copper piping

[jcmty77]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?

[PJOHNS2654]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?
I had same issue as far as shut off valve. I eventually found it buried under mulch and soil where the water line enters the garage.

[EdFNJ]

Don't know for 100% sure bit it's likely there isn't a house with copper anywhere in The Villages. There are (were?) some with the old gray plastic tubing (I think it was gray that was the bad one) that had to be replaced in the original areas but I highly doubt any copper exists here.

[retiredguy123]

As long as your pressure is good, I wouldn't do anything unless it leaks.

Have you examined the piping and valves at the water heater to see if there is a way to shut off the water at that location?

[jcmty77]

yes, i and the neighbor looked everywhere for the valve..maybe it is under the mulch, i will have to trace the line.

the lines seem to be copper in the house...how do i tell for sure? open up the drywall and see what is coming up through the foundation?

[jcmty77]

ditto

[villagetinker]

There are houses in the villages with copper pipes, I have personally seen the copper pipes, north of 466, I do not know when or where they changed to PVC. As for the original question, I am not sure why Florida water would be causing damage, but I would contact an outside expert or inspector to get an independent opinion.

[mtgjudge]

You should be able to tell by looking under the sinks where the lines come out of the wall at the shut-off valves.

[fritzgb1]

It’s not the water it’s a chemical reaction between copper in the concrete that causes the pipe to deteriorate but also they bury the copper pipe under the slab and overtime rocks can cause the copper to puncture or wear through thus creating a leak. As for the shut off I found mine in a wall in the garage but I believe that was added as a shut off is in PVC

[Kingsport]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?

I would make sure this is not some kind of scam. If you DM me, I can refer you to a building inspector who can come and check it out, though there may be a small fee. Do not pay anything until you have an objective second opinion.

[jimbo2012]

FYI, yes older homes have copper, if no shut off in garage there's one outside.

They use CPVC not PVC otherwise

[5632@embarqmail.com]

I have copper pipes and house was built in 1997, shutoff is in the wall of garage

[Neils]

Copper typically is good for 50 yrs

[Villages Kahuna]

Yes, up north, to a 4-year old house.

The problem is caused by tiny imperfections/inclusions in the copper. Over a long period of time the movement of water in the pipes causes the imperfections to “wear through” the pipes. Initially it’s pin holes leaks. But a pin hole in a water pipe with the water under 30 psi will create a humongous amount of water leakage. Start shopping for a plumber to replace the old copper pipes in your house!

[Petersweeney]

Don’t do anything - copper can last for much more than 50 years- if you start touching it for what if reasons you going down a financial rabbit hole

[pgettinger01]

Sometimes the shutoff valve is hidden behind a flat plastic or metal plate on a wall. Copper does develop leaks over time. It is the cost of ownership. Today they use plastic pipe and crimp it.

[Dlbonivich]

My daughter lives in a house with copper pipe in Tampa. The pipes get pin hole leaks. Her entire first floor flooded. All new floor drywall up 5 feet. Mold remediation was necessary. Had to move out for 2 weeks. House was built early 90’s

[Dimagolfer]

I was told by plumbing companies that the majority of leaks in copper water lines are caused from lightning strikes! I don't know how true this is, but living in the #1 lightning state sounds correct!

[rphil11ort]

As an fyi. My cousin had leaks in her buried pipes last year after 40 years of living in the condo and the insurance company paid to replace the pipes at $6000

[nick demis]

As a retired plumber I can say that copper water pipes start to leak anywhere from 30 to 50 years. If the pipe has a blue line on it, it is type L tubing and should be closer to 40-50 years. If it has a red line on it, it is type M tubing and 30 is about the life span. Anything after 25 years, it's keep your fingers crossed and hope it last a long time. You may want to look into one of the insurance companies like American Home Shield. With the right coverage, they will cover the complete cost if you have a leak.

[jjombrello]

I have copper in mine. Built in 1998. No problems to date. Had a leak in the plastic lines for the sprinklers, though.

[Ghat724@gmail.com]

Yes, copper deteriorates with nany small leaks fue to chemical interaction with a number of materials. Twice I had to replace the copper water service line from the street and under my concrete garage floor to my equipment room. The copper pipe ran through a conduit that added to the deteriation. The second replacement was with a sturdy, blue plastic pipe and since had had no problems. Nothing is worse than hearing running water outside the house and cannot find the source. In the plus side all the leaking water was before my water meter. Goid luck!

