Repipe, Repiping

A lot of historical or older homes will still have galvanized water pipes in them.  Repiping or a re-pipe of your house is when a plumber either replaces your old pipes or bypasses them with a new water system.   Galvanized pipes will begin to rust as they get older and if your finding rusty colored water coming from you faucet that is one of the first warnings that you might need a repipe.   Rust can build up in your pipes and also can cause a reduction in water flow dropping your water pressure from your faucet.
This is not only just about galvanized pipes though.   If your home was built in the mid 1980’s you probably have PB pipe or Polybutylene pipe in your home.   It’s a type of plastic piping that is typically colored gray, silver, or black and used to be called the “pipe of the future.”   There are still millions of homes that have this piping installed.   Unfortunately it has been discovered that this “pipe of the future” begins to degrade and leak after reacting to oxidants in the water supply.    This process takes around 10-15 and since PB piping was used all the way up to 1995 this problem is rearing its ugly head.   It’ll start as a few small leaks but eventually it will cause a major burst in your pipes and can cause serious water damage.
If you locate a leak in your home and you can identify that you have PB piping in your house you should begin to look at getting a re-pipe done, or move.   If the problem is ignored it will only grow larger and can cost you a lot more money.