Pex size for hose bibs?
Dean Sandbo| Posted inGeneral Questionson
I have a very long ranch house…
All of my potable water has been plumbed with uponor manifolds 3/4 supply, 1/2 home runs to each fixture.. (two manifolds for each side of the house).
I want to run my hose bib’s before my water softener.
the question I have is can I use the same method.. a home run of 3/4 pex… attached to a manifold with 1/2 off of that to multiple hose bibs?
I was planning on using woodford model 19’s.
I imagine using 3/4 all the way would give me more volume at the hose bib..
I guess I just wanted opinions on whether 1/2 pex home runs off a 3/4 would be good enough?
GBA Detail Library
A collection of one thousand construction details organized by climate and house part
Search and download construction details
Replies
Dean,
The bigger the supply the better. We just installed the hose bibs for our new house and the plumber ran 1" pex to them, but not on a home run system.
I have a front bib that is 3/4" copper. It is teed off the 3/4" supply ahead of the pressure reducing valve and delivers a good stream for outdoor watering. I also have three bibs at the back of the house that are connected to 1/2" pex after the valve (not on a manifold BTW). Each of these bibs delivers a very weak stream of water. I could strangle my plumber since he assured me the 1/2" lines would be more than adequate. Lesson learned: larger line and higher pressure are always better for outdoor hose bibs.
My house is plumbed with 1" from the well pump to the pressure tank. 3/4" copper to the PEX manifold, and a 1/2" pex line to each individual fixture.
I have never had any issues with pressure or flow although it is just my wife and I and this point. We do notice our pressure is a bit lower than city water, but that is due to our pressure switch being set to about 45-65 psig range for the pump cycling.