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What to Know about Leaking Cast Iron Pipes

What to Know about Leaking Cast Iron Pipes

Plumbing pipes will leak, corrode, or burst at some point in their life. That is one of the realities of plumbing systems. The best you can hope for, says Volusia County Property Management, is to repair or replace the pipes before this happens or catch the problem on time; before it causes significant damage.

But a lot also depends on the kind of pipes you have in your plumbing systems. Generally, your sewer line and water pipes will be made of one of these three materials: clay, cast iron, or PVC. Clay pipes are the oldest of these three, which went out of use more than 80 years ago.

Cast iron pipes are not old as clay pipes, and they were used until the late 1980s. But even though cast iron pipes have been phased out, it is not surprising to find homes with sewer or water pipes made of cast iron. What are the issues with cast iron pipes?

What you should know about cast iron pipes

Cast iron pipes were introduced around 1900 as a replacement for clay pipes. These were commonly used until the 1980s, when they stopped being used for residential plumbing installations. But even after the arrival of PVC, cast iron pipes were still used, especially as underground piping.

Cast iron pipes have 50-100 years life expectancy, but this is only for above-ground installations. Once cast iron pipes are buried in the ground, their life expectancy falls by 50%. What are the reasons for this shorter lifespan?

Cast iron is a form of iron, and as you know, iron rusts. The rate at which iron rusts depends on how much water it is exposed to. Above-ground cast iron pipes are exposed to less water than below-ground cast iron pipes, hence the difference in their life expectancies.

When cast iron pipes are buried, they are exposed to moisture from both sides. On the outside, the pipes are in contact with the soil around them, and they will get wet. At the same time, they are also wet on the inside because of the water that is constantly running through them.

From the first minute you lay a cast iron pipe in the ground, it starts to deteriorate. In addition to water, other things can accelerate the deterioration of cast iron pipes and influence how fast the pipes begin to leak. These include:

Detergents, shampoo, and soap

These have caustic substances inside them that react with the metal in cast iron pipes and eat away at the materials of those pipes. Whether this is laundry soap or dishwashing soap, they will accelerate the deterioration of your cast iron pipes.

Chemical drain cleaners

Chemical drain cleaners are bad for plumbing systems, regardless of whether you have PVC or cast iron pipes. This is not to say that chemical drain cleaners will not remove clogs in your home drains. They will remove clogs, but they will also damage your pipes. 

This is because of the active agent in drain cleaners, such as sulfuric acid, or other corrosive materials. Acids and cast iron pipes do not mix well; using chemical drain cleaners when you have iron plumbing is a bad idea.

Acidic soils

Soil conditions will also affect the performance and lifespan of your cast iron pipes. Acidic soils have the same effect on cast iron pipes as drain cleaners. If the soil in your area is acidic, the cast iron pipes will break down faster and leak. 

Grease buildup

In PVC pipes, grease can build up and block the drainpipes. But the effect of grease inside cast iron pipes is worse. Grease will not simply clog a cast iron pipe; it will cause it to rot. 

When grease sits in any part of your cast iron piping for a long time, it results in what is known as “channel rot.” This is where grease eats out a whole section of piping until the soil outside the pipe is visible from inside the pipe. When this happens, you cannot simply clean the pipe; you have to replace it.

If you still have cast iron pipes in your plumbing system, what can you do about them? If you have been experiencing slow drains, leaks, or persistent backups, you can have your pipes inspected to know the cause of the problem. A sewer camera inspection will tell you the state of your pipes and help you decide the next steps.

But if you really want to solve the issues permanently, the best option is to completely replace your home plumbing pipes. Replacing pipes in a plumbing system is not cheap, and you may not be ready for that expense. That is understandable. However, if you really want peace of mind from your plumbing system, this is something you should start to plan and prepare for.

Who’s Responsible for Frozen Pipes in a Rental Apartment?

frozen pipes in a rental apartmentOwning a rental property comes with many benefits and a lot of challenges. If your property is located in an area with a temperate climate, one of the issues you may encounter is frozen pipes during winter. These can be pipes within the grounds of your property or inside the home.

Ideally, this is not something that should happen in a modern building. Modern houses are designed to have their own internal climate. The structure has systems that regulate its temperature to keep the home comfortable, regardless of what is happening outside.

But sometimes, this feature may not work, due to human error or system malfunction. When this happens, one of the consequences could be pipes freezing in very cold weather. A pipe freeze or burst can disrupt the water supply and should be solved immediately.

In a rental property, whose responsibility is it to deal with this problem?

Is the landlord supposed to solve frozen pipe issues or is this something the tenants are meant to take care of? This is a big source of conflict between landlords and tenants, says Keyrenter Property Management. Resolving it ahead of time is crucial for the landlord-tenant relationship.

Why Do Pipes in a Rental Property Freeze?

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To answer the first question of who is responsible for solving frozen pipe issues in a rental property, it is important to understand what causes pipes to freeze. There are three primary reasons why the pipes in your rental property may freeze:

  • Quick drops in temperature

Ambient temperature can fall very low during snowstorms and after heavy snowfalls. But this alone will not cause the pipes in the home to freeze. Extremely low outside temperature must be accompanied by other factors before it will lead to frozen pipes.

  • Damaged or inadequate insulation

If pipes that are exposed to cold air are not properly insulated, they may freeze. Also if there are cracks and openings that let cold air into the home, pipes close to these areas will be prone to freeze.

  • Low indoor temperatures

This is mainly due to the thermostat being set too low. To keep pipes from freezing, thermostats should be set at the same temperature day and night.

Landlord Responsibilities for Frozen Pipes

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Landlord responsibilities for preventing or resolving frozen pipe problem is twofold. Firstly, landlords are required to provide every amenity needed to make the home livable. These include functioning plumbing and a home that is adequately weather-proofed.

If pipes in a rental home freeze due to problems with the plumbing, heating, or insulation, the problem is the landlord’s to pay for. This is true even if the fault is due to the way a particular feature was installed and the landlord did not know of the problem.

The second aspect of landlord’s responsibility for frozen pipes is that landlords must educate their tenants on how to prevent frozen pipes in the home. The details of how to do this should be included in the lease agreement and the orientation new tenants get.

Some of the steps landlords should instruct tenants to follow during very cold weather are:

  • Keeping garage doors closed.
  • Leaving the closet and cabinet doors open to let pipes be warmed by the room temperature.
  • Letting a trickle of water drip from faucets to keep water flowing through pipes and keep them from freezing.

However, after a tenant has followed these instructions and the pipes in the home still freeze, the financial responsibility for the problem lies with the landlord.

Tenant Responsibilities for Frozen Pipes

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Just as landlords have an obligation to provide a rental home with adequate plumbing, heating, and insulation, tenants have the duty to use these amenities reasonably and to do what they should to protect the landlord’s property.

If a tenant fails to protect the owner’s property by doing any of the following, they will be held liable for any frozen pipes in the home:

  • If the tenant goes on vacation without shutting off the water supply or draining the water system and the pipes freeze as a result.
  • The tenant takes actions that damage the insulation, plumbing, or heating in the home.

What to do When a Pipe Freezes

  • It is the tenant’s duty, as the person who lives in the home and is in close proximity to the system, to inform the landlord of the problem.
  • Landlords on their part are to take immediate action to resolve the problem, regardless of who caused it. Afterward, they can try to determine if the tenant is responsible for the damage.
  • Finally, to solve a problem with frozen or burst pipes, call a qualified emergency plumber, do not attempt to fix it yourself. Frozen pipes are often accompanied by costly leaks and extensive damage to the building or tenant’s belongings.