The Politics of PEX in California
PEX, (or cross-linked polyethylene tubing) is `legal’ for installation in homes and businesses in 49 States of the Union — but not in California. This despite the fact that the 2001 California Plumbing Code (CPC) listed PEX “as an acceptable material for domestic water piping,” (but didn’t approve it for installation). So do the International Plumbing Code, Uniform Plumbing Code, and the National Standard Plumbing Code — which is why it is legal to install in the other 49 states of the Union.
The Plastic Pipe and Fittings Association (PPFA) has listed some of the characteristics that make PEX both popular and positive from both the consumer’s and installer’s point of view:
- Its high temperature capability, up to 200° F
- Its High pressure capability/stability
- The smooth walls provide excellent flow characteristics
- Its quieter than PVC or copper
- There’s less heat loss and condensation
- Because it’s a tubing, it allows flexibility for design
- It has a proven long life, rigorous certifications, and is highly tested
- It doesn’t corrode
- Unlike copper, it doesn’t develop pinholes
- No build-up inside
- Its secure and simple, but reliable fittings reduce the possibilities of leaks
- It’s lightweight, easy and safe to transport and handle
- It comes in long coils, and is therefore efficient to install, and joints are reduced
- It’s clean and safe to work with, unlike copper which requires flux and solder, or PVC which requires glues that produce toxic fumes
Why then, you ask, can’t we install it in California?
The Official reason is “environmental review.” But the fact is, PEX has already undergone an independent review — and passed! And because it passed, it’s already been approved by the four major model code standards, including the one just adopted by California itself in January 2008!
So the problem here really boils down to nothing more than politics. PEX is so easy to install you can do it yourself. The Plumbers Union is understandably not happy about that! (Which is also why until recently the only fittings available for PEX had to be installed with special equipment only licensed plumbers — not general contractors, not members of the public — could buy through special outlets.) And it’s plastic, so environmental groups weren’t happy either, despite the blatant reality that we have yet to develop any better environmentally friendly products through which to pump our water. But we decidedly have quite a few worse options. (PEX can be made from recycled grocery bags.)
Back to our story: The PPFA filed suit in 2001 and obtained a court order that basically said what everyone else had been saying for years: PEX was safe to install, so allow it to be installed already! The result: For almost 3 years PEX “was code” and was installed across California.
Then, in 2004 an appeals court reversed the ruling. Suddenly, PEX was again “not code” and couldn’t be installed. Ironically, during that brief three year period all kinds of rumors began to crop up about PEX. It was claimed, for example, that PEX pipes leech methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and benzene into the water, that PEX prematurely decays and then ruptures, and so on. I’ve even heard rumors that PEX will break down if exposed to chlorine treated water, and urban tales of “catastrophic failure” in homes where PEX has been installed, causing tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage.
None of these rumors have been found to be true.
PEX tubing bearing the marks “NSF-61″ or “NSF pw” — i.e. tubing rated for domestic potable water use has been tested by NSF International, an agency with a 60 year history of successfully protecting public health, and was found to meet the health requirements of NSF-61 and the long term strength and quality control requirements of NSF/ANSI Standard 14.
In other words, it’s at least as good (safe) as the alternatives.
(Warning! If the tubing has the mark “NSF rfh” it is only rated for radiant heat, not for potable water.)
Now… Let’s get real! If PEX weren’t safe, could it have possibly been approved by all four major, independent, model code standards — and California’s own CPC? Not likely.
The sad irony that this seven year (and counting) fiasco has cost California home owners and tax payers millions at the expense of its bloated, self righteous bureaucracy. And to prove precisely what?
In May (May 2008) the California Department of Public Health decided the rest of the civilized world was right after all. It proposed an Amendment to the 2007 California Plumbing Code, removing its restrictions against the installation of PEX “for occupancies regulated by The Department of Health Services.”
The public comment period closed July 7th. The regulations may not be approved for another 18 months.
What have they proved? You decide.
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