What type of water line?

[drb1025]

I am converting my raw water wash down to freshwater. I have two existing extra ports with ball valves already installed in the water tank. What is the best material to use for the water line running from the tank to the wash down pump? Pex? Reinforced hose?

 

[HiDHo]

I like blue PEX.

 

[jungpeter]

Hi drb1025,

In my opinion, simple reinforced vinyl hose is the best option. Barb fittings and hose clamps are available all over the planet for installation and to repair potential leaks, it's flexible, long lasting, available, etc. PEX is OK too, but fittings are less common, particularly in the boonies, forcing one to carry proprietary fittings as spares, versus simply going to the nearest marine supply or hardware store if necessary.

Regards,

Pete

 

[FF]

PEX is great for any water not for human consumption.

Copper tubing with flair fittings is safer for potable water.

Boats are not houses , water may be sitting in a plastic pipe far longer .

 

[tadhana]

PEX is widely used in household plumbing. It is a relatively new product in potable water plumbing. It is being tested ,but so far it has not been found to exceed any of the established safe drinking water limits. PEX is not just one material or just one construction. It is at its base a polyethylene tube, though there are several different compounds used to make it. It depends upon the manufacturer. It usually is assembled with fittings which are usually made of Nylon, but brass fittings are also available. So far, testing by the National Sanitation Foundation has not identified any leached component which exceeds the existing NSF food grade standards.

Pex fittings are available in Ace Hardware, True Value, Home Depot, West MaArine, Defender, Jamestown supply etc.

Frankly, I would be much more concerned about lead leeching out of non food grade water hoses.

 

[drb1025]

For this wash down application I am looking for an easy and reliable solution. Sounds like reinforced plastic tubing will be fine.

 

[rwidman]

PEX is great for any water not for human consumption.

Copper tubing with flair fittings is safer for potable water.

Boats are not houses , water may be sitting in a plastic pipe far longer .

PEX is approved for drinking water and has been since it came out. It is widely used in homes and boats.

 

[rwidman]

For this wash down application I am looking for an easy and reliable solution. Sounds like reinforced plastic tubing will be fine.

It doesn't take much to sway you, does it?


Since you are apparently intending to draw washdown water from your potable water tank, you should consider installing a backflow preventer. There's no telling where that washdown hose will end up.

 

[Lou_tribal]

I would go with PEX too. Last year I changed all my plumbing with PEX, no more clamping going loose and very easy to install. Moreover PEX tubing is very cheap and solid. Only drawback is that you cannot have tight elbow on the line.

 

[ranger58sb]

I am converting my raw water wash down to freshwater. I have two existing extra ports with ball valves already installed in the water tank. What is the best material to use for the water line running from the tank to the wash down pump? Pex? Reinforced hose?

Guess I'd maybe be inclined to use whatever the rest of the boat is plumbed with...

In our case, that's PEX, and I've found it easy to work with.

Pex fittings are available in Ace Hardware, True Value, Home Depot, West MaArine, Defender, Jamestown supply etc.

And apparently at most RV dealerships, too.

Only drawback is that you cannot have tight elbow on the line.

Not in the pipe itself, but it'll take a semi-tight curve... and then there are also elbow fittings to solve right turns...

-Chris

 

[Larry M]

How do you make the connection at the pump to minimize the vibration? Is there a soft piece or does the pex connect directly to the pump?

 

[Lou_tribal]

Personally I placed 4 inches of flex pipe between the pump and the PEX so it is absorbing vibrations, not sure it is required though.

 

[psneeld]

I have pex right to the pump. It does make some noise but not that bad. Hearing the pump run isn't bad sometimes though.

I may just get a 1/2 inch fitting short stainless over vinyl hose at a box store and see if it changes much?

 

[tadhana]

Have Pex to and out of the fresh water pump. Never hear the pump at all.

 

[drb1025]

It doesn't take much to sway you, does it?


Since you are apparently intending to draw washdown water from your potable water tank, you should consider installing a backflow preventer. There's no telling where that washdown hose will end up.

I meant that I'm not going to be drinking from it so the easiest solution may be the best in this case. The flexible tubing will need to be routed from the tank at the bow to the pump in the engine room. Good suggestion regarding the back flow preventer.

 

[FlyWright]

It doesn't take much to sway you, does it?


Since you are apparently intending to draw washdown water from your potable water tank, you should consider installing a backflow preventer. There's no telling where that washdown hose will end up.

Hmmmm...how long is that line from tank to spigot? Plus what's the hose length on top of that line? What's that? You'll have a sprayer on the end to concentrate the spray? Where will it lie, on the forward deck?

I seriously doubt there's a health threat unless he takes the sprayer off and hangs the open hose directly into his holding tank.

In my very unprofessional opinion, I would strongly recommend against a check valve.

 

[stubones99]

I would go with PEX too. Last year I changed all my plumbing with PEX, no more clamping going loose and very easy to install. Moreover PEX tubing is very cheap and solid. Only drawback is that you cannot have tight elbow on the line.

One downside for PEX is it has a nasty reputation if it is in sunlight for breaking down. Keep it out of sunlight for longer life.

 

[ranger58sb]

How do you make the connection at the pump to minimize the vibration? Is there a soft piece or does the pex connect directly to the pump?

Our connects directly to the...

Accumulator on the output side, and to the strainer on the input side.

Actually, there's a PEX (Flair-It) elbow fitting attached directly to a QEST snap fitting on the accumulator at one end and strainer at the other.

