Six signs that point to a repipe rather than another patch, four things that look like a repipe but are not, and the honest maths on when patching stops being cheaper.
Most houses do not need a repipe. The ones that do usually announce it in the same handful of ways, and by the time the third leak has been patched, the patching has cost more than the repipe would have. Here is how to tell which house you have.
The short version. Galvanized steel pipe, repeat pinhole leaks, rusty water after the house sits, and pressure that collapses when a second tap opens. Any two of those together and it is time to price a repipe rather than another patch.
Six signs that point to a repipe
1. You have galvanized steel pipe
If your house was built before roughly 1970 and has never been repiped, assume galvanized until proven otherwise. It rusts from the inside out, so the pipe narrows for decades before it leaks. Scratch a dull grey pipe with a screwdriver: silver and magnetic is galvanized, orange is copper.
2. Rusty or brown water after the house sits
Water that runs orange for ten seconds on a Monday morning, then clears, is water that has been sitting inside corroding pipe. If it only happens on the hot side, suspect the water heater first. Both sides means the pipe.
3. Pinhole leaks, more than once
One pinhole is bad luck. Three in two years is a system telling you it has reached the end. Acidic well water is particularly hard on copper here, and once pinholes start in one run they generally continue.
4. Pressure that drops when a second tap opens
Flush a toilet while the shower runs. A small dip is normal. A shower that reduces to a trickle usually means the internal diameter of the supply lines has closed up with corrosion.
5. Visible corrosion, dimpling, or green staining
Go under the house with a torch. Green or white crust on copper, flaking on steel, or damp powdery deposits at fittings all mean the pipe is actively failing where you can see it, and doing the same where you cannot.
6. Your last plumber said patch and hope
If two different plumbers have said the same thing about the same system, that is not a coincidence.
What is not a repipe
- Low pressure at one fixture only. That is usually an aerator or a cartridge.
- Water hammer. That is usually a missing arrestor or a loose strap.
- Hot water that runs out quickly. That is the water heater, not the pipe.
- Smelly water. That is the well or the heater. See why well water smells like sulfur.
The honest maths
Patch repairs run $250 to $650 each. A whole home repipe runs $6,000 to $16,000, with numbers by house size in what a repipe costs on the Eastern Shore. If you are averaging two leaks a year on a system that will keep producing them, the crossover comes faster than most people expect, and that is before the drywall and the flooring.
Questions We Get Asked About Repiping
How do I know what pipe I have without opening a wall
Look under the sink, at the water heater connections and in the crawlspace. Between those three you can usually identify the material in ten minutes.
Can you repipe part of the house
Sometimes, and it can be the right call when one run has failed and the rest is a different material. We will say so if it is, rather than quoting the whole house by default.
How long does a repipe take
Two to five working days for most homes, with water restored each evening.
Will it increase my water pressure
If corroded pipe was the restriction, noticeably so. If the restriction is the well pump, the pressure regulator or the meter, a repipe alone will not fix it, and we will tell you which one you have before you spend anything.
Is PEX as good as copper
For most homes here, better. It survives a freeze, has fewer joints, and does not pinhole on acidic well water. We are Uponor certified for the expanding ring system.
Find out where you stand
We will look at what you actually have and tell you honestly whether you need a repipe or a repair. See our repiping page or request service.
Written by the team at Shoresteady Plumbing, Temperanceville, Virginia. Master plumbing licensed in Virginia and Maryland. Prices shown are typical ranges for the Eastern Shore, not a quote. Your written estimate is the only number that binds either of us.
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