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Date:Friday, 22 Oct 2021 02:26 GMT
Small differences matter
Today we tackled a water leak in the aft head. There
is blue PEX 3/8th inch ID coming into the back of the vacuum head. There
was a leak by the metal valve to turn off water to the head. We went to the
store to get some pex fittings and do away with the pex to hose to metal
valve to toilet mess that was there before. We found some newer pressure
pex fittings instead of the sharkbite type. It looked like it would fit the
blue pex so we assembled it all and turned on the water. It held but
started leaking by the toilet again. As it turns out the flush valve was
cracked. Luckily we had a spare on the boat (SPARES MATTER). After putting
on the spare flushing valve and re-assembling everything we still had a
leak. But this time it was by the blue pex to the valve. As it turns out
the blue pex is about 1/32 smaller in OD than the white. The pressure
fitting was not putting pressure on the pex as it would with the white 3/8th
inch pex. I think the blue is metric. In the end we wrapped the heck out
of the blue pex with teflon tape so that the pressure fitting would put
enough pressure on the blue pex to keep it from moving and to squeeze it
agains the nipple inside. So far it's holding. Now we have to replace the
spare flush valve. Nothing can just be simple.