Push-fit plumbing connections

Steve_xx

I use JG Speedfit and have had no problems. A couple of points to bear in mind:

1. When connecting plastic pipe to speedfit fittings you must use the pipe insert with the black rubber O ring seal on it.
2. When connecting plastic pipe to metal fittings you need the pipe insert that does not have the black rubber O ring on it and you will also require an olive, preferably copper due to the fact that copper will compress easier than brass and therefore unlikely to cause damage to the plastic pipe.
3. For cutting speedfit plastic pipe I always use a conventional rotary copper pipe cutter. These are available at Screwfix.com for £2.99
4. Blanchfords are quite good on price for fittings http://www.blanchford.co.uk/acatalog/copy_of_Speedfit_Fittings1.html

However, for the 15mm pipe I found that B&Q were best and also if you need multiple amounts of the fittings then B&Q often work out cheaper. I note that B&Q only stocked one type of the pipe inserts mentioned above.

baby-mechanic

Thanks for all ofyour input guys.

I feel confident now in getting the job done, and done well !

27col

A word of warning to any one working with plastic fittings.
I was working today with an old plastic isolating valve. I do not know what make it was.
It snapped completely in half with very little lateral pressure being applied to it. Luckily, the valve part stayed on the pipe and there was no flood. The material was very thin.
I was able to replace it quite quickly with a new one from Toolstation. I shall be very aware of the possibility of this occurring in the future and pass this on to anyone interested.

damanpunk

I don't see why anyone bothers with pushfit, solder ring fittings are very easy to use other than a bit of prep work.

moneysavingplumber

I've used both JG and Hep-2-O over the years and overall prefer Speedfit. It is harder to use as the pipe is less flexible than hep, but I personally felt more confident in it. I also had a friend who was one of the chief testers at BBA some years ago who were extensively testing plastic pipe systems and his verdict was that JG was superior and leaked far less under test conditions (including inevitable scratching on pipe ends). In addition, it comes with barrier as standard, which Hep doesn't. One of the biggest (but least publicised) problems with all plastic systems is the effect of long-term stress on the fittings. I have found on installations that I have attended where people have used Hep and not clipped and supported it properly and left the fitting under stress that the nuts have cracked on the fittings, especially on heating. I would personally always use copper where possible and only use plastic to get accross problems (usually caused by builders screwing floors down before services were installed!). If I had to use plastic then JG would be my preference.

Steve_xx

damanpunk wrote: »

I don't see why anyone bothers with pushfit, solder ring fittings are very easy to use other than a bit of prep work.

I take your point, but there are a few reasons that I can think of why a person may wish to use plastic pushfit fittings as opposed to solder ring fittings:
1. Not everyone is competent at making a soldered joint.

2. Although I would agree that generally solder fittings are the cheaper option for doing the job, it isn't always necessarily so. For instance, 15mm copper pipe won't bend as readily as plastic pipe will, and that means that when using copper you may have to have more joints that you would with plastic. Therefore the job could work out cheaper with plastic because you may need fewer components.