I'm looking to install a water line behind my fridge for an icemaker. My issue is that I don't have a water source on the same wall and the kitchen sink is on an exterior wall. I don't want to use a saddle valve on an overhead line, so I was thinking of using flexible copper tubing to run up the wall, over about ten feet, and down that wall to tee into the cold water supply line for the bathroom sink. The line would be 1/4" copper and I want to use a wall box for a finished look behind the fridge. My questions are threefold: how do I most effectively 'fish' this flexible copper up and down the walls, how do I run this copper once I get to the attic so as to avoid sharp bends or stepping on it later and flattening it out, and what kind of wall box should I use behind the fridge as most seem to be new-work types? Any thoughts on this plan and responses to my questions would be greatly appreciated.

so...don't use a saddle valve ...install a tee and a valve

if YOU can't...call a plumber

the couple of $$$ will be well spent as opposed to a 'shoemaker' job about which you will worry

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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638

any wall box that i know of are for new construction.
i would stay away from a saddle valve. watts makes an icemaker kit that includes a sharkbite type tee with a built in 1/4 inch shutoff. it includes 25 ft of 1/4 pex as well.

if that won't work, you can install a double fixture stop under your sink. it has 2 handles and 2 outlets. one outlet is 3/8 for your sink and one is 1/4 for the ice maker.
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Thanks for the advice. Instead of welding a tee I was planning on replacing the existing single outlet valve with a dual outlet angle stop valve like this one:. Is there anything wrong with that?

Thanks for responding. So would you recommend PEX instead of the flex copper? Can I use PEX with the dual valve under the bathroom sink as well?

with your valve you have to shut both fixtures off at the same time. the other kind lets you turn either one off while the other side still has water.

Right, I've got that. I'm just wondering if I can connect the PEX to that valve - I thought it was only for copper lines (new to this). But if I can replace the valve then connect the PEX directly to it then my problem is solved as (i'm assuming) it's much easier to run PEX up and into the wall then over and down to the fridge.

yes you can, you just need to use a plastic sleeve instead of a brass sleeve.
looks like this..

Excellent - that's what I'll do then. Does PEX suffer from any of the taste/odor/degradation issues I keep reading about that people have with 'plastic' pipes?

pex is inert when in contact with water.
one more thing, use plastic clips not metal when securing the tubing.

Makes sense. Thanks for all the advice. The only remaining question for me then is how to 'dress up' the entry/exit from the drywall. Any suggestions since they don't seem to have wall boxes for retrofits?

I know this is of no help, but when I was a little kid, and called for one of my folks to bring me a glass of water when I was in bed at night, I didn't like "bathroom water".

Update: After writing this, I did some checking (Googled "bathroom water". It seems that in some places (like the UK), the bathroom water may actually be stored in a tank in the attic, actually making it unsafe. In my case, I'm sure the bathroom water just branched off of the mains via copper pipes and was identical to the kitchen water. Just a psychological issue with me.



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Nice ... someone in our house won't drink unfiltered tap water and so I'll be putting in a filter behind the fridge. Any suggestions as to brand/mounting type?

I use Oatey boxes. I cut the sheetrock so that the box can be secured to an existing stud. Other than a couple screw heads showing,in the side of the box, it looks like it was there before the sheetrock.

Neat - which Oatey box do you use? The results I find have huge 'ears' on them that would seem to require more than a little unsightly cutting.

Our fridge has a build in cartridge filter for the icemaker/water dispenser. I assumed all modern refrigerators did.

If I have to cut a hole in the sheetrock to install a box, I cut the ears off.

Thanks for the info! Any suggestions on external filters and mounting types would be much appreciated as mine doesn't have one built-in. Also, is there any reason to install the filter behind the the fridge instead of under the bathroom sink where it would be easier to replace?



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no filter needed if the fridge has it's own.
if not, put it under the sink so you can slide the fridge all the way to the wall.
yikes, one more thing.
you will need either some pex to run from the ice maker box to the fridge or else you can use a stainless braided connector.
get one long enough so you can slide the fridge out if you have to.