On Tue, 8 Jun 2021 15:59:48 -0700 (PDT), Marilyn Manson
wrote:

On Tuesday, June 8, 2021 at 6:19:19 PM UTC-4, wrote:
On Tue, 8 Jun 2021 13:05:35 -0700 (PDT), Marilyn Manson
wrote:

On Tuesday, June 8, 2021 at 2:33:43 PM UTC-4, wrote:
On Sun, 06 Jun 2021 20:47:52 -0400, Nil posted for all of us to digest...

I need to replace a water shut-off valve below my kitchen sink. I see
that valves come made to fit on either 1/2" or 5/8" pipe. When I
measure the copper intake pipe with my (not very accurate) caliper it
measures .66, which is a little over 5/8". I think I read somewhere
that "1/2 inch" refers to the inside diameter, and that the outside
diameter is closer to 5/8. True? No?

So, what do I have, 1/2" or 5/8" copper pipe? I'm thinking 1/2" because
it's more common, and if it were 5/8" the outside diameter might be
greater than .66".

Also, Home Depot has valves with Shark Bite connectors which don't
require compression fittings. Are those things reliable?
1/2" No, IMO I don't like them. Do you store stuff in the cabinet? Does it
ever slam against the pipes? Others may disagree.


The question was not whether or not you like them, the question was "Are those
things reliable?" The answer to that is Yes, otherwise they wouldn't be approved
for behind the wall use by the Uniform Plumbing Code, the International Plumbing
Code and the National Plumbing Code of Canada.

In addition, the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials
listing states that the product €œcan be utilized in underground applications and
as manufactured joints without access panels.€�

That's good enough for me.

Separate question: Are you OK with stuff banging against compression fittings but
not push-to-fit fittings? If so, are you aware that SharkBite fittings are designed to
rotate on the pipe while a compression fitting is fixed? Given the option, I'd rather
have SharkBite fittings get knocked around than compression fittings. At least they
are smart enough to get out of the way. ;-)
Sharkbites are good as long as you expect to have an O ring last. If
you have ever seen one get hard and brittle, think about that inside a
wall.
Just the fact that it is code legal doesn't really mean much. 1350
alloy Aluminum wire was legal in the wall for 30 years. Then it
wasn't.

Why was 1350 de-coded, so to speak?

That was the infamous "aluminum wire" that got so much scary press in
the 70s. It was originally developed for overhead service,
distribution and transmission. It turned out to have to much expansion
and it was too brittle to use in small conductors. When they started
using more malleable AA8800 alloys and devices that can deal with that
expansion rate the code reflected that change (1975), in effect
outlawing the 1350 wire.