What to Know About Replacing Your Home's Pipes

Your pipes are essentially your home's circulatory system. They circulate water to and from many essential areas, including the toilet, laundry, showers and bathtubs, bathroom faucets, and the kitchen sink, to name just a few. But if your home was built more than 20 years ago, there's a good chance your plumbing system is nearing the end of its useful life, making it necessary to start thinking about replacing pipes.

Besides age, other factors like lack of maintenance, faulty components, and significant temperature fluctuations can cause your pipes to fail. A plumbing disaster can cause thousands of dollars in damage. Therefore, it's best to identify potential problems that may require you to replace sections of your piping or the entire system before they develop into major issues. The signs below can help you determine if it's time to replace your home's plumbing.

Leakage

Leaks — even small ones — can be a sign of deteriorating pipes. This is particularly true for older homes with plumbing systems that have undergone wear and tear without ever being repaired. And considering the fact that your pipes consist of the same material and have faced the same usage patterns, it's probably a matter of time before the leaks show up in other parts of the system. Indications of leaking pipes include:

• Growth of mold and mildew on walls, floors, or ceilings.

• Musty odors.

• Bubbling or blistering paint on ceilings or walls.

• Discoloration of exposed pipes.

Water Discoloration

If the water from your faucets is brown or yellow, that's a sign of decay inside your pipes. The pipes leave rust as water flows through them. You'll need to have your plumbing inspected soon, as extensively corroded pipes can start leaking quickly.

Low Water Pressure

Is water flow weak in several parts of your home? There may be corrosion or blockages inside your pipes that are interfering with water pressure.

Green or Sunken Patches in Your Yard

Leaking sewer drains can cause sunken areas in your yard or one section to be greener than its surroundings. Invasive tree roots or degrading piping materials may be responsible for the leak.

If you spot any of these irregularities, call a plumber to do a thorough inspection of your system. For more information on replacing pipes, contact Air Assurance. We offer a wide variety of plumbing services to homeowners in the Broken Arrow area.

Should Copper Pipes Sway Your Home Buying Decision?

When evaluating a home purchase, finding out whether the household plumbing incorporates copper pipes can be very relevant information. Many older houses still on the market today were built with galvanized steel plumbing. As decades passed, steel pipes proved to be vulnerable to internal corrosion and rusting. Steel has a high incidence of pipe ruptures that can cause very expensive water damage to the structure of the house and its contents.

As a result, real estate and home inspection experts typically advise prospective buyers to figure the cost of re-piping into the total price of any house that incorporates galvanized steel plumbing. Overwhelmingly, the recommended replacement is copper pipes.

The presence of copper piping in a house you’re considering means you’ll be spared the expense of having new pipes installed later, as well as the disruption to your normal household routine. Here are some of the other benefits of copper:

• Unlike galvanized steel, copper has a proven long-term track record of durability after many decades of installation in residences.It is the only pipe material with a 50-year guarantee. Newer synthetic pipe alternatives haven’t been in wide usage long enough to establish an estimated service life expectancy.

• Today, over 80 percent of new homes are constructed with copper piping, making it the industry standard for residential plumbing.

• Capable of withstanding 1,000 pounds of pressure per square inch, copper is resistant to internal deterioration including rusting and corrosion that trigger leaks and pipe ruptures.

• Installation of copper plumbing is expedited by the fact that the pipes are rigid yet also very light. Long spans of copper pipes require fewer support brackets and attachment points and are easily assembled with safe, lead-free solder. This lowers labor and installation costs.

• Copper doesn’t contain toxins that could slowly leach into drinking water and cause health concerns.

• Copper piping is a definite plus for your home’s market value if/when you decide to sell the house.

• Copper plumbing can be recycled when the house is torn down in the future.

For more information about the benefits of copper pipes, in Broken Arrow contact Air Assurance.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about copper pipes and other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273. Credit/Copyright Attribution: “Jhonatan_Perez/Pixabay”

Different Types of Plumbing Pipes

For most homeowners, figuring out the plumbing in their homes is a confusing task. You have a wide variety of pipes going in many different directions. What's worse, if you get something wrong when working with your plumbing, you have to deal with water — or worse — spraying everywhere.Knowing a little about the pipes that you're looking at can take some of the confusion out of your plumbing. Here's a list of the most common types of pipes and what they're used for:

• Cast iron pipes. This type of pipe used to be used for drains and vents and is still found in older homes. Cast iron tends to rust easily, but often the rust is just on the surface. Cast iron is a durable material that can last for many years.

• Galvanized steel pipes. Like cast iron, these pipes are found in older homes and were typically used for drains. They have one downside: they don't last as long as some of the other choices available today.

• ABS. This type of pipe is one of the early plastic pipes. ABS pipes are black and used for drains and vents. Because they often came loose at joints, they no longer meet code for new construction in many areas.

• PVC. This type of pipe is the most common type used for drains and vents today. Specific kinds of PVC are usable for supply lines, but it is a good idea to check with your plumbing contractor to make sure you're using a type that meets building codes for your area. PVC is white plastic, extremely durable, lightweight, and inexpensive. They typically have the diameter of the pipe stamped on the side.

• Copper pipes. Typically used for water lines, there's either rigid or flexible copper lines.

• PEX. PEX is a flexible plastic that's used for water lines. It is very versatile and comes in different colors, allowing you to assign different colors of pipe to your hot and cold water lines.

For more answers to your questions about the plumbing in your Broken Arrow-area home, contact Air Assurance today.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). Credit/Copyright Attribution: “fran1/pixabay”