Home Improvement
- Thread starter Picasso3
- Start date
OneofOne
Silver Baronet of the Realm
- 6,674
- 8,254
I'm a home improvement noob, halp!
Our home has been using super hard well water for 30+ years. I'm seriously thinking of hooking up to city water, but before I do, I'm wondering if there is a way to clean out all the pipes? I realize it's not as simple as dumping a few gallons of CLR in there (hmmm CLR drinking water yummy!), but when googling this I'm getting too much info where someone is trying to sell me something, so I'm looking for unbiased thoughts and opinions. Any insight is appreciated.
Our home has been using super hard well water for 30+ years. I'm seriously thinking of hooking up to city water, but before I do, I'm wondering if there is a way to clean out all the pipes? I realize it's not as simple as dumping a few gallons of CLR in there (hmmm CLR drinking water yummy!), but when googling this I'm getting too much info where someone is trying to sell me something, so I'm looking for unbiased thoughts and opinions. Any insight is appreciated.
- 6,338
- 7,144
I'm really glad to see a thread about this. I always thought it was funny when Tim would hurt himself and grunt like a gorilla. Haha!!
Erronius
Macho Ma'am
- 16,491
- 42,462
I'm not sure how much you would need, but RHW would clean out your pipes, no problem.
Oldbased
> Than U
- 27,768
- 65,334
You had interior plumbing like normal but with a well system?
Replace hot water heater it'd be full of sediments and rust out/fail eventually anyways.
Remove all shower heads( unscrew ) and faucet screens ( unscrews at the end ) and clean in a tub of CLR.
There is really no good way to flush existing plumbing. The water pressure is going to be higher from city most likely and probably around 50-80 psi. You could leave all the shower heads/Faucet ends off and let pressure push out most of the sediment or you could disconnect where the city will tie into underneath and attach a fitting/pipe to get it out from under the house( do not drain things under the house onto the ground the moisture/mess is not worth it ) and reverse flow all sinks, but that would require a water source already available.
DO NOT put chemicals into concealed plumbing. You could have air traps in the plumbing ( to prevent knocking ) and if those chemicals get in there could bleed into the new water.
Your best bet is let the city water flush it with the shower heads/screens off, a new hot water heater and a attachable mineral filter on the kitchen sink ( Bria or something ) for at least the first 6 months.
If you don't mind grunt work, most plumbers these days are using PEX which is a flexable water line, if you had good access you could just replumb everything.
You could also backflush each faucet/outlet ( google it ).
Replace hot water heater it'd be full of sediments and rust out/fail eventually anyways.
Remove all shower heads( unscrew ) and faucet screens ( unscrews at the end ) and clean in a tub of CLR.
There is really no good way to flush existing plumbing. The water pressure is going to be higher from city most likely and probably around 50-80 psi. You could leave all the shower heads/Faucet ends off and let pressure push out most of the sediment or you could disconnect where the city will tie into underneath and attach a fitting/pipe to get it out from under the house( do not drain things under the house onto the ground the moisture/mess is not worth it ) and reverse flow all sinks, but that would require a water source already available.
DO NOT put chemicals into concealed plumbing. You could have air traps in the plumbing ( to prevent knocking ) and if those chemicals get in there could bleed into the new water.
Your best bet is let the city water flush it with the shower heads/screens off, a new hot water heater and a attachable mineral filter on the kitchen sink ( Bria or something ) for at least the first 6 months.
If you don't mind grunt work, most plumbers these days are using PEX which is a flexable water line, if you had good access you could just replumb everything.
You could also backflush each faucet/outlet ( google it ).
Cutlery
Kill All the White People
- 6,445
- 17,955
Well that's good to hear. I for one am fucking sick of Compression/Copper and would be fine never having to do either again.
- 41,457
- 177,752
PEX is awesome. I've redone my entire house with it, and each water source has a corresponding valve in the basement, so I can shut water off down there and drain it to that point if I need to work on anything.
PEX is more difficult in a remodel situation - It can be hard to use the crimping tool in finished areas - but I still think it's worth it.
PEX is more difficult in a remodel situation - It can be hard to use the crimping tool in finished areas - but I still think it's worth it.
