if i understand correct, you want to connect the PEX from the copper directly to your water heater? if this is the case, that is a big no no. PEX, or any plastic pipe is not to be used for direct connection to water heaters. They actually make flexible water heater lines that are about 2 foot long. they are 3/4 female on both ends. this is for the inlet and outlet. You should get 10 years or more out of a water heater. the last one I replaced was about 25 years old. And please don't tell me you are returning the water in through the pressure relief valve, without some way of relieving pressure. I don't even want to think of the mess if the thermostat broke, and the coils kept heating the water. Michael _____
From: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com [mailto:blindhandy...@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of NLG Sent: Thursday, August 19, 2010 8:19 PM To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com Subject: [BlindHandyMan] PEX? I have never worked with PEX before. Under the impression that PEX was flexable, I thought I had an application here where PEX would be ideal. Last year I added a hot water coil to my wood/coal furnace to heat my domestic hot water. This setup consisted of a stainless steel loup, approximately 24 inches long and installed into the fire box of my furnace. Being approximately 20 feet away from my electric water heater I could not utilize a thermo-syphon, so installed a small circulating pump to move the water from the bottom of the electric water heater through the loup installed in the wood furnace back to the top of the electric water heater. I used 3/4 inch soft copper to make the run from the electric water heater to the wood furnace and back. This setup worked great last winter, reducing my electric bill considerably. This summer, my electric water heater had to be replaced and like always, the inlet, outlet, drain valve, as well as the pop valve are never in the same location on the new tank as it was on the old. Not wanting to plumb the system again with copper (knowing a few years down the road) I will have to do it all over again, I thought I would connect PEX from the copper I have in place overhead in the floor joyste to the electric water heater, thinking that PEX would be more flexable and when the next time I have to replace a water heater, the hook-up would be easier. I bought the crimping tool, copper crimp rings, the fittings I needed and 100 feet of 3/4 inch PEX tubing. From examining this PEX tubing I know that it is not as flexable as even soft copper of the same size. All that having been said... Did I purchase the wrong type PEX? Without installing elbows / 90 degree fittings, is there a way to accomplish a substancial bend in this type PEX (perhaps type C). perhaps using a heat gun? Or would heating the PEX enough to accomplish my goal diminish the integrity of the PEX tubing? Thanks :) However, [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
