Tapping Into Kitchen Fridge Line

Hi-

Am taking delivery of a stand alone bar for a room adjacent to my kitchen.

I'd like to get a small ice maker/fridge combo unit to use behind the bar
and was wondering, before doing so, if the following is OK (possible) to do.

Ideally, I'd like to tap into the 1/4 in. water pipe behind my kitchen fridge
that's used for that ice maker and run a flexible copper pipe up and inside the 12 foot wall, across the ceiling (in attic/Florida Home) and then down the next 12 foot wall that will be behind the bar area. I'd say an
approximate 40 foot run.

Any quick thoughts, words of caution or general advice on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Bob

First and foremost - I'm not a professional plumber - but do a lot of DIY projects.

Were it me... I'd forgo the copper tubing and use plastic. Much easier to run through all those twists and bends... (somewhere, you're going to end up splicing that copper, making leaks more of a distinct possibility. With plastic you'll have a better chance of a solid run. Also - even if florida it gets cold every blue moon... bury the tubing in the insulation as close to the warmth as possible.

Otherwise - I'd go for it...

Assuming there is no other water access closer to the end product.

The "right" way to it would be to tap into the cold water line going to the bar sink. Also, you should avoid using saddle tee connections. They will, sooner or later, cause a problem. Contrary to the post recommending plastic, although the plastic might be easier to run, I'd stay with copper. In my opinion, there are less chances of leaking provided the connections are properly made. You can put a regular copper tee in the supply line, follow that with a shut-off valve, and then reduce to 1/4" copper. If you can't tap the bar sink line, then a tee in the copper tubing would be the next best choice.

Thanks Guys

First,
I'd like to thank both writers for thoughts.

Secondly,
I like the ease of the plastic tubing but my Dad swore by copper
and I don't want him shootin' any thunderbolts down from the heavens.

Question regarding copper...

My only logistical chocie is to tap into the 1/4 inch copper going into
the ice maker in the kitchen fridge. (By the way, this line is being used
to provide water for a 2nd fridge ice maker by the bar in an adjoining room) (Not to provide water per se at the bar, although, there's another thought)

Anyway, with flexible 1/4 inch, can't I get that in a continuous piece of
say 40 feet to avoid having to splice above the ceiling?

Again...
Thanks for all comments and suggestions!

Bob

line

Copper tubing comes in 50 and 60 feet rolls so that is not a problem. You can install a compression tee in the refrigerator line, possibly in place of an existing coupling, and run from there. The only downside is that that amount of small tubing may not flow enough water to fill the cuber in the time alloted during a cycle. If not, adjust the setting for larger cubes so it fills longer.

In reply to HJ

HJ-

Thanks for the tips.

Something just occured to me.
If I tap into the pipe going to the kitchen fridge, what happens
if both ice makers (kitch and bar fridges) call for water at the same time...

Hmmm....

Maybe I should re-think and tap into the main cold water going into the sink just like the current one's doing. It unfortunately will add another 12
feet of run, so maybe the advice earlier about using larger diameter
piping so lack of water for bar icer isn't an issue?

My only other alternative is tapping into the John line in the Master Bath.
About the same amount of run, maybe less.

Sorry to beleager this...

Thanks, Bob

water

If they both call for water at the same time, then one or both of those particular batches of cubes could be undersized, which would normally not be a problem.

ice maker

If you feel you have to connect to the tubing, my reccomendation is to use 1/4" flair fittings. The only compression fitg. that may be nessary would be at the refrigerator.