Oldbased
> Than U
- 27,768
- 65,334
Ya it can be tricky, on bathrooms we actually pull the valve out pex it and then secure it to the framing. We use a lot of copper sealed nipples on the end, then cut off with a copper cutter and just use sharkbite ends to avoid soldering anymore.
I never was that great at soldering and I despise use of compression fittings.
Nice thing about pex is it can swell way beyond it's means. Meaning very unlikely to have a line bust due to freezing. In anyone does use it, buy expensive crimpers. It is the primary tool and will save a lot of headaches.
Cutlery
Kill All the White People
- 6,445
- 17,955
Sharkbites eh? The last guy I had in here plumbing (because fuck soldering 3 inches away from wood, someone else with insurance can do that shit) said that sharkbites aren't even code in a lot of places, and work like shit. Is that not the case?
Oldbased
> Than U
- 27,768
- 65,334
I have never had one fail, it uses a double O ring configuration with the name sharkbite coming from the tiny etchings that dig into the copper/pvc to ensure no pop offs.
I hooked one up to my air hose one time for a homeowner in doubt and put 160 psi( highest I could go ) and left it overnight, no problems, plumbing operates at half that.
I always clean my copper down good and mark it about 3/4 inch back with a marker, that way I know it is set deep in.
One thing I don't do a ton of is plumbing, well electrical as well but sometimes I'll be damned if I am going to call one in and pay them $300 for a 1 hour job on a job only worth $1200.
Plumbers are like that though, the same type to use stiff plastic supply lines compression fitting when you can get a flex line ribbed or cased with metal for only a few bucks more.
I used to work in water/fire/wind restoration for Paul Davis Systems back in the 90s. Those stiff compression lines were always good for water claims years down the road.
I hooked one up to my air hose one time for a homeowner in doubt and put 160 psi( highest I could go ) and left it overnight, no problems, plumbing operates at half that.
I always clean my copper down good and mark it about 3/4 inch back with a marker, that way I know it is set deep in.
One thing I don't do a ton of is plumbing, well electrical as well but sometimes I'll be damned if I am going to call one in and pay them $300 for a 1 hour job on a job only worth $1200.
Plumbers are like that though, the same type to use stiff plastic supply lines compression fitting when you can get a flex line ribbed or cased with metal for only a few bucks more.
I used to work in water/fire/wind restoration for Paul Davis Systems back in the 90s. Those stiff compression lines were always good for water claims years down the road.
Have a fun little home improvement story I thought I would share. The wife and I recently did our whole main floor with laminate flooring. We originally bought 1400 sqft (main floor is ~1100) and installed it ourselves. After we finished, we still had 50 boxes or 700sqft left over which didn't make any sense. Apparently, the long side of the cardboard box says that each laminate box has 8 pieces or 14sqft. However, in reality each box has 12 peices at ~21 sqft/box or 1,050sqft for all 50 boxes. We put them on craigslist and sold them the next day for about $200 less than we originally paid for the floors. Whole house done for $200ish (laminate only, not trim, pad, etc) Not to bad
It was from a warehouse sale, was an entire lot left over of 1400sqft (or really 2000+) No returns. I would have done that if I could.
Man all my home improvements are over until next year and my wife goes back to work! This whole having a kid thing is getting in the way. Nice work on that entertainment room.
List of things yet to do:
Room, Hallway, Kitchen, Family Room, DiningRoom/Living Room, Office - Crown Molding. DR/LR combo will be hard because there are some weird curves/angles to go from wall to ceiling. at they are 10-20 foot at some points from the floor.
Remove tile on wall in entry way, replace with wainscotting. Easy enough to do, don't feel like dropping the cash right now.
Remove tile on floor at front door, replace with nice grey slate colored tile.
Remove laminate floor in kitchen replace with same tile above.
Backsplash in kitchen.
New kitchen cabinet on naked wall.
Next year should be good times. I think I need to budget about $2000 for all of it. Crown molding is the expensive part. The rest is easy to do, assuming I can get good tile prices; combined it's only 200-300 sqft.
List of things yet to do:
Room, Hallway, Kitchen, Family Room, DiningRoom/Living Room, Office - Crown Molding. DR/LR combo will be hard because there are some weird curves/angles to go from wall to ceiling. at they are 10-20 foot at some points from the floor.
