Pex Pipe Fittings Class-Action Lawsuit

It appears as though a class-action lawsuit has

been filed against Zurn® regarding brass fittings

installed in Pex piping systems. The reason for this

lawsuit is undetermined at this time. Speculation

has it due to the brass content of the fittings. Some

believe it’s either due to the thickness of the fittings

while others think it is because of the “Made in

China” label. Here is what we can provide as

information to date:

The Zurn® fittings that are in question have “Made

in China” stamped on them. The brass alloy

mixture had problems and caused the fittings to

split and crack. Zurn’s brass Pex fittings can be

identified by their “Q” or “Q Pex” stamp. The “Q”

stands for “Quest,” which is a trade name Zurn®

used for its Pex systems. There is not necessarily

a “Made in” stamp on these fittings.

NPI was informed that Zurn® changed the

thickness of its fittings to increase the inside

diameter of the fittings to help increase the flow of

water. This is another reason why the fittings

started to fail.

Zurn has also stopped selling the brass fittings and

is now touting its plastic Pex fittings. NPI

recommends staying abreast of these plastic

fittings, which was the reason behind the second failure with PB pipe installations.

There has also been speculation of a problem caused by lack of zinc called dezincification

that has caused excessive buildup in the fittings.

Zurn’s fittings are identified by a “Q Pex” or a “QPex” stamped on their side. The homeowners who brought these cases claim that Zurn’s brass fittings were incorrectly designed and manufactured. As a result, the homeowners allege that the Zurn® Pex fittings fail prematurely – sometimes only months after installation. Substantial water damage may occur when the fittings fail.

Zurn® has acknowledged that it has seen an increased number of premature failures and leaks in its QPex fittings but denies that it is liable for those failures. This case is intended to determine who is responsible for the premature failures.

The problems associated with Zurn® Pex fittings cracking and leaking are so severe that one of Zurn’s own representatives calls the fittings a “ticking time bomb.” The following is an excerpt from a 2005 e-mail from that Zurn® representative:

“We are all sitting around watching a ticking time bomb, why do we wait for fittings to fail when we know there is an existing problem!”

Zurn® Stops Selling Brass Pex Fittings:

After selling approximately 200 million brass fittings for its Pex systems, Zurn® stopped selling brass fittings in May 2010. It will now sell only plastic fittings for Pex systems.

We believe Zurn’s withdrawal of the brass fittings from the market is strong evidence that the brass fittings are defective.

New Developments:

Because there are more than a dozen class actions filed against Zurn® in numerous states, the cases were transferred to a single federal judge for coordinated handling. The federal judge recently granted class action status to the first case presented for class certification.

The class action status means that the claims of all owners of Zurn® Pex systems that use brass fittings in the state of Minnesota will be decided in a single lawsuit. Class action status will be sought in the other cases.

For more information, go to http://www.zurnclassaction.com.