The leak point math always gets oversimplified in these conversations. Honestly, having seen a few retrofits go sideways, that "dozens of joints to a few crimps" advantage evaporates when you're fishing through lathe and plaster. Tbh, the real issue isn't the PEX itself but whether you have the wall access to make any system repair look clean. Ngl, I've watched guys create more damage opening up chaseways for a tidy manifold install than the original leak would have caused. It feels like we trade one set of problems for another without always admitting the old plumbing wasn't the only thing that was rigid.

Couldn't the visible welds be part of the story rather than a flaw? From what I've seen, that raw touch often connects the piece to its making in a way polishing can't.