Polybutylene pipes - *@!$&#*!

[Joey]

I've just found out I have a leaking polybutylene service line - estimated cost to replace is $1600.

I'm really quite pissed - and not the British "pissed," which is good. No, I'm f**king pissed off.

Was this some kind of conspiracy to keep the plumbers in business for years to come or something? (Probably not, I know).

Anybody else have any polybutylene horror stories?

[FlyingPhotog]

Seems a lot of people feel the same way you do...

http://www.polybutylene.com/
http://www.repipenews.com/

[Half Bottle]

I've just found out I have a leaking polybutylene service line - estimated cost to replace is $1600.

I'm really quite pissed - and not the British "pissed," which is good. No, I'm f**king pissed off.

Was this some kind of conspiracy to keep the plumbers in business for years to come or something? (Probably not, I know).

Anybody else have any polybutylene horror stories?

Nope. My story is good news. I had poly pipes (both inside the house and outside) at my old place. Several neighbors had leaks, but we avoided all but the most minor and easily self-repaired. I even had one neigbor who, ahem, "forced" a leak so he could join a class action suit against the poly pipe makers before the time expired.

I found out that within months of when we sold the place, the new owners had the same problem you did (leak in the line connecting the house to the water main).

We were very, very lucky.

[ancient mariner]

I've just found out I have a leaking polybutylene service line - estimated cost to replace is $1600.

I'm really quite pissed - and not the British "pissed," which is good. No, I'm f**king pissed off.

Was this some kind of conspiracy to keep the plumbers in business for years to come or something? (Probably not, I know).

Anybody else have any polybutylene horror stories?

Will the Pipes Fail?
While scientific evidence is scarce, it is believed that oxidants in the public water supplies, such as chlorine, react with the polybutylene piping and acetal fittings causing them to scale and flake and become brittle. Micro-fractures result, and the basic structural integrity of the system is reduced. Thus, the system becomes weak and may fail without warning causing damage to the building structure and personal property. It is believed that other factors may also contribute to the failure of polybutylene systems, such as improper installation, but it is virtually impossible to detect installation problems throughout an entire system.

Throughout the 1980's lawsuits were filed complaining of allegedly defective manufacturing and defective installation causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. Although the manufacturers have never admitted that poly is defective, they have agreed to fund the Class Action settlement with an initial and minimum amount of $950 million. You'll have to contact the appropriate settlement claim company to find out if you qualify under this settlement.

"A series of reports have suggested that increased use of choloramines accelerates corrosion and degradation of some metals and elastomers common to distribution plumbing and appurtenances.
With regard to elastomers, the study showed that with few exceptions, solutions of chloramines (either monochloramine or dichloramine) produced greater material swelling, deeper and more dense surface cracking, a more rapid loss of elasticity, and greater loss of tensile strength than equivalent concentrations of free chlorine."
----Steven Reiber, HDR Engineering, American Water Works Association Research Foundation

http://www.polybutylene.com/poly.html

Me? Wouldn't touch the stuff with a pole.
Per

[NewSowBreath]

I've just found out I have a leaking polybutylene service line - estimated cost to replace is $1600.

I'm really quite pissed - and not the British "pissed," which is good. No, I'm f**king pissed off.

Was this some kind of conspiracy to keep the plumbers in business for years to come or something? (Probably not, I know).

Anybody else have any polybutylene horror stories?

So you were the source of the drought, eh?

BTW - look around for a good Mexican to do it cheaper. Ask any builder or construction friends.