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I recently put a kink in this hot water supply pipe. It's not leaking now, but I'm not sure if I should replace it proactively at this point. I'm looking for a practical answer, since replacing this would be a bit of a pain. As far as I can tell, the only shutoff before this is the intake to the hot water heater.

kinked pipe kinked pipe alt view kinked pipe top view

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  • How did that happen? Is there any indication of a seam in the pipe cracking. Pipe is often made from a flat strip that is formed into the round cross section and then either hot welded or electro welded along the long lengthwise seam. Sometimes crushing a pipe at a certain spot can crack this seam. – Michael Karas♦ Oct 12 '15 at 4:31
  • @MichaelKaras it happened when I was using a basin wrench to remove the faucet above which this pipe supplied. I had to use a lot of torque, and I ended up inadvertently crushing the pipe. No visible sign of a seam cracking. – Mike Eng Oct 12 '15 at 4:39
  • Personally, that would make me nervous. Have you considered cutting back to clean pipe with a sharkbite type (no solder) connector? (There are also compression unions available, if you don't like sharkbite.) – Aloysius Defenestrate Oct 12 '15 at 13:35
  • @AloysiusDefenestrate I have not considered that. Thought I would have to solder if I were to replace it. Good idea. – Mike Eng Oct 12 '15 at 15:45
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The copper pipe is creased enough that if the shut-off valve is twisted to the 'on' and than 'off' position several times the force exerted will probably break the already weakened pipe. It would be wise to repair the damaged pipe now rather than repairing it later (and possibly dealing with a flood clean-up). As Aloysius commented about using a no sweat replacement valve will make for a simple repair. Use a pipe cutter for a smooth even cut. You will need to leave at least a 1-2 inch stub out from the wall to have enough purchase for the new valve (looking at the photo you should have plenty). Don't forget to ream the inside of the copper after it's cut to remove burrs. FYI: 1/4 turn valves are easier to use and last longer than the rubber washer "screw" type valves.

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