Reasons To Upgrade Your Plumbing To PEX
One plumbing innovation that has become more popular over the years is PEX piping. This is a plumbing material that is made out of plastic, and a viable alternative what is currently in your home. Here are a few reasons to upgrade your plumbing to PEX.
You Have Galvanized Plumbing
If you have an older home, chances are that it uses galvanized plumbing. While it may look fine on the outside, these pipes actually corrode from the inside. If you cut one of the pipes open, you will see rust and corrosion that makes the interior of the pipe incredibly narrow, which limits the flow of water in your home. In addition, galvanized plumbing has the chance of bursting unexpectedly. Since you cannot see the corrosion, it can catch you off guard and make an unexpected mess within your home.
You Have Lead Pipes
You need to be aware of the dangers of lead plumbing, especially if anybody in your home is planning on becoming pregnant or you have a small child living with you. If you are unsure if your plumbing has lead in it, you can actually buy a test that will check the quality of your water. This will let you know if your water is safe for drinking, and if not, consider swapping out those lead pipes for PEX.
You Want To Reduce The Chance Of A Pipe Burst
Even brand new copper plumbing has the chance of bursting if the plumbing becomes frozen. This is due to water freezing and expanding, which can cause the copper to crack and cause water to get into your home. Pipes can freeze from a furnace that stops working while you're not at home, or even due to temperatures hitting record lows and your furnace not being able to keep up. PEX can give you peace of mind that your home is safe since the pipe won't burst if the water within it freezes.
You Want To Reduce Labor For The Installation
PEX is a flexible pipe, which requires much less labor to install in your home. Copper plumbing involves many joins so that the straight pipe can bend around corners and go up walls, which is labor intensive to create each joint by cutting pipes and soldering them together. PEX will require very few joints since the pipe can just bend in the direction that you want it to go. If having PEX professionally installed, it will cut down on the total hours of labor required for the installation.
To learn more, contact a company like Vanhook Plumbing Heating & Cooling.