We don't hear any noise from the piping. We do hear the pump, mostly because it's mounted on a hard surface and I haven't sorted out better soft stand-offs yet.

One downside for PEX is it has a nasty reputation if it is in sunlight for breaking down. Keep it out of sunlight for longer life.

Didn't know that; useful to know.

OTOH, if we get any sunlight were our PEX runs.... we've got way more troubles than just plumbing stuff.



-Chris

 

[psneeld]

Hmmmm...how long is that line from tank to spigot? Plus what's the hose length on top of that line? What's that? You'll have a sprayer on the end to concentrate the spray? Where will it lie, on the forward deck?

I seriously doubt there's a health threat unless he takes the sprayer off and hangs the open hose directly into his holding tank.

In my very unprofessional opinion, I would strongly recommend against a check valve.

I would guess the nozzle or shut off at the hose would be sufficient....especially as you suggested, don't store the end in your holding tank.

Plenty of boaters have dropped their fresh water hose into something and just let a bit of water run through it before hooking up.

Haven't read of any boating pandemics.

 

[rwidman]

I would go with PEX too. Last year I changed all my plumbing with PEX, no more clamping going loose and very easy to install. Moreover PEX tubing is very cheap and solid. Only drawback is that you cannot have tight elbow on the line.

You can buy 90 degree fittings. You can also buy supports that let you bend the PEX in a fairly tight radius without it collapsing.

 

[rwidman]

Hmmmm...how long is that line from tank to spigot? Plus what's the hose length on top of that line? What's that? You'll have a sprayer on the end to concentrate the spray? Where will it lie, on the forward deck?

I seriously doubt there's a health threat unless he takes the sprayer off and hangs the open hose directly into his holding tank.

In my very unprofessional opinion, I would strongly recommend against a check valve.

Every time I see a post that begins with "Hmmmm...", is see sarcasm coming.

The danger here is cross contamination. Many building codes require backflow preventers or vacuum breakers on outside faucets, faucets supplying slop sinks and underground irrigation systems. Why? Because of the danger of contaminating the water supply with waste, chemicals, etc. I am required to have the backflow preventer on my irrigation system at home tested and certified every year or the city will turn the water off to my house. It's kind of important.

Without a safety device, water from the washdown hose will drain back into the tank when the pump is shut off. What's in the hose? We can't count on it not falling in the river or sitting in a pool of contaminated water on the deck.

 

[Gmarr]

Who is a good supplier for Qest fittings?

 

[BruceK]

Every time I see a post that begins with "Hmmmm...", is see sarcasm coming...

You won`t get positive responses when you post rudely, as you did in post 8 directed to drb1025:

"It doesn't take much to sway you, does it?"

That was line 1 of the post Flywright was answering. You reap as you sow, WesK.

 

[ranger58sb]

Who is a good supplier for Qest fittings?

Dunno, but I've accumulated several since various styles usually come with Jabsco water pumps, accumulators, etc. and I've had to replace a couple pumps (one for fresh, one for raw washdown) and an accumulator over the years.

Maybe Jabsco (search the Xylem website) sells 'em by the bag?

-Chris

 

[rwidman]

Who is a good supplier for Qest fittings?

Ace Hardware and amazon.com

It's easy to do a web search.

 

[rwidman]

I am converting my raw water wash down to freshwater. I have two existing extra ports with ball valves already installed in the water tank. What is the best material to use for the water line running from the tank to the wash down pump? Pex? Reinforced hose?

Let me make a suggestion:

You already have a raw water washdown. Leave it be.

Install a "T" fitting in your potable water line (after the pump). Run a line to wherever you want a washdown (with suitable backflow protection) and install a connection for your washdown hose.

This way, you have a choice of raw or fresh water for whatever you are washing. No need to waste potable water rinsing mud off an anchor or bird poop off the deck. Wash with raw water, then rinse with fresh.

 

[drb1025]

Tapping into the existing supply line in the engine room is a good idea. However, I plan to tap it before the house freshwater pump and run the line to the washdown pump. The house pump gets enough of a workout already. The raw water through hull is being repurposed to supply a watermaker.

 

[tadhana]

As others have asked. why not leave the raw water washdown as it is? why use fresh water to wash off the anchor? It seems that you want to use the existing intake seacock for your new watermaker. A set of valves could solve this for you much more easily than running a new hose. Granted you will have a watermaker, but watermaker water is not free. why waste your FW? For me, I address the issue with a fresh water washdown of my anchor locker at the end of a cruise using city water. Keeps the anchor locker nice and fresh. Gets rid of salt.

 

[ksanders]

Tapping into the existing supply line in the engine room is a good idea. However, I plan to tap it before the house freshwater pump and run the line to the washdown pump. The house pump gets enough of a workout already. The raw water through hull is being repurposed to supply a watermaker.

When I installed our watermaker, like you I took out the salt water wash down.
No need to use saltwater when you have all the fresh water in the world. I also needed a dedicated salt water source.

What I did was to connect (through a valve) a potable water line to the existing washdown line.

No need to have another pressure pump when you already have pressurized potable water.

 

[FF]

"No need to have another pressure pump when you already have pressurized potable water."

That sorta depends on what the washdown pump is for.

If its to rinse some salt off after a run the house FW pump might hack it.

If you are cleaning mud off chain as it is being brought aboard loads more pressure and volume is needed , so sea water and a big pump makes sense.