oxygen barrier

George_10

It would seem that a good water treatment program would offer the insurance to control corrosion in the event that the barrier was damaged. Treatment programs that contain a chemical to remove the oxygen from the system would protect the components from the deadly effects of corrosion. It should be monitored once a year and this can create more business than replacing fouled pumps or expansion tanks when the get "eaten up". Most warranty cases that I have seen require some type of documentation for water quality issues....... Insurance costs are small compared to major component replacement.

Scott

George_10

oxygen barrier


Has anybody had trouble with damaging the barrier on pex during an installation? Ive had the barrier scrape and peal when pulled over some of the rock and footings. I have used several types of pex and it isnt on one specific brand. How does this loss effect the tubing and system? Thanks in advance.
Fishman

Al Letellier

oxygen barrier

Yes to your question. It's a problem but haven't seen any problems to date. Exterior barriers can be a problem and require extra care. We have a rule here in our shop....if it's going to be a tough install or damage is possible, we use a tubing like Weil's AlumiPex. The barrier is inside, in the middle of two layers of pex. You have to cut the outer layer to damage the oxygen barrier.

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Tom Meyer

Solutions

Certainly using PEX-AL-PEX would reduce potential damage caused during installation, but small scrape marks on tubing going into concrete is a minor problem. The reason you have an oxygen barrier to prevent large amounts of oxygen going into the system causing damage to iron- bearing equipment (pump, etc). So a small scrape mark on a 3000 foot job, for example, isn't going to cause the end of the world.

Another solution would be to use non-oxygen barrier PEX and use the appropriate non-ferrous equipment.

Senior Designer/Trainer
Precision Hydronics Corporation
www.precisionhydronics.com

hot_rod

I've wondered the same

How much barrier would have to be compromised before problems were caused. Suppose a 1/4" strip on every loop was erased??

From my experience with questionable O2 barriers is that the symptoms may take YEARS to present. Usually it's a slow corrosion process that will go after ferrous components (pumps, boiler section, air scoops, expansion tanks etc). Yearly fluid checks is the best, probably only, way to know what is going on in regards to O2 permeation.

Keep in mind higher operating temperatures increase the rate of O2. The biggest and earliest symptoms, I have seen, were the early non barrier rubber tubes used on hw baseboard with 180 operating temperatures.

If this concerns you the PAP tubes with the aluminum layer inside handle the issue as do tubes like Weil's Qual tube with the O2 layer inside the tube. At least I think they do. Time will tell!

The other fix would be a water treatment product and a frequent maintenance program to assure it is doing it's job.

Then again, in all my years in the busines, I have never seen a corroded or slugged copper system. Have you? Regardless of operating temperatures

Still more questions than solid answers regarding the hows and whys of PE and O2. At least in my opinion.

hot rod

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Tom Meyer

Hot rod

Back when I had a "real job" as a contractor, I saw one in a 19-unit apartment building where the pump body looked like the bottom of a sump pump and the expansion tank was as thin as paper, so I'm a true believer.

I've come to think of oxygen molecules as hungry little monsters with bibs scurrying around in the system with a HUGE appetite for iron.

Senior Designer/Trainer
Precision Hydronics Corporation
www.precisionhydronics.com