About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to worry about.

On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.

On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 6:29:52 PM UTC-5, Oren wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.

I must wonder if he had flex pipes rated for high temp and high pressure? I've had rubber washing machine hoses burst before but never had a SS braided hose on anything burst. Then again, the PO'd OP could have had some of those counterfeit Chinese hoses. ^_^

[8~{} Uncle Hoser Monster

On 4/23/2016 7:29 PM, Oren wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.


What might possibly go wrong with a
couple threaded connections?

--
..
Christopher A. Young
learn more about Jesus
.. www.lds.org
..
..

On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 7:33:15 PM UTC-5, Stormin Mormon wrote:
On 4/23/2016 7:29 PM, Oren wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.


What might possibly go wrong with a
couple threaded connections?

--
.
Christopher A. Young
learn more about Jesus
. www.lds.org
.
.

Definitely no wrong was done about screwing them together! It surely was a material problem, and it WAS made in China just like everything else we buy at big box stores. The internal plastic pipe material just broke down (not melted) from constant heat that close to the heater, but did not break down 8+" away from the heat.

wrote:
On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 7:33:15 PM UTC-5, Stormin Mormon wrote:
On 4/23/2016 7:29 PM, Oren wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex
SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a
flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the
wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS
braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid
but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It
looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had
dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used
solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to
worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.


What might possibly go wrong with a
couple threaded connections?

--
.
Christopher A. Young
learn more about Jesus
. www.lds.org
.
.

Definitely no wrong was done about screwing them together! It surely
was a material problem, and it WAS made in China just like everything
else we buy at big box stores. The internal plastic pipe material
just broke down (not melted) from constant heat that close to the
heater, but did not break down 8+" away from the heat.

I also will never use the braided SS water heater connections after 2 failures.

On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 18:52:45 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 7:33:15 PM UTC-5, Stormin Mormon wrote:
On 4/23/2016 7:29 PM, Oren wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.


What might possibly go wrong with a
couple threaded connections?

--
.
Christopher A. Young
learn more about Jesus
. www.lds.org
.
.

Definitely no wrong was done about screwing them together! It surely was a material problem, and it WAS made in China just like everything else we buy at big box stores. The internal plastic pipe material just broke down (not melted) from constant heat that close to the heater, but did not break down 8+" away from the heat.
Is there any reason you didn't just connect it with soldered copper
pipe like it's been done for decades???. Put a pair of unions in to
make replacement easy.

On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 19:08:37 -0700, "Bob F"
wrote:

wrote:
On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 7:33:15 PM UTC-5, Stormin Mormon wrote:
On 4/23/2016 7:29 PM, Oren wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex
SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a
flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the
wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS
braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid
but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It
looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had
dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used
solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to
worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.


What might possibly go wrong with a
couple threaded connections?

--
.
Christopher A. Young
learn more about Jesus
. www.lds.org
.
.

Definitely no wrong was done about screwing them together! It surely
was a material problem, and it WAS made in China just like everything
else we buy at big box stores. The internal plastic pipe material
just broke down (not melted) from constant heat that close to the
heater, but did not break down 8+" away from the heat.

I also will never use the braided SS water heater connections after 2 failures.

I'd never use them because there is no way they WON'T fail eventually.
For connecting faucets and toilets they work pretty good - but one
failed at my late brother's place and caused tens of thousands of
dollars damage before he got back home.

On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 10:30:23 PM UTC-4, wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 18:52:45 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

On Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 7:33:15 PM UTC-5, Stormin Mormon wrote:
On 4/23/2016 7:29 PM, Oren wrote:
On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:33:57 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

About 5 years ago I replaced a gas water heater and used 18" flex SS braided pigtails between the unit and the pipes. Last night a flex coupler developed a spray, flooded the garage, and ruined the wall panel.

Come to find out the flex connectors are plastic pipe with a SS braid covering. The flex ends at the wall pipes were good & solid but the ends at the water heater were totally mush/putty like! It looks like the heat from the tank or the heat from the flue had dissolved them over time. Will never use them again! I used solid corrigated SS flex this time and won't have the plastic to worry about.

You did something wrong the first time.

My rubber flex pipes don't leak and haven't in over 11 years. After
two water heaters. Check your install technique.


What might possibly go wrong with a
couple threaded connections?

--
.
Christopher A. Young
learn more about Jesus
. www.lds.org
.
.

Definitely no wrong was done about screwing them together! It surely was a material problem, and it WAS made in China just like everything else we buy at big box stores. The internal plastic pipe material just broke down (not melted) from constant heat that close to the heater, but did not break down 8+" away from the heat.
Is there any reason you didn't just connect it with soldered copper
pipe like it's been done for decades???. Put a pair of unions in to
make replacement easy.

I find regular copper solder couplings to be both quick and easy and
less prone to leaking. Unless the new heater is an exact match in
height, you're going to have to adjust pipe length when using copper
pipe anyway.