Galvanized pipe question...

I have an old cabin.Fifties. Some of the plumbing has been replaced and I have some pvc and copper but most is galvanized threaded pipe,I think.
When I last visited the place,the cold water in the bathroom and the supply to the toilet ran VERY slowly.The hot was OK and the hot and cold in the kitchen was good. My cousin offered her thought--perhaps the pipes have clogged with minerals for the cold in the bathroom.
My questions are:
How does one join copper to galvanized in this situation IF I need to replace the colds supply? Should I use copper or get threaded galvanized pieces to match what I remove if in fact the issue is clogged pipe?
Thanks in advance.

dielectric unions

fatdaddy said:

I have an old cabin.Fifties. Some of the plumbing has been replaced and I have some pvc and copper but most is galvanized threaded pipe,I think.
When I last visited the place,the cold water in the bathroom and the supply to the toilet ran VERY slowly.The hot was OK and the hot and cold in the kitchen was good. My cousin offered her thought--perhaps the pipes have clogged with minerals for the cold in the bathroom.
My questions are:
How does one join copper to galvanized in this situation IF I need to replace the colds supply? Should I use copper or get threaded galvanized pieces to match what I remove if in fact the issue is clogged pipe?
Thanks in advance.

Click to expand...

You need to use dielectric unions.

Are they readily available?

Like an ACE HARDEWARE? If so,how do they get installed? Sweat on the copper side and threaded on the galvanized side?
I may have a plumber do it eventually but I alwasy like to save when I can.
The trouble is...going under the house.Spooky to say the least!

thread on the galv side, swett on the copper. Why not rip it all out and pexify the place?

nhmaster said:

thread on the galv side, swett on the copper. Why not rip it all out and pexify the place?

Click to expand...

Shame on you saying that dirty word... pex..

If I went out more than once every few years

I would engage in serious upgrades but the junction noted (Thanks Rat) might just do the trick. Sweating under that old tinderbox might just be what the doctor ordered in terms of a major remodel!
Any other conncetions that might work without sweating?
Thanks.
Alan

Sharkbites may be the trick. God, I wish I wasn't posting this.
Just the thought of you, fatdaddy, under the house with a torch and it being a tinder box and all.

It's a cabin.
Just pull out "all" of the galvanized and replace with PEX

Any galvanized you leave in, will be replaced shortly.
And when you start adding copper, the galvy will go downhill very quickly.

OK. SO I use PEX.

Sharkbite connections the best?
If other connections used,what are the tools I will need.
ALSO,this stuff will be under the cabin but not in the ground,I think.Do critters gnaw on PEX? Can it be insulated like copper,with foam?
Thanks.

Mice have been known to chew on pex that is exposed. Yes, you can use standard pipe insulation on it...the OD is the same as equivalently sized copper (the ID is smaller because the wall thickness is larger).

Sharkbites work when connecting pex, but because of their costs, it quickly becomes cheaper to use the manufacturer's fittings and attachment tools if you are doing a lot of work. THey're great for repairs or a temporary repair (like capping a line prior to installation of a fixture or making a repair where there's not much room).

Many older buildings NYC have brass for the H/W risers and galvanized for the C/W risers to delay an expensive repipe we would use type L on the main and connect to the existing risers with dielectric fittings either a nipple or union and this would allow for a few more decades before repiping was needed

The branches are another problem as the isolation valves are brass connected to galvanized nipples or the tle stops were in the middle of the supply branches

SewerRatz said:

Shame on you saying that dirty word... pex..

Click to expand...

I would never use PEX for a potable water system,. Bad enough we did NO INCOME housing development 2,800 units and we used unskilled labor as this is what the powers that be wanted and the developer wanted CHEAP as possible we did use PEX for the heating system as long as the engineer designed it off no problem..

"A consensus statement by 38 BPA experts concluded that average levels in people are above those that cause harm to animals in laboratory experiments,[15] and a panel sponsored by the U.S. National Institutes of Health determined that there was 'some concern' about BPA's effect on fetal and infant brain and behavior.[6] A 2008 draft report by the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NPT) agreed with the panel, concluding that "there is some concern for neural and behavioral effects in fetuses, infants, and children at current human exposures," and that there is "some concern for bisphenol A exposure in these populations based on effects in the prostate gland, mammary gland, and an earlier age for puberty in females." The NPT also concluded that there is negligible concern that "exposure of pregnant women to bisphenol A will result in fetal or neonatal mortality, birth defects or reduced birth weight and growth in their offspring" or that it causes adverse effects in exposed adults.[16]"

Pex does not contain BPA. It is made of plastics, but lots of them do not contain BPAs.