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05-16-2009, 08:42 PM
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#1
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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Arrggggg! Drip, Drip, Drip—Warning, plumbing questions
So I have a question about Pex and brass fittings. I’ve just finished replumbing my entire bath area (’73 Overlander, rear bath). The Pex is wonderful stuff. Goes together pretty easily, etc. The problem I’m having is that when you transition from Pex to the fittings on the faucets or shower, the joints leak. Let me explain a little more.
Wherever I have a Pex-to-Pex connection, there’s no leak. I’ve purchased regular home type bathroom fixtures (faucets and shower mixing valve, the same stuff you might find in your home). The brass fittings that connect to the Pex on one end, and the regular home fixtures, leak on the fixture end.
I used plain old Teflon tape on the fixture end, plain old Pex compression fittings on the Pex end of the connection. The fixture end leaks (all of them). The Pex connectors are all fine, no leaks. What gives? In the past three years, I’ve refurbed a bath and a kitchen inside the house (not the Airstream) and the Teflon tape worked very well to seal the connections. In the Airstream, no luck.
I guess the question is, do I need to take apart all the fixture connections and use plumbers putty or some other packing material to make these seals water-tight?
A couple of pics to follow.
Jim
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05-16-2009, 08:44 PM
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#2
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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This connection leaks.
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05-16-2009, 08:45 PM
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#3
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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This one doesn’t.
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05-16-2009, 09:59 PM
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#4
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Rivet Master
Currently Looking...
1989 34.5' Airstream 345
Cleveland
, Tennessee
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 787
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The photo in post 2 appears to be 2 brass fittings. Brass to brass should not need any teflon tape or pipe dope. Brass is a soft metal that should give to make a tight connection. If it leaks it might not be tight enough. It also would leak if it were a faulty connector. Either way you will have to undo the PEX connection to fix the leaking brass connections.
Ricky
__________________
"Sometimes I wonder if the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it." Mark Twain
AIR 22749 WBCCI 2349 NOVA TAC TN-6
1989 345 LE Classic Motorhome
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05-17-2009, 04:47 AM
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#5
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Restorations done right
Commercial Member
1962 26' Overlander
1961 26' Overlander
Vintage Kin Owner
Currently Looking...
Baltimore
, Maryland
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 5,545
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I use the white dope in that situation. It is a paste teflon available at the box stores.
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05-17-2009, 08:43 AM
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#6
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Rivet Master
1972 31' Sovereign
Lexington
, Minnesota
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 3,991
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Brass to brass, or any metal to metal, pipe fitting can sometimes give you a false tightness feeling. Pipe dope seems to help that by providing a lubricate to allow the fittings to tightnen properly. I learned that trick watching "This Old House." Works well.
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05-17-2009, 12:06 PM
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#7
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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Thanks Guys. It is indeed the Brass to Brass fittings that are leaking. So I guess the thing to do is take apart one set of the fittings and rebuilt with no tape or putty. See how that goes.
The really strange part is that as I was assembling the Pex to Pex fittings, I was certain that some of them were going to leak. Once those connections were made, some of them actually moved as if they were lose (as in not tight enough). Turns they are all fine.
Jim
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05-17-2009, 12:41 PM
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#8
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Rivet Master
1977 27' Overlander
1973 27' Overlander
1963 19' Globetrotter
Naples
, Florida
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,259
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Either you were stingy with the teflon ,didn`t tighten enough,or over tightened and cracked the female thread,And yes you do need some kind of thread sealer between brass to brass. Dave
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05-17-2009, 12:42 PM
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#9
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Restorations done right
Commercial Member
1962 26' Overlander
1961 26' Overlander
Vintage Kin Owner
Currently Looking...
Baltimore
, Maryland
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 5,545
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yes the paste teflon pipe dope
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05-17-2009, 12:46 PM
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#10
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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I don't think I overtightened and cracked anything. ALL of the brass to brass fittings are leaking. It's only a small leak, but they all leak. Thanks Frank, I guess I need to read a little closer.
Jim
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05-17-2009, 02:13 PM
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#11
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Rivet Master
1977 27' Overlander
1973 27' Overlander
1963 19' Globetrotter
Naples
, Florida
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,259
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Tape is cheap give it 4 or 5 wraps,wrapping on clockwise as you look at fittings,just keep the tape off the first thread,that makes it a lot easier to get started.Dave
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06-10-2009, 05:31 PM
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#12
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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The 97 cent solution
Well, unbelievably, I couldn't find any of the liquid teflon Frank suggested. but I did find this stuff. Worked perfectly. It was a bunch of work to remove all of those brass-to-brass fittings, but in the end we have no leaks.
A couple of notes. You can actually turn the brass fittings to remove them, treat them and replace them and the Pex fitting end of the pipe won't leak. Strange since the Pex pipe actually rotates around the Pex fittings whilst you're doing all this. Pex is good stuff. Expensive, but good. I pressure tested everything for several hours after all was complete and we now have fittings as tight as the credit market.
Jim
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06-10-2009, 06:00 PM
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#13
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Restorations done right
Commercial Member
1962 26' Overlander
1961 26' Overlander
Vintage Kin Owner
Currently Looking...
Baltimore
, Maryland
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 5,545
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Jim, that is the stuff. That is paste teflon pipe dope...
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06-10-2009, 06:15 PM
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#14
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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Dang, you mean I found The Right Stuff by mistake? That pretty much describes my life to a "T". Thanks for getting me headed in the right direction, Frank. Check your Karma.
Jim
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06-10-2009, 07:33 PM
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#15
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Rivet Master
2006 25' Safari FB SE
St. Cloud
, Minnesota
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 13,280
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jim & Susan
Thanks for getting me headed in the right direction, Frank. Check your Karma.
Jim
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Karma's dead Jim!
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06-10-2009, 07:55 PM
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#16
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Remember, Safety Third
1973 27' Overlander
Catfish Corners
, Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,720
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Oops, me and Bones forgot.
Jim
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06-10-2009, 08:04 PM
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#17
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Rivet Master
2006 25' Safari FB SE
St. Cloud
, Minnesota
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 13,280
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I sent you karma anyway. (I think)
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