Plastic, copper, or braided hoses for faucet hookups?

[Innovate1]

Have usually used braided hoses for replacements where needed - no issues with compression fittings is one plus. But with limited length choices it gets difficult without snaking around or getting extra long and putting in a full loop. Thinking of using cut to length tubes, either plastic or copper, for new shop installs. Any thoughts on this?...

 

[rlitman]

I'm fine with PEX here. Kind of like it. Just don't use the plain PE (ice maker line ****).

 

[BD1]

All we used in the old days was copper fir supplies. I would choose that over plastic.
Stainless Braid usually has a higher grade of rubber washer for the seal insead of a ferrule. The stainless braid is a easier install and is available in assorted lengths.


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[karoc]

Like BD saying,my ole father inlaw was a plumber and all they use was 3/8 copper to all fixtures. He said you never have to worry about it busting like person would plastic. The braided is keep the plastic from swelling if ever it should but other than that is to give you peace of mind by making you think its tough and better and of course prettier. Which I have the breaded type, dang copper is kinda hard for tight bends.

 

[nadogail]

My first choice is Name Branded Stainless Hose. If they seem a bit long I can get creative with the routing.

 

[sberry]

I dont mind plastic, I like it. I like all plastic sink stuff, hold down nuts and supply nuts. Most sinks are also npt, can screw 1/2 female threaded adapters right to it. Depending on design and hydrants now days like home runs with a hose with pex, if it was close enough wouldnt even need supply valves, use the manifold.

 

[TuxThePenguin]

I'm not a plumber by trade or anything, but I only use stainless braided, and if there is extra length I coil it up. I've always been able to buy them at least close enough in length that maybe I have 1 or 2 small coils of extra hose, no big deal. I've never been in a situation where I've got say 5 extra feet of hose to "hide"

 

[rlitman]

All we used in the old days was copper fir supplies. I would choose that over plastic.
Stainless Braid usually has a higher grade of rubber washer for the seal insead of a ferrule. The stainless braid is a easier install and is available in assorted lengths.


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I've had too many copper compression supplies start leaking on me. They don't do well with being touched. One little bump that nobody things of as mattering, and you've got a slow oozing drip that eventually rots the cabinet and floor underneath before anyone notices.

Stainless braid is fine if you're planning on reconnecting the hose several times in a short period. But after 5 years in service, that rubber seal is probably as hard as wood. It may not leak if you don't touch it, but if you have to loosen it for any reason, the best advice I can give you is to toss it.

Plus, 90% of the "stainless braid" hoses on the market today have plastic braids that are merely stainless in color. They're total ****.

I'm not recommending polyethylene line for ANY uses. That stuff sold in ice-maker kits is a time bomb, known to blow out for all sorts of reasons. But PEX supply lines have none of these issues. They don't degrade over time, and they have the flexibility to remain well sealed even after a little jostling.

I'm not a plumber by trade or anything, but I only use stainless braided, and if there is extra length I coil it up. I've always been able to buy them at least close enough in length that maybe I have 1 or 2 small coils of extra hose, no big deal. I've never been in a situation where I've got say 5 extra feet of hose to "hide"

+1 A full loop in the line is ALWAYS superior to an S bend. Those S jogs put all sorts of stress on each end.

 

[rickpaulos]

Depends on where you live. Plenty of burst copper and steel pipes where it gets really cold. There are videos on youtube testing various products and connections in deep freezes. A burst pipe above finished living space can get very costly to clean up and repair the mess below.

 

[sixty4]

Most faucets today are straigt cut on the shanks. Old days they had a reamed end and hard supply tubes were the norm. I go with a good quality braided hose like fluid master, not the chrome plastic stuff.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Most faucets today are straigt cut on the shanks. Old days they had a reamed end and hard supply tubes were the norm. I go with a good quality braided hose like fluid master, not the chrome plastic stuff.

I second that, althiugh finding real stainless steel braided hose is not easy. All my hardware store has in the plastic "looks like stainless" stuff.

