PEX for RV pad water feed

I'm making a simple 3-season pad for my MB, bringing water and electric under my driveway from my shop to a pedestal. The electric is easy - I have an exterior box with space for a 30A breaker, and I already have a length of exterior cable. For water, there's a hose bib on the side of the shop, and I'm thinking of simply running a PEX line with hose fittings at both ends - that's about as simple as it gets. Can anyone tell me if there are particular sizes or types of PEX that I should use?

http://blog.supplyhouse.com/direct-burial-of-pex-tubing/

You can probably use half inch and still get enough flow for any single thing you want to do. not like you need to run all the faucets at once.



will want to blow the line dry when you winterize the RV.

heck, you probably can do it all at one time. plumb in an air fitting, and valve and you wont ever have to disconnect.

Not that anyone asked.

Depending upon local soil conditions, buried fittings would be better to be all plastic. That said, if the soil is known to be benign brass is tougher in general. Backfill the trench with sand to help avoid stone abrasion over time.

Exposed PVC that is painted with exterior latex enamel resists sun weathering better. I assume the same applies to PEX.

vic

If you use PEX for an exterior application, be sure to enclose in a 'conduit' of some kind, and wrap any exposed PEX to keep it from being exposed to sunlight. PEX will not stand up to sunlight at all--from experience.

>plumb in an air fitting, and valve and you wont ever have to disconnect<

What? Educate me - I know nothing at all about this - if there are simple things that'll make it better, do tell - I was just going to stick some PEX in my trench, put hose fittings on either end, and hook up to the faucet on the side of my shop and to the City Water inlet.

Peter Tourin said:

>plumb in an air fitting, and valve and you wont ever have to disconnect<

What? Educate me - I know nothing at all about this - if there are simple things that'll make it better, do tell - I was just going to stick some PEX in my trench, put hose fittings on either end, and hook up to the faucet on the side of my shop and to the City Water inlet.

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You're in Vermont... it'll freeze in the winter. Unscrewing the house-side bib connection will still leave the PEX full of water.

... using compressed air to blow it dry as part of the "prepare for cold" is what he was talking about.

"plumb in an air fitting" means provide a built-in method of injecting air into the PEX

--dick

Thanks - I was figuring on simply blowing it out at the end of the season. This is nothing fancy - just the simplest possible setup to give me electric and water without having stuff going across the driveway and getting run over all the time.

Peter Tourin said:

Thanks - I was figuring on simply blowing it out at the end of the season. This is nothing fancy - just the simplest possible setup to give me electric and water without having stuff going across the driveway and getting run over all the time.

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How about backing in so the connections are on the house side? That's pretty simple, no?

I wish! My driveway runs along the side of my shop. The RV pad has to be on the far side of the driveway from the shop, because that's where the dump pipe is. So water and power have to cross the driveway. In the past I've only needed it once in a while, so I just ran them across the driveway. But now my house is rented and I'll be staying in the RV until late autumn, so I don't to leave them on the surface.

If you want simple, perhaps bury a 4 inch cpvc pipe with a rope in it, and pull a hose. change out at the end of the season if it needs it.

I don't think CPVC is meant to be flexed after install.

but you could plumb it in, as suggested earlier, with an air fitting included and some valves and adapters to let you blow it out without moving it. If you have an air compressor with regulator in the shop this could be fairly simple, but some care in the plumbing and air tool part of the local home depot would be required.

you really could blow out the rv lines at the same time if you like....

mikeme said:

If you want simple, perhaps bury a 4 inch cpvc pipe with a rope in it, and pull a hose. change out at the end of the season if it needs it.

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I like the idea.

3" PVC conduit (DWV lengths underground?) with 90 or 45 degree electrical ell's might allow easier pulling than 4" with plumbing fittings. 2" would probably even work and be less expensive. Price things out.

vic

Thanks for these last few comments! I do have a compressor in the shop - blowing out the lines and the RV is no problem. I also have 2 lengths of 2-1/2" schedule 40 already, so that may do the job. I have some old flat 10-3 exterior cable also - I'm sure I can smooth it out, run it through the PVC and also fit PEX in there - not quite sure if I could thread a hose, but I'll take a look and see if it looks like it'll fly. I'd think I'll have to put a sweep at either end to bring wire and hose/PEX out - not quite sure how I'll weatherproof that - but I'm sure I can make it work.

Just went and took a look - plenty of room! Now to remember a big husky pull cord...

Peter Tourin said:

... - not quite sure how I'll weatherproof that - but I'm sure I can make it work.

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Matching planters. One upside down to cover the pipes, etc. Another planted with dirt and flowers set on top of the upside down one. The upside down planter can be notched for the services to exit.

It's a thought anyway...

vic

Oh, it'll be something like that, count on it <g>...