pex looks great but...
I have only just discovered pex after being out of the plumbing world for a decade. It looks absolutely fantastic; certainly a homeowners dream come true.
But for all it's simplicity the connection methods are another story. Not that they aren't simple within themselves, just a bit expensive and confusing as a whole.
It seems there are two or more crimp systems, and you have to possibly match them up with their particular rings and fittings.
Then there are the cinch clamps with the slightly cheaper cinching clamp tool.
Then there is the expansion system which I have no idea whether it's one more different systems. And the expansion tools start on average about double the price of the crimp tools.
Then there are the Watts Quick Connects.
As a homeowner looking to put in a basement bathroom the quick connects are probably the method of choice. They will marry themselves between the copper and pex and require no tools at all. Plus they come apart easily. But they are very expensive; at least five times the cost of the standard pex fittings. For a non-professional doing a small job though they are probably the way to go.
But with all the ring systems I wonder what it is that makes the tools so expensive? The powered crimpers are over $1000 and the hand tools, which look like fancy lock cutters, easily go over $100. On that large auction site and pexcrimper.com you can find a $35-poor man's crimper that you work with Vice Grips. There a couple of good reviews out there too. And as it seems wise to also invest in a tube cutter and a crimp remover tool I could probably go with that system and get all three tools for about $100.
But I wonder; what about hose clamps? You know the kind that you see in your car? They have worked very well for many years and are used universally in the auto industry. I have even used them in plumbing when connecting one of those rubber couplers in a drain line. Surely they would work for the pex system too?
Don't get me wrong; I’m not about to experiment with them. It just seems a simpler cheaper alternative for the homeowner would be great, even if it takes extra time.
By the way, the pex manifolds also seem expensive compared to there other fittings, though I’m sure they are awesome solutions. However, when investigating the Watts Quick Connects they have some that you can string together to make your own manifold at any size. Yes, expensive as general fittings, but maybe a cheaper option for a manifold.