Choosing the Right PEX Setup for Your Hartville Home

Tubing Choices in Plain Terms

All PEX is cross-linked polyethylene, but the manufacturing method changes how it handles in the field.

• Tight framing, lots of bends or cold-weather installs: PEX-A tends to be easier
• Long straight runs and budget-conscious repairs: PEX-B works well
• Either one performs reliably when matched to the correct fittings and tools

PEX-A

The most flexible option. It coils and bends easily, has shape memory that lets a kink be restored with gentle heat, and is joined with expansion fittings that let the tubing shrink back tightly over the fitting. It costs more and requires a specific expansion tool.

PEX-B

Firmer and more common at supply houses. It holds its shape on long straight runs and is typically joined with copper crimp rings or stainless clamp rings. Kinks need to be cut out and repaired with a coupling.

Fittings: Where Quality Shows

Expansion fittings leave a nearly full-diameter opening, which helps flow on long runs, and there is no ring to under-crimp. Crimp and clamp fittings slip inside the tubing and slightly reduce the opening, but they are proven and widely used. Push-fit fittings are useful for repairs and tight spots where a tool will not fit.

Whichever system we use, we stick with one manufacturer's matched components on a given job and verify connections with the proper gauge or visual marks. Mixing pieces from different systems is a common source of the leaks we get called to repair.

Sizing Lines for Larger Homes

A home with three or four bathrooms, a large kitchen and outdoor spigots needs mains sized for several fixtures running at once. Undersized lines are the reason some newer homes have a shower that goes weak when the dishwasher starts. We size trunk lines and manifold feeds based on the number of fixtures and the distance from the water heater, and we can add a recirculation line to reduce the wait for hot water at faraway bathrooms.

Additions and new builds are handled through our Hartville new plumbing installation service, which covers drains and vents as well as the PEX supply.

Well Water and PEX in Lake Township

PEX's smooth interior resists the scale that builds up inside metal pipe on hard well water, which is one reason it is popular on rural properties. Iron and sediment can still clog fixture screens and valves, so we often recommend treatment equipment ahead of the house plumbing. If your water leaves stains or scale, our water softener installation service can protect the new lines and fixtures.

We also leave room and valves around pressure tanks and filters so that future service on that equipment does not require cutting into the PEX.

Replacing Older Piping With PEX

Hartville homes from the late 1970s through the mid-1990s sometimes contain gray polybutylene, and older farmhouses may still have galvanized steel. In both cases, PEX is the most common replacement material. Our repiping page for Hartville explains how we handle those projects.

Every installation follows our process: free estimate, your approval of the specifications, then installation with a pressure test and quality inspection. We also serve Randolph, Mogadore, Green and North Canton. See our county-wide PEX page for maintenance tips.