Is Pex Tubing Safe For Drinking Water

Copper water piping is connected with solder that has lead in it.

Is pex tubing safe for drinking water. Copper pvc polyvinyl chloride and pex cross linked polyethylene are the most widely used materials for residential plumbing. In any case i prefer copper to the newer pipe options that are cheaper and easier to use. The use of pex water piping has dramatically increased in the last handful of years and continues to increase exponentially. During the past two decades in the united states pex has also become a common alternative to copper polyvinyl chloride pvc and chlorinated polyvinyl chloride cpvc for use as potable drinkable cold and hot water system piping.

Pex tubing or piping is used for water supply lines as well as radiant floor heating. Pex is available in a variety of lengths from short 10 foot pieces for small repairs to rolls over 500 feet long which are used to install a home s entire water supply system. I recently researched leaching in pex pipes and found this article clearly showing the pex pipe leaches carcinogens into drinking water. In contrast no reputable researcher has come up with any similar data showing any toxic effects from drinking water delivered by pex tubing.

The latest research out of whelton s lab has revealed a variety of compounds that can escape from pex pipes potentially causing drinking water to smell or taste bad. Each material has its own. Ideal situation would be ss or stainless steal in 304 grade or 316 designed with smooth walls and correctly connected for water supply. Being sure you have potable water safe pex you are just as safe as the supply of water fed into the pex.

One popular pipe these days is pex. Drinking water odors were attributed to toluene ethyl tert butyl ether and unidentified contaminants the study said. Public health researchers have collected excellent data on the toxicity of lead and asbestos. Pex plumbing is cross linked polyethylene which is a type of plastic.

But is pex safe. Your comparison of pex water tubing to lead and asbestos is totally without basis. Regulated and unregulated contaminants were found in three pex plumbing systems. With pex you have little to no concern of there being any lead in your water pipes of your home.

If you have a newer home i urge you to read it. There s been a lot of debate over pex for the last several years because pex has a few downsides that you might not expect. Today we have pex plastic water pipes.