Sharkbite plumbing fittings.

Are these Sharkbite fittings now considered legit and safe to use? They’ve been on the market in the US 20 years now and it’s hard for me to believe if they are dodgy and leak-prone, they’d still be on the market and carried almost everywhere.

The MIL has an toilet angle stop leaking and it’s in mission impossible position between the toilet and the tub. There’s about 1/197th of an inch of space available to swing a wrench to get the old compression stop valve off but getting a new one back on there and tight without removing the entire toilet and then reseating it just won’t be possible. So that turns this into a much bigger job and I don’t even want to get into my batting average with getting toilets to seat on the first try. Needless to say I come armed with more than one wax ring.

Sharkbite makes exactly the angle stop I need. Snap it on and done. What could be easier?

Are these things legit and safe to use now?

I have used them when replacing my water softener a few years back as well as my outdoor spigot and have had zero issues with them. It doesn’t get much more convenient.

Same. Used them for the last 15 years with my softener. When we replaced the softener the Culligan dude said they are great for DIY stuff.

The brass ones are approved for in wall and underground, not as cost effective for big jobs but for difficult areas they definitely are a great option.

Used them for years, wouldn’t use anything else.

I wouldn’t hesitate to use them for your application.

I take it that it’s copper pipe coming out of the wall?

Agree with what others have said. I’ve used them a few times and they’re going strong with zero issues. The only thing I’d add is follow the directions and don’t skimp (ie: cut your pipe square etc). Worked in commercial construction trades all my life and most failures of these types of things were usually shortcuts on the proper use/installation. I grew up in the “copper is king” era and learned that sometimes there is a better mousetrap.

Thanks for the feedback guys. That’s what I was hoping.

The crappy thing is that If they had put the stop on the other side of the toilet there would be 3 feet of open space to get at it.

Nodakk wrote:

I take it that it’s copper pipe coming out of the wall?

Yes. Good old 1/2 inch copper.

I have a few in my basement plumbing for the softener and water heater – never had an issue.

The main times I have seen any issues with stab on stops is if the pipe is not round (ie ovaled). Just make sure the copper looks good

I’ve got some on my mom’s water heater that are like 15 years old. Had to use them because I couldn’t get the valves shut off fully to solder and this was a last resort at 10pm before all the stores closed. No issues with them whatsoever.

Nodakk wrote:

The main times I have seen any issues with stab on stops is if the pipe is not round (ie ovaled). Just make sure the copper looks good

Thanks, I’ll make a clean cut and clean up the ends. This whole thing wouldn’t be a problem if I could get in there to put on a compression fit stop, but I should take a picture of how this stop is boxed in between the toilet and tub. I doubt this is code but it’s in a townhome so they must have done it the same and gotten away with it in all the units. It’s not a problem until the toilet is installed and then there’s just no room.

I already went and got the Sharkbite fitting from the Home Despot. Shouldn’t be a big deal but wanted to ask if guys had bad experiences with these as I’ve never used them.

Just like Frank’s…

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Oh, btw, there’s a tool they sell for deburring the ends of your pipe, which you could do without, but it also measures how far on the fitting should be when pipe is fully seated. I always mark pipe with that tool to ensure it goes on to the line and is installed right.

I’ve used them a few times without issue. I will guarantee they are better than any joint I soldered!

I’ve asked a couple plumbers about them before.

Their response: they’re great when done correctly (fully seated, round pipe, outside edges rounded off, and retainer clips installed)

When one of those steps are ignored by a homeowner, they get a call to come out and fix stuff

I’ve used Shark Bites to start off from copper (and it’s always a valve), but from there I go straight to PEX with crimped fittings.

PEX and crimps are ridiculously easy to work with, and far less expensive than using all Shark Bites.

They are legal to use but I sure try to stay away from them. Issue with them is that they can move after being installed and start to leak. And in most situations there is better options to use. You will find very few sharkbite fittings on a plumbers truck. Handymans truck will be full of them.

Give it a try if you don’t think you have a better option. If it doesn’t work or you don’t feel good about it pull the toilet so you got room to fix it right.

I used some that also included flexible hose for a waterheater 5 yrs ago and no issues. Though I did get a form for a class action suit against them. Guess those specific items are prone to failure but mine seem fine so I guess they’ll be free after the check arrives.

I’ve used Menards brand ones on other places with no issues. Agree that the key (as with most things) is the prep work.

Thanks everybody. The Sharkbite has been installed. Getting the old compression fit valve undone was, as I predicted, not fun because there’s just no space to work wrenches, but once that was out, the prep and installation was easy.

I can sweat copper old school style and I have PEX tools as well, but this was just one of those one-off situations where I really, really, really wanted the easy fix rather than have to remove the toilet and make a bigger project out of this.

I already have another project to move on to. Both my MIL and my sister have townhomes that were built in the late 1980s/early 90s, so absolutely everything that wears out is at the end of its usable life. Now the hot water valve on the MIL’s laundry shutoff is dripping a little… So that’ll mean the cold water is shot as well, so let’s just replace everything… New valves, new hoses, new drain hose.