[paulat585]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?
Yes. I had it in a house built in 1990. Had 4 different plumbers give me a quote. 2 said they wouldn't touch the job. 2 estimated the job to be $6K. Stick-built home. Problem was pitting in copper pipes. Shut off valve was buried under landscaping at the right front of the house (with entry on the left side). Sold the house. It has since sold a 2nd time for what looked like at $25K profit.

[DAVES]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?

Nothing last forever, including us. As far as water and pipes, I am an ex New Yorker.
In high school, I had a summer job at a machine shop. They were making faucet valves
made from Monel an expensive stainless steel that by the way is tough on the tools.
I asked and they were sold to people down south. I also later had a job doing demos involving chemistry. I would take NY water with me.

There is no shortage of people trying to sell you something. As far as copper plumbing,
first of all it has been made with thicker and thinner walls. My suggestion is I would ask people who have homes the same age as yours and built by the same builder.

Does not help but our NY home with copper plumbing was built in 1948. We sold it before moving to the villages but it is now only 73 years old. I doubt with Florida water and likely lesser quality copper plumbing it will last that long here.

Aside-scrap copper is about $2.30 a pound. Perhaps, someone sees your home as a copper mine.

[virtualcynthia]

Make sure that if you do have to replace your copper piping, you tell them you want to keep the piping. It has value. You can sell it. I’m sure they will.

[OhioBuckeye]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?

Never had this problem in Florida but had a terrible problem in Ohio. Our copper plumbing started leaking on ever side of the house, as
also was replacing waters every 3 yrs. We lived 1 block from water treatment plant & they said we had a lot of oxygen in our lines because the water from treatment couldn’t dispell oxygen from lines in that short of distance. So I had copper pipes breaking I replace them with plastic as they sprung leaks, never had issues since then. Florida might have another kind of water issue. That’s all I can tell you! Is any of your neighbors having copper pipe problems? If not find out if they have copper plumbing, if they have copper pipes, maybe you have another kind of problem. Hope you get it figured out, good luck!

[nuge2u]

Copper is the premium way to go for water pipes. Problems come when copper comes in contact with concrete or acidic soils. Both are problems for our Fl homes. Care must be taken where pipes pass through or come in contact with concrete they must be wrapped. Mine near water heater were not. They corroded in the block wall where the contractor had not wrapped the pipe where came in direct contact with the concrete mortar to build the wall. Other possible area of concern is outside where copper lines are used from water main to water meter then into house. Ideally this line would be enclosed in plastic most local soils are acidic.
Just arbitrarily changing out copper is a scam.

[jarodrig]

FYI, yes older homes have copper, if no shut off in garage there's one outside.

They use CPVC not PVC otherwise

PVC supplies the water to the home shut off valve , then CPVC for the pipes inside the home …..

[jarodrig]

Today they use plastic pipe and crimp it.

They are glued , not crimped…….

[retiredguy123]

Make sure that if you do have to replace your copper piping, you tell them you want to keep the piping. It has value. You can sell it. I’m sure they will.
That doesn't sound practical at all. Any demolition material removed from the house would normally belong to the contractor. As a contractor, if you asked me to save the copper pipe, I would just add the value of it to the contract, and you would lose money on the deal.

[doctorknow]

Check to see if any utility company such as phone, cable or even electric companies used a water pipe anywhere on your house as a ground. If so the electrolysis and Eddy currents in your copper pipes will cause pin hole leaks over time. My house had to be replumbed as a result.

[Larchap49]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?

You may have copper or polypropylene (which is gray plastic) what comes out of the wall is not a 100 percent indicator. Polypropylene does degrade if chlorine or chloramine is present in the water. I had to replumb my Palm Harbor home to sell it a year ago as insurance companies will not insure a home with polypropylene pipes. Cost was $8000.00. Have a professional check difinitivly what is in your walls.

[Larchap49]

They are glued , not crimped…….

If cpvc is used (tan not white plastic) it's glued. If Pex is used it's crimped

[Lancer]

There are houses in the villages with copper pipes, I have personally seen the copper pipes, north of 466, I do not know when or where they changed to PVC. As for the original question, I am not sure why Florida water would be causing damage, but I would contact an outside expert or inspector to get an independent opinion.

They mine phosphate in Florida. Very corrosive to copper. May not be bad up here but in Polk and Hillsboro counties there is a problem

[taruffi57]

Sounds like someone trying to gin up a big plumbing job.
Kinda like replacing 25 & 30 year type shingles at 25 years.......

[taruffi57]

Sounds like someone trying to gin up a big plumbing job.
Kinda like replacing 25 & 30 year type shingles at 25 years.......

...CORRECTION.... 15 years.......

