of joining Copper, PEX, Polybutylene and Carbon Steel pipework. Haha I probably should hang out with people other than my imaginary British friends! Yes. Now that we had stopped the leaking, it was time to be done with this pipe and remove each of the two ends from their old fittings. http://www.homedepot.com/p/LDR-InduFPT-Compression-Coupling-311-CCL-12/100566707, https://www.amazon.de/Gebo-Armaturen-Temperguss-Klemmverbinder-Zoll-01-150-00-01/dp/B0017VC9VE, http://www.deaconind.com/Customer/DEINSU/specpages/Dress_65.pdf, https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/35ypgu/why_do_plumbing_dielectric_unions_always_fail/, http://www2.iccsafe.org/states/new_york/NY_Plumbing/PDFs/Chapter 6.pdf, https://up.codes/search?previous_puq=galvanized&category=new_york_city&year=2014, Age old question of brass fittings into stainless, Moving 1.5" copper vent pipe exposed during kitchen soffit removal.