Plumbing Challenges and Repiping Options in Lee & Collier County
Home plumbing is constructed to last for decades, but no system lasts forever. If you live in an older home, you may have pipes that are worn, prone to breaks and leaks, and have accumulated mineral deposits.
People who live in Southwest Florida must content with accelerated corrosion. Because Florida’s warm, humid climate helps bacteria grow faster than in cooler northern climates, water sources are usually treated with chlorine. When this chlorine combines with hydrogen sulfide and oxygen, it becomes corrosive, especially in plumbing using copper pipe. Homes that use well systems with high levels of sulfur can also experience accelerated deterioration rates.
Whether you need a small amount of repiping done to replace a few bad pipes, or you need to have a complete pipe replacement, you can trust the work to Beattie Home Services. Our licensed plumbers replace all of the existing pipes with top-quality materials and our workmanship is guaranteed.
Signs You May Need Repiping in Southwest Florida
For most homes and businesses, plumbing is almost invisible. It’s difficult for a layman to assess the state of your plumbing, which is why you should call a trusted, reputable plumbing expert like Beattie Home Services to do a complete inspection.
However, there are some signs you should look for that may indicate that a partial or complete repiping is in order.
Frequent or Repeated Leaks
If you are calling the plumber again and again to fix leaks and cracks in different parts of your home, you may be dealing with a system that is deteriorated and needs replacement. While every structure is different, if you have repaired three or more leaks in the past six months, you may need to get your home or business repiped.
Less obvious signs of failing plumbing include:
- Decreased water pressure, or consistently low water pressure
- A spike in water bills with no noticeable change in water usage
- Smelling or seeing recurring mold or mildew
It’s also important to remember that copper piping in Southwest Florida can build up corrosion that breaks through the surface, creating recurring pinhole leaks. If you find bluish-greenish corrosion on copper piping, call the trust experts at Beattie Home Services to assess your piping.
If Your Home or Business was Built Before 1980
While every structure is different, many homes or businesses need to be repiped about every 40 years. Homes with PVC pipes can expect a much longer lifespan, but if the building’s plumbing is made of brass, galvanized steel, cast iron, or copper, you may need to replace it.
The average lifespans of various types of piping in Florida are:
- PVC: Indefinitely
- Brass: 40-70 years
- Galvanized steel: 20-50 years
- Cast iron: 25-30 years
- Copper: 10-20 years
If Your Plumbing Pipes are Visibly Corroded
Once you start seeing widespread corrosion on your home’s plumbing piping, it’s time to think about repiping.
Visible signs of corrosion can include rust-colored water coming from the faucets or spotted in your water appliances. You may notice rust-colored powder or markings on the pipes, flaking, or dimpling. Structures with copper piping may notice bluish-greenish tinting.
Note: If rust is only present in hot water, the culprit may be a rusted out water heater—not the piping.
If you’re unsure of the state of your pipes, or if you need to determine if the rust is coming from your pipes or the municipal water supply, call the trusted experts at Beattie Home Services for a professional evaluation.
Polybutylene Pipes Should be Replaced Regardless of Condition
From 1978 to 1995, homes in Florida and around the country installed polybutylene pipes. This inexpensive plastic has turned out to be easy to rupture. This defect led to a Class Action Settlement, and polybutylene pipes are no longer accepted by U.S. building codes.
If you suspect you have polybutylene pipes in your home, call the trusted experts at Beattie Home Services for a complete evaluation.
We Offer Free Estimates in Southwest Florida
When you are experiencing problems with the water pipes in your Lee & Collier County home, the pros at Beattie Home Services can help. We’ll examine your pipes. In some cases, our service technicians may determine that a repiping is unnecessary. In those cases, Beattie Home Services provides you with an estimate for the less extensive repairs needed to fix the problem. Beattie Home Services technicians are recognized experts in repiping. Call Beattie Home Services today for your free estimate 239-766-4160.
How Does Our Free Estimate Help You?
At Beattie Home Services, we pride ourselves on providing services that are customized to each individual home and project. Our free estimates in southwest Florida are designed to help you feel confident and knowledgeable before a house repiping project. Along with our affiliate, Bergau Plumbing, we have over 50 years of experience of plumbing and repiping in Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Naples, and throughout all of Southwest Florida. Our team has learned what works best for the variety of homes, businesses, and other buildings we encounter in the area. Building up this expertise means we can pinpoint exactly what will work best for your home and plumbing when we provide you with a free repiping cost estimate.
