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What to Expect When You Decide to Repipe Your Home

What to Expect When You Decide to Repipe Your Home

Repiping your home is not an upgrade any homeowner is excited to do in their home, says Louise Beck Properties. While you may understand the critical role played by your water pipes, you typically don’t like spending all that money to replace them.

This is why most homeowners don’t think of repiping their house until problems in their plumbing system force them to do it. Most homeowners only decide to repipe their property after they have had a plumbing disaster.

But like all the major systems in your home, your water pipes also have an expiration date. Pipes’ lifespan depends on the pipe material, the chemical composition of your water, how well you maintain the pipes, and a host of other factors.

Generally speaking, galvanized pipes last 20-50 years. Brass pipes have a longer lifespan of 40–70 years. Copper pipes have a life expectancy of 50+ years, and cast iron has the longest lifespan of any metal water pipe (75 -100 years). Plastic pipes last indefinitely.

If you are reading this, you are probably on the verge of repiping your home but also trying to familiarize yourself with the process (perhaps to avoid biting off more than you can chew). If this is true, this post will explain what you should expect when repiping your home.

What to expect when repiping your home

How long will it take to repipe your home?

This depends on whether you are repiping the entire house or just a section. Whole-house repiping may take up to a week to complete, but partial repiping can be completed in as little as one day. The plumber needs to assess the work to say how long it will take.

How will the project affect your family?

If you are repiping the entire home, it is best to move your family away from the house during the duration of the project. Due to the highly disruptive nature of repiping a house, your family will be without many of the comforts they are used to. Also, to give your plumber the space he needs to do the work properly, it is best if you vacate your home.

How invasive is this project?

What are the specific ways that repiping your home will disrupt your family’s day-to-day life?

  • No running water: The home may be without running water for a few hours, the entire day, or more than two days. It depends on the scope of the work. When you work with an experienced plumber, it is possible to have them shut off the water during working hours but restore the service before the end of each day. 
  • Damage to walls, flooring, and ceilings: To access your old pipes, the workers must cut into your walls, flooring, and ceiling. To get at the walls or flooring, they may have to move appliances and furniture around. While you can expect the plumber to use drop-cloths to protect your home and belongings, your home will still be in disarray for the period. 
  • Noise and dust: Like any construction site, you should expect dust and noise during this project. Earplugs may help you escape the worst noise, and draping floors or furniture with plastic sheeting can shield them from dust. However, there is no way to completely escape the inconvenience while your home is repiped. 
  • No access to rooms: Depending on how the pipes in your home are routed, you may lose access to your bedroom, bathroom, or kitchen. Privacy will be a problem if you decide to stay at home during the project. You may also not be able to prepare meals in the kitchen.

Expect to repair your walls, ceilings, and flooring

After repiping is completed, you have to fix your damaged walls, floors, and ceiling. This added cost is separate from the actual cost of repiping your home. Of course, a competent contractor will include this additional cost in their estimates, but it is essential to know it from the start.

Getting your home ready for repiping

Repiping your home does not have to be excessively disruptive if you plan and prepare for it. What steps should you take to reduce the impact of this project on your family? Planning is the best way to minimize the effect of repiping.

  • Once your plumber provides a timeline for the work, you can plan it according to your schedules.
  • Better still, you can plan to be away from home during this period.
  • You can also move into one of the rooms that will not be affected or arrange for the work to be done in such a way as to let you always have one room available for your family.

Lastly, when repiping your home, you need patience. But more than anything else, you need a professional plumber who can sit down with you to work out a plan that will help to reduce the project’s effect on your family and finances.

The Benefits of Repiping: Enhancing the Longevity of Your Plumbing System

The Benefits of Repiping

As plumbing systems get older, keeping them functional and efficient gets more difficult. Older plumbing systems often have higher maintenance costs because of their numerous small but recurring problems. Frequent leaks, low water pressure and contamination are just a few of the issues that can happen.

As EquityTeam says dealing with these small issues can take a massive toll on a homeowner’s time and finances. But even when those problems are solved, there are no guarantees that they will not return shortly. That is why, for aging plumbing systems, the most cost-effective solution to the issues is usually to repipe the home.

Repiping your home’s plumbing may seem like a significant expense, but that is because you have not calculated the actual cost of living in a residence with unreliable plumbing. Remember that the cost of maintaining your crumbling plumbing goes beyond the monetary cost of fixing the problems.

Every time your plumbing malfunctions, it takes an emotional toll on you. The cost of the stress and anxiety you feel is hard to quantify. That is in addition to the price you pay when you divert precious time from more profitable issues. What’s more, your home also suffers unnecessary wear and tear.

a home about to get repiped.

When repiping your plumbing, the process can be done for the entire house or specific areas of the home.

How repiping benefits your home and plumbing system

Repiping is replacing old plumbing pipes in your home with new, efficient ones. That is done because the existing plumbing has reached the end of its useful life or the system has become unreliable. Some homeowners may also choose to repipe their home to improve its value.

When repiping your plumbing, the process can be done for the entire house or specific areas of the home. You also have the option to replace the plumbing with the same material as the old pipes or to use a different material. CPVC, copper and PEX are the most widely used materials.

What will repiping your plumbing do for your home?

Better water quality

The inevitable rust, corrosion, and mineral buildup within your water pipes depreciates the quality of water that reaches your faucets. Once buildup and corrosion set in inside the pipes, it is almost impossible to stop them. Repiping the plumbing is often the best way to get rid of contaminants and pollutants in your drinking water.

Improved water pressure

Low or high water pressure is a common issue with old plumbing systems. Low water pressure results from blockages, while high water pressure happens when a pipe channel is narrowed by sediments. Both problems will interfere with the function of your plumbing and also damage your appliances. Repiping your home can help solve these problems.

Protect your fixtures and appliances 

Low or high water pressure, impurities in water, and leakages play a huge role in the longevity of the appliances in your home. When home appliances fail to reach the end of their projected lifespan, it is not always due to the quality of the appliance or because of wear and tear. Sometimes, the problems are caused by the issues in your aged plumbing system.

Take control of plumbing costs

If you were to calculate the financial, temporal and emotional cost of the frequent issues in your plumbing, it would most likely exceed the actual monetary cost of repiping your home. That is even without considering the cost of fixing the damage caused by bursts and leaking pipes in your home.

a home with lower energy costs.

Issues in the plumbing create energy inefficiencies in the home or worsen existing energy problems

Lower energy costs

Issues in the plumbing create energy inefficiencies in the home or worsen existing energy problems. Aging pipes lose energy at higher rates than new ones. That is, the hot water inside them cools faster than it should. That leads the water heater to work harder, inflating your energy bill and accelerating wear and tear in the water heater.

Enhanced property value

Overall, lower energy costs and minimal plumbing issues are two things buyers want to see in a home they are interested in. A new plumbing system is a huge selling point for your home. It not only shows that the home’s plumbing is in good shape, but it also suggests that the homeowner has been diligent in taking care of the structures and systems of the home.

What are the things to consider before repiping your home?

While cost is essential, you probably want to pay more attention to the different materials available for repiping your plumbing. Different materials have various cost implications. In addition to the cost of the materials, you will want to look at the long-term pros and cons of using one material versus the others.

Another important consideration is the quality of the installation. A repiping job that is done incorrectly will not last long. As a matter of fact, if the job is not done properly, your home may start to experience worse problems than you had with the old plumbing, such as mold, mildew and even worse water damage.

That is why you only want to deal with a plumber trained, licensed, insured and familiar with the local codes and regulations. A plumber’s ability to work with various pipe materials is also vital.