Copper or Pex for outside tap?

9 years ago

A deck was retrofitted to my house with its rim joist (as it were) anchored right where the original outside tap was installed.

They cut away a part of the deck to allow access to this tap (below the deck level) but it's far from satisfactory.

What I want to do is extend the pipe out to the end of the deck so that I can have an outside tap in a more useful spot.

I'm in a cold climate (central British Columbia) so any pipe run outside will need to be insulated and drained at the end of the season.

House is copper and I'm inclined to go that way, but wonder if there would be any benefit to using Pex? I'd have to buy a crimper....the pipe will be sleeved all the way and I'll use a frost-free bib, a shutoff with a drain and affix a heat tape as a last resort inside at the exit point.

Is there any advantage to Pex? Would the flexibility be beneficial?

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Comments (2)

jakethewonderdog
9 years ago
The pex will be less prone to bursting if it freezes. The silcock will still split if water is left in it - freezeproof won't apply in this situation.

Pex may get you through with fewer joints and no soldering under the deck.

On the other hand, pex can be chewed by rodents.

No matter which you use, put a shutoff inside the house and a vacuum break. All of the tubing outside must slope down towards the silcock at the end so that it completely drains.

You could also do this more easily by leaving the existing, and just put in a section of garden hose with a shutoff hose fitting that extends beyond the deck. Unscrew the section of hose from the silcock in the winter
jackfre
9 years ago
Copper has no sense of humor when frozen. Pex is more forgiving. The right way to do this is to keep the piping in the building envelope and use a non-freezing hydrant (hose bib). They come in assorted lengths. In my house I used 6" long but I believe they are made up to 12"
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