General advise on plumbing tools and materials

[jonathan556]

I am renovating a house, which currently has no plumbing. Attached is the design for the house. I'm getting a plumber to fit the boiler and core central heating zones. I am fitting the bathroom, kitchen and radiators.

I was planning to use PEX, but I am struggling with availability of manufacturers in the UK. I looked at Uponor, but buying all the PEX-A tools seems a bit excessive for a single job. PEX-B seems more suitable. Does anyone have suggestions of suppliers, tools and manufacturers that I can use to start more research. I don't want to learn how to solder. Crimping seems like a better idea than push-fit too.

 

[Ric2013]

The only problem you'll have is most plumbers won't have PEX crimp tools. We've been soldering forever and that is the gold standard; not necessarily the best, but copper is what we are used to. Pressfit copper may take over? Or we use pushfit because it's quick.

If you go for a crimp system, make sure it is compatible with something standard, else should that house ever need a plumber, any repair or modification will see the tradesmen or tradeswomen mostly walking off looking confused. Have you considered pert-al-pert (MLCP)? At least you can get it WRAS-approved easily and we all know what it is and someone like Uheat may have fittings or tools that won't break the bank.

 

[Chuck]

The only problem you'll have...

I wonder how he's planning to handle insurance?

My understanding is that most home owner's policies exclude damage caused by faulty plumbing or previous work that hasn’t been done correctly. If the OP uses a professional, which is what I'd strongly advise, this is covered by their liability insurance, qualifications and track record, etc. OTOH, if a loss adjuster spots it's a DIY installation I imagine the burden of proof will, in practice, shift to the OP to prove the work has been done correctly. That's a tricky case to make if there's been water pouring down the walls and through the ceiling.

 

[Ric2013]

I wonder how he's planning to handle insurance?

My understanding is that most home owner's policies exclude damage caused by faulty plumbing or previous work that hasn’t been done correctly. If the OP uses a professional, which is what I'd strongly advise, this is covered by their liability insurance, qualifications and track record, etc. OTOH, if a loss adjuster spots it's a DIY installation I imagine the burden of proof will, in practice, shift to the OP to prove the work has been done correctly. That's a tricky case to make if there's been water pouring down the walls and through the ceiling.

I assumed he'd be happy to take responsibility if he wants to DIY it. You make a good point.

 

[jonathan556]

I assumed he'd be happy to take responsibility if he wants to DIY it. You make a good point.

Thanks for your replies.

I'm still in the early planning phase. My intention was to get a plumber to pressure test everything on first fix. I'm still in two minds, as the initial cost of buying all the tools required might negate the savings.

 

[Tim Court]

Well I’m a DIYer, but have been doing stuff for donkey’s years. Solder and end feed fittings are so cheap and a much better standard than push fit. Just buy a bag of fittings and a length of pipe and practice, practice, practice. Cleanliness is your friend - or it used to be but with modern fluxes you can almost get away with murder. Locktite thread for any screwed joints and a touch of quality paste on compression joints will go a long way to a decent install.
Decent tools help such as a Rothenburger torch. If you are good with your hands then crack on… if you are not then leave it to the professionals.
Plastic pipe has it’s place but not for me.
In the commercial world it is all crimped but the cost of decent kit and fittings puts it out of most domestic environments - but it is taking over slowly.

 

[AnthonyHas]

Hey there, beginner here, i've done something similar to this, kitchen and bathroom, and i did solder some tubes together and it came out better than expected. Also make sure you get the right fittings, not like me, to make the connections easy.