# Has anyone used plastic crimp fittings?



## Oorgnid (Apr 5, 2016)

Out of curiosity, has any one used them? Our supply house sells them and recommends them time to time, but I just have an uneasy feeling about them. We use the copper crimp rings and I feel when making the crimp, it would just split or shatter the fitting. Are these something that are meant for the stainless steel rings?


Thoughts and opinions.


----------



## dclarke (Dec 22, 2012)

I use them over brass as much as possible. Where I'm located the water quality sucks and I see the brass rot.


----------



## Qplumb (Dec 19, 2015)

Oorgnid said:


> Out of curiosity, has any one used them? Our supply house sells them and recommends them time to time, but I just have an uneasy feeling about them. We use the copper crimp rings and I feel when making the crimp, it would just split or shatter the fitting. Are these something that are meant for the stainless steel rings?
> 
> 
> Thoughts and opinions.


The stainless steel rings actually crimp tighter than the copper rings, I've never had a plastic fitting fail or break. I don't use the brass I've seen them fail more than any other material. Depending on the job I'll use wirsbo or cinch rings with plastic fittings, I always use the wirsbo brand pipe though.


----------



## Oorgnid (Apr 5, 2016)

Hmm. I'll have to make that recommendation. I've seen the cinch rings. They seem like they would crimp tighter. Half the time I'm fighting the crimp ring with the jaws of my crimpers. Especially when it slides just a hair.


----------



## Rexticle (Nov 12, 2011)

I use plastic as much as possible. The water in the country sucks and corrodes the brass ones. Also I like to save money, plastic is half the cost of brass. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## The Dane (Feb 19, 2015)

We use the plastic fittings with copper crimp rings and it works good. Personally I would prefer the Viega plastic fittings with the stainless sleve already on them.


----------



## Tomplumb (Oct 2, 2013)

I only use the plastic fittings, never had a problem. I've seen several brass fittings fail.


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

interesting, I never used the plastic, but hearing they last and stand up, ill look into using them..as they are also cheaper..got a question for the poly fitting users, what about valves? I see the only ball valves out there are brass with the barbed ends for pex, so do you use those or use pex male adapters in ips ball valves? thanxs for any info..


----------



## dclarke (Dec 22, 2012)

ShtRnsdownhill said:


> interesting, I never used the plastic, but hearing they last and stand up, ill look into using them..as they are also cheaper..got a question for the poly fitting users, what about valves? I see the only ball valves out there are brass with the barbed ends for pex, so do you use those or use pex male adapters in ips ball valves? thanxs for any info..


 I personally still use brass for male or female transitions. Not sure if they make them in plastic. For ball valves I use the brass crimp ones. Only pex I have ever worked with is the crimp style.


----------



## The Dane (Feb 19, 2015)

We use brass ballvalves. I don't even know if you can get a ballvalve in plastic. Male and female is also brass and again I have never seen one in plastic. I would also hate to use plastic for male and female since I have a tendency to crack them.


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

dclarke said:


> I personally still use brass for male or female transitions. Not sure if they make them in plastic. For ball valves I use the brass crimp ones. Only pex I have ever worked with is the crimp style.


yes they make the poly male adapters and female adapters, if you wanted to make it all true poly pex fittings, and I use the copper rings...thanxs for the info..


----------



## paultheplumber1 (May 1, 2014)

Pretty much the same here. Plastic fittings, brass valves and transitions. I worry as how the CxP fittings on the shower valves are going to hold up based on what I've seen with the brass fittings in the past.


----------



## Master Mark (Aug 14, 2009)

ShtRnsdownhill said:


> yes they make the poly male adapters and female adapters, if you wanted to make it all true poly pex fittings, and I use the copper rings...thanxs for the info..



the only plastic rings we use are the expanding rings that Wirsbo has with their products.... I have never seen any crimp rings that I would trust to hold up tension on the pipes over time........

as far as a transition fitting from poly to pex why not just install a sharkbite coupling ?????.


----------



## supakingDFW (Aug 19, 2014)

The Dane said:


> We use the plastic fittings with copper crimp rings and it works good. Personally I would prefer the Viega plastic fittings with the stainless sleve already on them.


Yes....that^^^...I love when Viega started making the fittings with sleeves already on them. Saves time and headache :thumbup:


----------



## The Dane (Feb 19, 2015)

supakingDFW said:


> Yes....that^^^...I love when Viega started making the fittings with sleeves already on them. Saves time and headache :thumbup:


At my last job we switched to the viega fittings with the sleves on the fitting and we used the propress tool with the jaws for it to press them and I loved it but where I work now it is just normal plastic fittings with copper rings. I repiped my own house with the viega and would do it again.


----------



## supakingDFW (Aug 19, 2014)

The Dane said:


> At my last job we switched to the viega fittings with the sleves on the fitting and we used the propress tool with the jaws for it to press them and I loved it but where I work now it is just normal plastic fittings with copper rings. I repiped my own house with the viega and would do it again.


Dude...the propress tool is a must! I have a Ridgid that has the old terrible Makita batteries. Wish I could find new ones but they still get the job done!


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

Master Mark said:


> the only plastic rings we use are the expanding rings that Wirsbo has with their products.... I have never seen any crimp rings that I would trust to hold up tension on the pipes over time........
> 
> as far as a transition fitting from poly to pex why not just install a sharkbite coupling ?????.


thats not what I meant, instead of a brass valve with the brass pex barbs on it, you could use a ips ball valve with 2 plastic( poly) male adapters, so there are no brass pex fittings in the system..


----------



## GREENPLUM (Jul 27, 2008)

They manufacturer pex ball valves and pex MOEN valves, no threads duh

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

GREENPLUM said:


> They manufacturer pex ball valves and pex MOEN valves, no threads duh
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


duh yes I know that, the conversation was if you did not want any brass pex fittings in the system...that includes the brass barbs on ball valves made for pex...


----------



## GREENPLUM (Jul 27, 2008)

ShtRnsdownhill said:


> duh yes I know that, the conversation was if you did not want any brass pex fittings in the system...that includes the brass barbs on ball valves made for pex...


Ok, then don't use any Brass, simple

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


----------



## canuck92 (Apr 1, 2016)

Been using the plastic crimp fitting for a while now havent had any issues, i do use brass fittings for certain applications though. Pex is nice but some things should always be done in copper


----------



## Master Mark (Aug 14, 2009)

ShtRnsdownhill said:


> thats not what I meant, instead of a brass valve with the brass pex barbs on it, you could use a ips ball valve with 2 plastic( poly) male adapters, so there are no brass pex fittings in the system..



hey, whatever floats your boat.... 
its fine with me.. .... their are many ways to skin the cat..


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

GREENPLUM said:


> Ok, then don't use any Brass, simple
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


if you read the thread from the beginning you see I dont use the plastic fittings..


----------



## ShtRnsdownhill (Jan 13, 2016)

Master Mark said:


> hey, whatever floats your boat....
> its fine with me.. .... their are many ways to skin the cat..


again if you read the thread from the beginning, my response was to another post..


----------



## GREENPLUM (Jul 27, 2008)

ShtRnsdownhill said:


> if you read the thread from the beginning you see I dont use the plastic fittings..


you could thread a plastic male into a plastic threaded valve, does this help

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


----------