Our experts will also help you understand how the structure of your building will influence our estimate, so you feel equipped to make sense of the price tag. Every project can have structural or environmental differences that affect the costs of repiping.
At Beattie Homes Services, the cost of repiping starts at just $4,800 for the complete job, including permits, inspections, and patching. We never have hidden fees that could catch you off guard. Not only is Beattie Homes Services a smart financial choice for your house repiping needs, but it also makes sense for your timeline – the entire job is typically completed within three days.
How Much Does a Repipe Cost?
According to Angi, in 2023, most homeowners will pay around $7,500 for a house repiping project. At Beattie Home Services, we take many different questions into consideration when building an estimate for a repiping, whether it’s a whole house repipe or a smaller-scale fix.
It’s important to note there are several factors that affect the overall cost of whole house repipe project. Understanding these factors can help you know what to expect both from our work and the price tag associated with it.
Below are some of the key considerations that will impact our repiping estimate.
- Square FootageSmaller spaces will typically cost less, as larger homes require more materials, especially if you are looking for a whole house repipe.
- Number of Kitchens, Wet Bars, and BathroomsMany homes in Florida have outdoor spaces that connect to the plumbing lines, and it will be important for a Beattie Home Services expert to carefully examine these outdoor spaces when building a cost estimate. Homes with hot tubs or businesses with multiple kitchens will likely be more expensive jobs due to the amount of material and effort that is needed.
- Amount of Appliances Connected to WaterEven if your home doesn’t have multiple kitchens, the number of appliances you have will still make a difference in the average cost to repipe. The overall cost will be raised or lowered depending on the total number of sinks, dishwashers, water heaters, toilets, refrigerators, and showerheads in your building, as all of these appliances will be impacted by the repiping work.
- Levels in the BuildingTwo-story homes will be a more complicated project than single-story homes, with multi-level buildings requiring the greatest amount of materials. Having more floors in a building also likely means a project will take more time, although Beattie Home Services will work to stay within its 3-day guarantee.
- Accessibility to Plumbing Lines and Fixture ConnectionsThe easier it is to reach the plumbing lines in your building, the easier, and less expensive, the job will be. After Beattie Home Services’ expert plumbers conduct your repiping cost estimate, you’ll be able to see the impact your home’s size and pipe accessibility has on the overall repiping cost.
- Kitchen LayoutBecause a kitchen island with a sink or dishwasher has no walls to cover pipes, the pipes will all be contained within the island. For kitchen islands, the vent and drain pipe often run up through the floor. While doable for a repipe, working through an island and lines in the floor can be a trickier project, and the overall layout of the kitchen can affect the repipe cost. Vaulted ceilings, which are ceilings that angle up past the typical 8-to-10-foot flat ceiling height, can also raise the cost of a repipe if they make your home’s pipes more difficult to access.
- Bathroom LayoutLike with a kitchen, the location of the plumbing pipes within your bathroom will also affect the project’s total cost. Typically, pipes that are behind drywall can be the easiest to access. In a bathroom, if the shower and tub valve is on the exterior of a wall covered in tile, the tile will likely have to be broken through to access the plumbing lines.
- Water Main Location and ConditionAs with the rest of the pipes, the accessibility of the water main in your house or building can influence the how much material, labor, and effort the repiping will require. Our professionals will be able to give a fair estimate after evaluating the location of the water main and its condition.
- Age and Condition of Current Fixtures and ValvesIf you’re looking for a whole house repipe in an older building, it will be important to note the age and condition of the fixtures and valves of your current plumbing, as these factors can also influence the accessibility of your current pipes.
Cost of Repiping a House
While the size and scope of each repiping job can be different, our commitment to providing you with an honest and free repiping cost estimate always remains the same. If you’ve noticed some of these issues and think it may be time for a repipe, call us at 239-766-4160 for your free estimate today!
Beattie Home Services proudly provides expert home maintenance and repair services to all of Southwest Florida (SWFL), including Charlotte County, Collier County, and Lee County, and places such as Bokeelia, Bonita Springs, Cape Coral, Charlotte Harbor, Estero, Fort Myers, Golden Gate, Harbour Heights, Immokalee, Iona, Lehigh Acres, Lely Resort, Manasota Key, Marco Island, Naples Manor, Naples, Orangetree, Pine Island, Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda, Rotonda West, San Carlos Park, Sanibel, St. James City and more.