Remove tile on wall in entry way, replace with wainscotting. Easy enough to do, don't feel like dropping the cash right now.
Remove tile on floor at front door, replace with nice grey slate colored tile.
Remove laminate floor in kitchen replace with same tile above.
Backsplash in kitchen.
New kitchen cabinet on naked wall.
Next year should be good times. I think I need to budget about $2000 for all of it. Crown molding is the expensive part. The rest is easy to do, assuming I can get good tile prices; combined it's only 200-300 sqft.
- 25,424
- 37,545
I would hesitate adding tile floor in the kitchen. I did that in my old house and I regretted it. For one, tile can easily chip. I found this out the several times shit got dropped in the kitchen like a plate or a glass. (not to mention my big ass MAG flashlight which happen to slip out of my hands one time) Second I had a small leak from the dishwasher. I caught it in time before it did any damage, but the floor underneath the tile must of seeped up some of the moisture because I stepped on it and like 3 tiles cracked. FUUUUUCK. I had to replace the 3 tiles, on top of the chipped ones before we sold the house, what a pain in the ass. Third, we chose a lighter grout, like a light brown and even after sealing it several times, the shit still showed more dirt in the most traveled areas. Seriously, think about it because IMO doing tile in the kitchen is a big mistake.
The new house I did hardwood and cannot be happier. It was the pre-finished type tongue and groove 3/4" thick but it was wider planks than the regular old school hardwood you find in older houses. I got a deal at home depot and paid like $800-900 for the entire kitchen and dining room, roughly 400 sq ft. The floor came out beautiful, and is way more durable than tile ever was in the most traveled and trashed room in the house. And it was easier to install than tile ever was. (Grouting sucks balls)
The new house I did hardwood and cannot be happier. It was the pre-finished type tongue and groove 3/4" thick but it was wider planks than the regular old school hardwood you find in older houses. I got a deal at home depot and paid like $800-900 for the entire kitchen and dining room, roughly 400 sq ft. The floor came out beautiful, and is way more durable than tile ever was in the most traveled and trashed room in the house. And it was easier to install than tile ever was. (Grouting sucks balls)
Oldbased
> Than U
- 27,768
- 65,334
Find a Habitat for humanity resell store form their website. Few months back I purchased 23 boxes of various large tiles and 12 boxes of border/base tiles for $200.
Some things in there are not much cheaper than just getting on sale someplace but sometimes I make out like a bandit from mine.
Last year ours had some contractor bring in 18 granite 72 inch vanity tops with under the top mounted sinks and nice faucets. Probably came out of a top hotel or something. They were pristine!
I bought 3 and cut them down and put them in my parents house. Total cost? 75 bucks.
Some things in there are not much cheaper than just getting on sale someplace but sometimes I make out like a bandit from mine.
Last year ours had some contractor bring in 18 granite 72 inch vanity tops with under the top mounted sinks and nice faucets. Probably came out of a top hotel or something. They were pristine!
I bought 3 and cut them down and put them in my parents house. Total cost? 75 bucks.
Eomer
Trakanon Raider
- 5,472
- 272
It's been around for over a decade now, and yeah, just about all residential uses it for 90% of the water piping. Prior to PEX there was Poly-B, which was pretty much the same thing, but had some pretty glaring deficiencies with certain types of fittings and particular installations that caused a metric fuckton of lawsuits. PEX eliminated pretty much all of that.
Look in to Uponor/Wirsbo or one of the other expansion type systems instead of crimp then. We've actually stuck with crimp pex until very recently if only because we fear change and one leak can wipe out years of any anticipated benefits, but we finally decided to make the jump to Uponor. With the smaller diameter stuff you just use a Milwaukee M12 expander that can fit in pretty much anywhere.lurkingdirk_sl said:
Yeah.... no. It might not be as likely to burst as other rigid plastic or metal piping systems, but that shit will still burst. And even if it doesn't, that expanded section will be significantly weaker and could well burst down the road, unless you drain the system and heat it up with a heat gun to get it to shrink back and crosslink again.Olebass_sl said: