The reason I don't use flexis...

[WaterTight]

My opinion is copper is best and that flexi's and plastic present a comparatively increased risk of leaks. But I don't know what that risk actually is and I don't think anyone here does either, personal experience or not.

I also think people are inclined to defend their usage because they want to use them. We should treat those opinions we hold which we happen to want to hold with the greatest suspicion.

And so, given the fact I'm not skilled enough to use copper everywhere, and given the fact I do a lot of jobbing work where the clock ticks fast and you spend half your time under a sink or squeezed somewhere inaccessible, I use flexi's often and plastic ocassionally and work on the hope (not assumption) that the risk is small enough that I'd have to be pretty unlucky.

But the truth is it is a niggling worry and if I were skilled enough to be able to use copper everywhere in a timely fashion I'd use it everywhere.

So perhaps the answer is practise for homework.

 

[Guest123]

Best, can we start a CSR forum.....Copper Safe Register!

 

[Guest123]

Good post Watertight. May I suggest that you bend a supply of usable offsets suitable for a number of applications and keep these in your van as I do. Most wash basins can use a 60mm offset and if you bend a few right angles as well and some crossovers, you will have a ready made supply that will do for most jobs. You'll feel more satisfied with your work too. Use any medium size cuttings left over from jobs, it saves a lot of time and if you make these up in your spare time, it can actually become an enjoyable "chore" as well as good practice.

Solder/pre-compress any tap adaptors before connecting to the basin and you'll soon be flying through using copper as your preference.

 

[Whn1]

Flexis are very useful sometimes, especially when piping up those awkward gas hobs..

 

[PlumbBobBob]

good tips there system3

 

[Guest123]

Flexis are very useful sometimes, especially when piping up those awkward gas hobs..

LOL, that was so funny. The Polish guide to gas cooker installations?

 

[Best]

Best, can we start a CSR forum.....Copper Safe Register!

Lol! - Might as well add to the list of stupid, money taking things that we can register with! :smile:

 

[kirkgas]

ive just seen the newer posts, yes there is more possibility that the tap will move if it is on flexis, but the tap should be tightened enough in the first place.... it doesnt matter about what connection is beneath it

you can only tighten a plastic jam nut so much,
plastic jam nut + hot water + flexi + hep2o= "hiya, remember me, you fitted my bath, well theres water coming through the living room ceiling"
we used to keep brass jam nuts from 3/4" ballcocks and swap the inside one for plastic so we had brass for the taps, and thats with tap adaptors and copper

 

[MP plumb]

System3: i know where ur all comin from, but i just dont trust fibre washers... sooo many times ive come across a copper tap connector with a broken fibre washer, or LS-X, or mastic all over it, or its been cross threaded...
a great example to use a flexi is when u have to replace an old tap with a new one and the new tap has a longer thread than the old, so you have the option of cutting the copper back and putting a new valve(which so often isnt there) on and a flexi because there isnt space to solder a copper pipe on with out burning the wall or the bath.
and often, the pipe has already been bent to suit the old so ur already struggling to find a long enough lenght of copper that you can connect to.

 

[mfgs]

I used to use alot of plastic pipe a flexi's when I worked for a firm and they supplied us with materials for a job, and sometimes it will just save you alot of time to use it. Now I am self employed I use copper 99% of the time, but flexi's and plastic can get you out of trouble at times. I have managed to feed plastic through under fully tiled rooms by lifting a board in the rooms either side etc, same for expensive wood flooring. This would not have been possible with just copper.