Pipe Repair in RV

pianotuna wrote:
Hi Chris,

I do not know if this is the same polybutyline pipe that you mentioned.

My cousin who works as a plumber can not use the older grey tubing--his supply had to go to the local dump.

My brother just got finished having to replace all his grey tubing in his home. It apparently develops "boils" and starts to leak. Insurance does not cover this repair until it actually leaks. (surprize surprize?)_

There is a web site to place claims against the maker of the pipe as part of a class action suit in North America.

Chris Bryant wrote:
I will defend the polybutylene tubing itself- I have never seen the tubing fail, only the fittings, and I've never had a problem with systems using copper fittings with copper crimp rings. The plastic fittings were bad, along with very poor installation- both leaving too little tubing for expansion/contraction, and poorly calibrated crimpers used on aluminum rings.

Personally, I agree with Don on the PB -get rid of it as it has the potential to fail without warning. PEX is a much more reliable system that is fairly easy to work with. Square cuts are imperative with any brand push on fitting like Sharkbite.

Conversely, Sharkbite and other fittings can be used with PB but a sleeve is sometimes needed to work properly. Make sure you research the PB compatibility before installing IMO.