The first thing is the pricing. We all know that copper is pricy and it's no different when it comes to piping per linear foot. Copper costs more compared to PEX which is only about fifty cents per linear foot, making PEX a very affordable solution. Also, if we look at the historical chart for copper it skyrocketed between 2005 and 2006 at 4 dollars a pound and is nowhere near going down in value which is why PEX is a more cost-effective solution for the future. PEX requires less fittings and that the connections are quicker to learn and makes the overall cost and labour and materials less at the end of the day. As for tooling and materials, soldering costs more for the simple fact that there's consumables like flux, solder and gas. And lastly PEX doesn't carry the theft concerns that copper does, requiring no replacement fees if it's stolen. So, for costs PEX is better than copper. The plumbing service Escondido mostly use PEX pipes.
The next aspect is the ease of installation. There is no doubt about it that PEX is the easier to install. First of all, PEX requires less tools and materials to make a joint than a solder joint does. It is also a lot quicker and there's virtually no preparation needed as opposed to copper where it needs to be sanded, fluxed and cleaned before and after soldering. One big advantage that PEX has over copper is the fact that it's flexible. When running pipes through joints, for example, the fact that copper can't be bent makes it impossible to pass a full length of pipe which means it needs to be cut and coupled every foot or so to get in. With PEX, this problem is non-existent. This is also the reason why plumbing service Escondido use the PEX pipes.
Next is the lifespan. The life span between both is pretty similar. But many factors will alter this such as the type of water coming into the building, the installation and the amount of usage the system. Here PEX is slightly better as copper will eventually pit corrode scale or even burst in freezing temperatures while PEX won't.
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