 

[The Cobbler]

given a choice, 3/8 copper for me. seen way to much water damage from the stainless braided

 

[rburke65]

There has been numerous lawsuits against the plastic feed mfg. from the ins companies trying to recoup their money for faulty parts. My buddy had over $30K in damages from a split plastic nut on the bottom of his toilet tank doing lots of water damage.

 

[nadogail]

When I said I prefer Name Branded Stainless hoses, I was referring to FluidMaster hoses.

Having seen the plastic ice maker lines fail, I used 1/4" copper for the last one I installed; all 20 feet of it from angle stop to the refrigerator. The walls were open because of a previous plastic line failure.

 

[zeke67]

Not a plumber, just DIY. I always love the chromed copper with cone washers on the faucet and and ferrules at the shut off. I just like the look. I would use a tubing bender to make the lines. When the flex hoses became common, I still used the chrome stuff for a toilet or pedestal. Today, the stainless flex braid is simply too easy. It's all I use, but it gets replaced the a faucet gets replaced. Stay away from the butyl lines with the formed cone on one end and using the Delrin ferrule bushing on the other end. Very easy for a DIY, they give the sleek look of pipe (albeit grey plastic.)

 

[Showkey]

If you read the instructions on the plastic feed lines on faucets that come factory attached .........they are PEX.

Says........my not be obvious to all:
Do not cut
If you do cut:
Do not use metal ferrels
Do not flip the plastic ferrels direction

 

[BetterDays]

Depends on where you live. Plenty of burst copper and steel pipes where it gets really cold. There are videos on youtube testing various products and connections in deep freezes. A burst pipe above finished living space can get very costly to clean up and repair the mess below.

This is my fear of second story plumbing.
I am not a plumber and learning lessons could be very expensive

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[johninct]

I bought a Delta bathroom faucet that had the plastic lines built in.

 

[59 wagon man]

so you do realize the stainless braid is usually just covering a pe tube. sometimes it maybe rubber and they breakdown internally and cause water pressure problems. copper or pex and if they freeze i'd say 99.9% of the time you'll have a lot more frozen stuff before a supply line freezes

 

[yeldogt]

When I said I prefer Name Branded Stainless hoses, I was referring to FluidMaster hoses.

Having seen the plastic ice maker lines fail, I used 1/4" copper for the last one I installed; all 20 feet of it from angle stop to the refrigerator. The walls were open because of a previous plastic line failure.

the last i looked at are from china .... and they are not stainless. I think they have more then one line

 

[yeldogt]

Braided ???

Braid is not waterproof ... there is a hose inside !!! And where do they leak ...?? at the connection where the two come together.

Years ago when washers used real rubber hoses -- that would budge and burst ... degrade. The braid held the hose together and protected it .... today it's a gimmick. And --- most are just SS looking plastic.

Over the years i have done a lot of exposed feeds and drains in bathrooms -- Can't say I have had issues with chromed copper feed lines and compression fittings. Most kitchen faucets now come with crosslinked plastic feeds ....

I'm not a fan of the cheap plastic ice maker lines ---- I typically do coiled copper lines ... although it seems even very good plumbers like the better quality braided today.

The last two speed queens I have bought come with high quality non-braided hoses that I like very much

 

[rlitman]

...Having seen the plastic ice maker lines fail, I used 1/4" copper for the last one I installed; all 20 feet of it from angle stop to the refrigerator. The walls were open because of a previous plastic line failure.

The clear-ish plastic ice maker line is PE. It's total ****, that is known to bubble and blow out over time. The makers will assume that the line's lifetime is limited by how long you keep your fridge. Grey PEX ice maker lines are easily found, and don't have any of these issues. PE ice maker lines should be banned!

In my kitchens, I run 1/4" copper in the walls to a 1/4 turn angle stop in a box behind the fridge, and a PEX coil running from there to the fridge. The PEX coils are so much easier to handle than copper coils.

Oh, and being the nut that I am, I actually found 1/4" sweat connections for my 1/4" copper where I teed into it (it's coming off of a water filter).