Pressure testing.

The pressure-testing rig is complete... There's a pressure tank, a 1" inlet port for filling with a utility pump, a shut-off valve, a vent valve and a 3/4" auxillary port that connects to whatever you want to test.

To test the mabifolds, I soldered them together with pieces of 1/2" copper pipe and connected them to the test rig with 3/4 poly pipe. After testing I'll cut the manifolds apart again. To test the manifolds, I pumped water into the 1" port with the vent valve open. Once everything filled up, I closed the vent valve and the shut-off to the pump. The pump was only strong enough to pressurize the system to about 10 psi, so I used my compressor to put air into the back of the pressure tank until I reached 60 psi (well beyond the service pressure of the manifolds).

During the first test, I had to fix two leaks in the test rig before starting the test over again. Galvanized pipe is great for a project like this because it can be taken apart again later and used for something else, but otherwise I hate working with it. The connections need to be SUPER tight if you want to avoid leaks.

After everything checked out, I cut the manifolds apart and soldered in the fittings for the PEX tubing. They're ready to go.

Test rig with manifolds connected. Notice how I soldered the
two manifolds together with 1/2" pipe.

Air up to 60 psi and let it sit for a while.

After a successful test, here are the manifolds
cut apart and with their PEX fittings
soldered in.