How To: Repair Polybutylene Pipes
Created in the 1970s, polybutylene pipe or "polyb" is a flexible plastic pipe that was once used for potable water lines and was popular for its cheap price and easy installation. Due to durability concerns, this pipe type was discontinued in the 1990s and no longer meets U.S. building codes.
The plastic resin in polybutylene pipes corrodes easily when exposed to standard water additives like chlorine, making it unreliable and susceptible to major leaking. If you have polybutylene pipes, it's best to replace them with PEX pipe, but if a repipe is not an option, use SharkBite Max polybutylene adapters to repair your pipes.
What You’ll Need
Here’s a list of essentials for this repair:
- SharkBite Max polybutylene adapters or elbows
- PEX-a pipe
- Depth and deburr tool
- PRO PEX cutters
- Permanent marker
- Tongue and groove pliers
- Tape measure
Since polybutylene connectors have been discontinued, using SharkBite fittings is one of the only ways to make a safe, quick and easy polybutylene pipe repair. It’s imperative to use the correct transition fitting, so look for the gray collar, which matches the grey color of your polybutylene pipe.
Read More: How SharkBite Transition Fittings Make Repipes and Repairs Smoother
Making the Repair
Remove the leaky section. First, turn off your main water line. Then, use the PRO PEX cutters to carefully cut out the portion of polybutylene pipe that was leaking. To cut the pipe, twist the pipe cutters as you cut to avoid cracking the pipe. We recommend cutting a few inches away from the damaged pipe on either side of the break.
Prepare your piping. Next, deburr your pipes with the deburr and gauge tool and ensure there is no debris left on the pipe. When using the SharkBite Max depth and deburr tool, use the Max side of the tool to mark the correct insertion depth for your Max fittings. If you don’t have this updated tool, use the chart below to mark the correct depth. Repeat this process for the PEX-a pipe you’ll be installing.
| SharkBite Fitting Size | Nominal Pipe Size | Pipe OD | SharkBite 1st Generation Insertion Depth | SharkBite Max Insertion Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/4 in. | 1/4 in. CTS | 3/8 in. | 13/16 in. (21 mm.) | |
| 3/8 in. | 3/8 in. CTS | 1/2 in. | 15/16 in. (24 mm.) | |
| 1/2 in. | 1/2 in. CTS | 5/8 in. | 15/16 in. (24 mm.) | 1 in. (25 mm.) |
| 5/8 in. | 5/8 in. CTS | 3/4 in. | 1-1/8 in. (29 mm.) | |
| 3/4 in. | 3/4 in. CTS | 7/8 in. | 1-1/8 in. (28 mm.) | 1-1/4 in. (32 mm.) |
| 1 in. | 1 in. CTS | 1-1/8 in. | 1-5/16 in. (33 mm.) | |
| 1-1/4 in. | 1-1/4 in. CTS | 1-3/8 in. | 1-7/8 in. (48 mm.) | |
| 1-1/2 in. | 1-1/2 in. CTS | 1-5/8 in. | 2-1/16 in. (52 mm.) | |
| 2 in. | 2 in. CTS | 2-1/8 in. | 2-3/16 in. (56 mm.) |
Transition piping. To connect your pipes, match the gray collar side of your SharkBite Max adapter to the polybutylene pipe and the tan side to your PEX-a pipe. Repeat this for all connection points, ensuring that you push the fitting all the way to the insertion depth mark. The gray side of your adapter has a pipe stiffener because of the weak nature of polybutylene pipes, so it may take more twisting to fully insert the fitting onto the pipe.
Install pipe supports and test plumbing system. Finally, secure your pipes with clamps and turn your water back on. Then, check for leaks to ensure it was a successful repair.