No copper anymore (only in wires). We have been using vanguard manabloc system for the last few years. http://www.vanguardpipe.com/mbloc.html

hey dad, whos your supplier for that stuff. we started using pex lately withour radiant feeds and im trying to get my father to change over to plastic more. however our supply house is 250% of the price we can get the tubing for online (minus shipping).

Too true - one of our clients (telecommunications company) recently had a grounding rod that was being stored for installation on one of their sites ripped off. Estimated scrap value was about $60. These guys evidently drove about two miles up a remote and VERY rough (4x4 definitely required) desert mountain road to get to the site, then commited felony trespass, B&E (over an 8' fence topped with razor wire) in order to get it.

Either some VERY desperate desert-dwelling meth-heads or an inside job - they're looking into it. But yea, copper is a target now.

Just re-sweated a copper connection that was leaking. Cost about $5.00 for supplies, next got to sheetrock the hole in the wall. Total cost probably around 15 bucks versus calling in a plumber and a drywall guy to do it.

Yes, yes, copper is expensive right now. For what it's worth, I use about 20,000 feet of it every day.

It ain't so expensive to justify the price he got - that's my point. Those guys were out to screw him for whatever they could get.

Residential owners are typically easy targets - they know nothing about construction and often don't have the balls to stand up to contractors. All the more reason they should hire people that specialize in this area. Would you go into a courtroom to defend yourself without a lawyer? No. Would you attempt to diagnose a serious illness without consulting a doctor? No. Same situation. You get what you pay for. If you pay nothing, you get nothing and you might as well hang a sign around your neck that says "f*ck me over, I'm clueless" - unless you happen to get the one residential subcontractor in about ten that isn't a complete sleazeball.

Sometimes, when contractors are busy, they will give an incredibly high price on a bid to make sure they do not get the job.

If somebody bites, it's worth squeezing it into the schedule.

This is exactly what is going on......................................at least for now. New construction is slowing down to a crawl here in Northern Va. and soon all those guys in all aspects of the trade will be begging for ANY type of work.

Saw this in the early 90's ..........................history will repeat itself.

I've completely replaced the plumbing in five houses now. I do it all myself and use plastic with the copper and brass connectors. The plumbing is the easy part, the time consuming bit is fixing the holes in the drywall...

Copper is SO expensive I don't use it other that a couple of meters either side of the hot water cylinder, and unless the rest of the house is done in it and it's only a meter or two type repair.

I had a contractor low ball a bid at $8,000.00 for a mold remediation job. They showed up unprepared, had to borrow my ladder, then go to a hardware store for a rake(?) After an hour they told me they would now have to peel the roof to get rid of the mold and it would be $21,000.00. I told them all to come down out of my attic, took my ladder back, and told them to take their rake and their sorry a$$es and get off my property, they started quacking about how I couldn't do that ...I started counting out loud.....and heading for the house. I let them assume why. They left and were never heard from again. I vented the attic myself for $25.00 and now the mold is gone.

You sure that's up to code?

Around here you are required to use copper for any runs that would end being a potable source.

Edit: Just googled it and looks like PVC is acceptable. Guess I'm dealing with local zoning here.

Scott

no your can probably do it without copper, idk if they can force you to use copper, you just have to use potable water pvc, like cpvc on the hot side. dvw pvc is not up to code.

And how about "restoration". You know, the guys that have the front and back covers of every phone book? I had one, just one, company come out and give me a quote to dry my lower floor out. I had about 1/4" of sitting water, which of course, had soaked up into the drywall a couple inches.

So, the guy quotes me for 7 fans & 6 dehumidifiers to run for 2 1/2 days. My "cash" discount (not going through insurance) was $12,000. Yeah, right. 12 grand to plug 13 items in and come back a couple days later and pick them up. I went to Home Depot and rented carpet fans and bought a few dehumidifiers for $179 each. 3 days later the house was dry as a bone. The insurance claim racket is getting out of control these days.

With only 1/4" of water, I take it the water soaked the drywall but didn't get into the insulation? A friend of mine had 2" of water in his basement and he just used a pump and dehumidifiers... 2 months later they were all sick and staying in a hotel. Nasty, nasty mold in the walls.

My neighbor always shuts off his water if he's going away for a couple days. I used to think he was a bit obsessive, now I do the same. I've found copper T's in my house that weren't sweated properly and would spring loose if bumped.

No insulation down here in Southern California... I did remove all the base moulding which exposes about a 1/4" gap below the drywall to the concrete and blew the crap out of it for 3 days. I have plenty of drywall holes where the plumber did his handywork and all looks good. Also treating with an anti-mold spray before repairing the drywall holes.

Shutting off the water is a good idea. I'm going to start doing it when I leave for more than a couple days as well.

I'm trying to get new domestic water and sewer lines run at work. It's a couple thousand feet of underground piping but most of it is under grass not concrete. I figured up what I thought it would take for material and about 5 guys working 40 hours a week for a month. I figured about $100K on the high side. I just got the quote for $300K. I guess I'm going to give up on repairing turbines and just get a plumber's license.

Do you know of any poor plumbers?

One of my friends took pumbing after high school, to have a trade before going to university.

Everyone gave him a hard time back then. He eventually got a a degree in computer science, and worked in the field for a few years. In the end, he makes a far better living at plumbing, and enjoys it a lot more. Good money, no lack of work, and very low overhead.

Remember the plumbers motto.

Sh@t flows downhill and pay day is on Thursday.!!

Hi Scott. The plastic stuff is Polybutene-I (PB) and it's great to work with, here is a URL www.dux.co.nz/cms_display.php?sn=35&st=1&pg=756 Our regulations insist that we use copper two meters either side of the hot water cylinder, but otherwise we can use this. While I'm at it, I tend to improve the flow and presure with better design and less corners.

Bottom line--- If you want to make a decent living---be a plumber!

I had a union plumber re plumb my entire house, 3000sq feet, with recirc hot water, 100% copper, 1" plumbing, all above slab, for $9000, and that is in SO CA!!! That included a 75 gal hot water heater, recirc pump and two custom showers with controlled temp. 6 lavs and one kitchen. not cheep, but not bad.

One "super"shower flows 20 gal per min. Thats using 40year old shower heads I salvaged from other houses I own (Speakman model 1). Like standing under a water fall not a stinging mist. Eat your hearts out!!! You can choose anything from 1 gal per min to 20 gal per min, fuk the gov, let the consumer decide! OR you can go with the political correct 2.5 gal per min heads, all 10 of them. Hipocrits and 2.5 gal is still a stinging mist, no matter how many heads you have. 10 2.5 gal per min heads is 25 gal per min, no water savings here. I am considering making replacas of the original Speakman head if anyone is interested. One inch plumbing required.