Expect to pay above the US average for a repipe in the District of Columbia, partly because the housing stock here is among the oldest in the country. DC plumbers make $43.85 an hour, roughly 26 % higher than the typical $34.70 across the US. The typical home went up in 1960, which ranks 2 of 51 from oldest to newest. The numbers come from this site's calculator, which uses a 1,800 sq ft, single-floor house. Treat them as estimates. The repipe company sets the actual price once it has walked through your home.
Old pipes in Washington, DC homes
Nearly half of the District's homes, 49.7 %, went up before 1960, back when galvanized steel was the standard material for water lines. Steel pipe tends to cause weak pressure and water that runs brown.
Another 6.5 % went up between 1980 and 1999. That stretch covers the era of polybutylene, which ran from 1978 to 1995, and Kitec, which was installed from 1995 to 2007. Homes built in 2000 or later make up about 27.3 %.
PEX is a bendable plastic pipe for water lines, usually colored red for hot and blue for cold. Most repipes done today use it. If you want to know what's inside your own walls, the pipe identifier on this site can sort out eight types from their color and how they feel.
When a repipe is worth it
One national guide puts it this way: the work usually pays for itself when low pressure, discolored water, or leaks turn up in more than one place in the house. A single leak in a single spot is usually a smaller repair. When the same problem keeps showing up in room after room, call now and price out the whole house.
What you pay by house type
With a slab, the builder pours a concrete floor right on the ground and tucks the pipes beneath it or within it. A crawl space is that low, open gap under a floor raised above the ground. Slab homes run higher because the crew has to get at pipes beneath concrete.
Here's what a repipe tends to run for houses in the District of different shapes and sizes:
- A small place, 1,200 sq ft with one bath over a crawl space, in PEX: about $4,900 to $9,100.
- A 1,800 sq ft house with two baths over a crawl space, in PEX: about $7,600 to $14,000.
- That same two-bath, 1,800 sq ft house set on a slab, in PEX: about $9,900 to $19,300.
- The crawl-space version again, 1,800 sq ft with two baths, in CPVC: about $8,800 to $15,200.
- The same house in copper: about $11,100 to $22,300.
- A bigger spread, 2,400 sq ft with three baths spread over two floors and a crawl space underneath, in PEX: about $9,600 to $19,100.
CPVC is stiff plastic pipe, cream or tan in color. Copper is metal pipe held together with solder.
Bedrooms play no part in the price. Repipes are priced by bathroom count and square footage, and a house with 3 bedrooms usually comes with 2 bathrooms.
Why do DC prices run higher?
Labor makes up about 70 % of what you pay for a repipe. With DC plumber pay sitting well past the US average, that labor share costs more here, and 1,010 plumbers are at work in the District.
Two quotes for the very same job can sit $2,000 to $5,000 apart, so a firm price after a walkthrough beats a ballpark guess.
Permits, wall repairs, and what to ask for in a quote
Plan on about $50 to $800 in permit fees. Patching the walls often costs $300 to $1,500. Ask up front if the permit, the inspector's final visit, and the wall repairs are all in the quote, so no surprise charges show up later.
Most families keep living at home while the work happens. For the 1,800 sq ft PEX example, plan on the job taking two or three days.
Lead pipes and plumbing permits in Washington, DC
Washington, DC sets its own building rules, since it isn't part of a state. District changes were worked into the 2015 model codes issued by the International Code Council, forming the 2017 DC Construction Codes. A newer set of codes, plumbing included, is being drafted by the Department of Buildings. A trade permit covers plumbing work, and only a contractor licensed in that trade by the District may apply for one.
In the District, hardly anyone gets water from a private well, which is a home's own water source. The larger water concern is lead. More than 42,000 service lines contain lead or galvanized iron pipe, by DC Water's count. The utility's goal is to replace every one of them with copper. When you plan a repipe, ask about the water line to your home.
How to check your plumber's license
Plumbers in the District get their licenses through the Board of Industrial Trades. Check your plumber on the board's page before you sign, so you know the license checks out.
Getting a fixed price
Your call goes to a repipe company serving your area. The company looks at your house, then hands you a fixed price. The call costs you nothing through this site.
