PEX tubing is thought to be the future of plumbing in most residential communities. A number of studies have shown that it is much quicker to install, and therefore costs many companies less to go with PEX rather than with copper. It is a very flexible and durable and has been gaining popularity in recent years. What does someone want most from their plumbing? The most important thing for the plumbing in any home is that there is no leaky connections. As a rule of thumb, the more connections that are present in a system, the higher the chances are that you will have to deal with a leak through a faulty connection at some point. This will eventually lead to water damage and can cause both rot and mold.
PEX requires much fewer connections than copper tubing. Cross linked polyethylene was first created in the 1970s, but did not become popular in North America until the mid-1980s. PEX has been used for a number of purposes since that time, but it is most popular in plumbing.
The growth of PEX was hampered because many plumbers were reluctant to use PEX after having dealt with polybutylene, another similar type of plastic tubing. This type of tubing wasted away over time as it was exposed to chlorine. Although they are similar in look, feel, and name, PEX should never be compared to PB because they are two completely different substances. PEX is not susceptible to the constant erosion that PB was the victim of.
PEX has been tested thoroughly to ensure that it will not fall victim to the same erosion that PB did throughout its use. Typically, PEX tubing can come in white or a variety of other colors. Some plumbers choose to use red piping for hot water, and blue for cold water. This can help to make the most complicated systems much easier to understand and work with.
The installation of PEX tubing is much quicker than the installation of copper tubing. PEX is flexible and is much easier to work with. With the constantly rising prices of copper, it is clear to see why some plumbing companies had moved away from the metal alternative and had gone with a plastic solution in recent years. PEX tubing and plumbing has quickly become one of the more popular solutions for residential plumbing systems.
