Plumbing Repipe

Home Repiping in Clark County, WA

Repiping your home is one of the more extensive remodels you may need to undergo with your older home. Let the experts at Streamline Plumbing help you determine if repiping your home is the right thing for you.

At Streamline Plumbing we recommend repiping your home with modern Copper or PEX depending on your budget and needs.

When should I consider repiping my home?

There are a number of factors that may lead you to the conclusion that a repipe of your home is needed, either for sanity or for safety reasons.

Symptoms that your home may need to be repiped:

Rusty or discolored water (oxidized or rusty water)

Lack of water pressure in sinks or showers, especially when other showers or sinks are in use at the same time.

Water leaks that continue to pop up again and again

Shower temperature is not consistent

Dangerous old plumbing such as lead pipes

Old plumbing systems that seriously need to be repiped

Polybutelene Pipes

Between 1978 and 1995 it is estimated that 1 in 4 homes were built using Polybutelene as the water supply lines.  It was discontinued in 1995 when a class action lawsuit was filed.  It was used extensively in the Pacific Northwest.  A major problem with this system is that plumbing fixtures do not have a shutoff at the fixture due to the central design of the system and the system is subject to complete failures which can cause extensive water damage.  Insurance companies may deny claims on water damage caused by Polybutelene piping systems.

Galvenized Pipes

If your home was built prior to 1960 there is a good chance you have galvanized pipes in your home.  These pipes are dipped in a zinc solution to prevent rust.  The zinc can react with water and this causes an oxidation process within the pipe. You may notice rusty looking water coming from the faucets. Probably not the best to drink this water without first running it through a water filter.  You’ll also notice poor water flow as the oxidation on the inside of the pipes begin to restrict the water flow to the faucets, shower, toilet, and other fixtures.

Lead Pipes

Yep, you read it correct.  Lead pipes were installed in homes until around 1978.  If by chance you do have lead pipes you should definitely consider a repiping of you home.  At the very least you need to get a water quality test done to ensure that the lead is not leaching into your drinking water.

Modern Plumbing Materials We Use When Repiping Your Home

Copper

Copper is tried and true and probably the best water supply lines you can have in your home. The cost of replacing your current supply lines with copper is more expensive because of a few reasons.  The copper pipe costs more than plastic or PEX, the labor costs will be increased, and the repiping is more intrusive in most situations as drywall needs to be invaded into during the repiping.  We keep the intrusion to a minimum and usually there is only some drywall patching that needs to be done after the lines are replaced.  If you want the best for your home and family then copper is the way to go.

PEX

At Streamline Plumbing we usually recommend going with PEX piping when repiping your home.  This helps keep the costs of the materials and labor down and also alleviates a lot of the intrusion into the drywall. PEX was used primarily for radiant heating systems beginning around 1980 and was installed into the concrete floor space before the concrete was poured.  Today, PEX is used in more than 60 percent of new construction of residential water supply systems.  Not as tried and true as copper but it can save substantial amounts of money during the repiping.

Repiping Costs

The normal estimate without seeing the actual work and materials that need to be done is usually in the range of $3000 – $8000.  It is almost as costly as reroofing your home.  However, the main reason for repiping your home is similar to the reason you may need to reroof your home.  Safety, security and to keep out water damage.

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