[stadry]

many small leaks due to chemical interaction w/ usually excess flux left at jnts water flow itself, & accompanying turbulence is sufficient to cause pinhole leaks a number of materials. Twice I had to replace the copper water service line from the street and under my concrete garage floor to my equipment room. we always sleeved copper pipe ran through a conduit that added to the deteriation. The second replacement was with a sturdy, blue plastic pipe (poly butylene ???) and since had had no problems. Nothing is worse than hearing running water outside the house and cannot find the source. In the plus side all the leaking water was before my water meter. Goid luck![/QUOTE]

[HJBeck]

Don't know where you live exactly, but our water in the villages is very basic (no acidity), I can not believe the copper pipes can be an issue. Our second home in Maryland has very acidic water from a well, which corrodes everything. I've replaced our water heater 4 times, water tank 5 times all because of acidic water. Seriously doubt most Florida waters will have a negative impact on your pipes. I would start with a water test (can get this vis Lowes or Home Depot) to determine if acidity level is an issue. Costs $15-$30. Don't get dupped!!!

[bellringer606]

Get estimates and change it NOW before u have a serious flood. Friends of mine lost most of last season due to a flood because this pipes had several leaks. There problem was from inferior Chinese copper pipes. There home is also in your area.
There’s a chemical reaction between copper and the lime in concrete. That’s one problem the other is iron the ur water supply. Iron and copper don’t mix. Your pipes will develop small pin holes that could take weeks to detect.

The way to solve your issue is to replace copper with Pex piping. The replacement procedure is to run the piping over head through the attic crawl space and then down inside

[toeser]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?

Bad water ate through copper pipes in a home we owned in the Panhandle. This is not an expert opinion, but the water seems of better quality in The Villages. The water we had in the Panhandle actually tasted bad.

[rogerk]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?

First, call Home Warranty they can give you honest answers to both of your questions!

Second, my cousin lives in Oveida, near Orlando, he had to replace all of the interior copper plumbing in his entire house a few years ago. It has nothing to do do with burying the copper pipes or poor workmanship. I think his homeowners insurance paid for all or most of the cost, but I’m not sure.

Once you confirm you have a potential problem, aka a second opinion, contact your insurance company. Depending upon you policy this maybe a covered event.

Good luck.

[candlweav]

We have a site-built home on the historic side that was done with copper piping. The home is 30 years old. We developed a leak under the slab which was the result of the copper deteriorating because of it's reaction with the concrete. We had two options:

1. Repair the leak; i.e. dig it up, repair the leak, replace the damaged concrete, and return to the original esthetics. That was covered by insurance.

2. Replace the entire system with the appropriate pvc piping. We elected this option and the house was re-piped through the attic. As for salvaging the copper, it was simply left in place.

It was quite an expensive procedure, but necessary. We also elected to have a re-circulation system installed so we could avoid the delay in getting hot water to the far reaches of the home. Interestingly, we now get quick hot water whether the pump is running or not.

We hired Kiley in Lady Lake; they did a fine job.

[bellringer606]

Home owners insurance usually pays for the damage not the cause. Meaning flood damage insurance pays repiping home homeowner flits the bill.

[irishwonone]

I was told my 30 year old house will need its copper piping replaced soon due to florida's water...i havent had leaks yet, but he said to expect them. Is this true for the villages?

my house is in Del Mar, south of spanish springs. it is stick built. I cannot find the water shut off valve (in or near the house). The only one I have is at the curb near the meter. has anyone else had this problem?
Here is an article on copper tubing and reference to some problems. Note: While I’ve heard of this I’ve never experienced it.
Why Do Copper Pipes Get Pinhole Leaks in Florida? – Cool Today (https://www.cooltoday.com/blog/why-do-copper-pipes-get-pinhole-leaks-in-florida)

[RoadToad]

They are glued , not crimped…….

PEX is the latest "plastic" piping. And it is indeed crimp clamped at fittings.
Also not really "plastic" but percieved as such by many.

Google "pex", you'll be amazed at the info there.
Also, take a look at "pex manifolds".

These represent the modern day plumbing solutions.

They work great, by the way.

[jarodrig]

PEX is the latest "plastic" piping. And it is indeed crimp clamped at fittings.
Also not really "plastic" but percieved as such by many.

Google "pex", you'll be amazed at the info there.
Also, take a look at "pex manifolds".

These represent the modern day plumbing solutions.

They work great, by the way.

I am very familiar with “pex” plumbing……

However, they ARE NOT used anywhere in The Villages which is the topic of our discussion ……

The “pex” plumbing method, although a much better product, would be way too expensive for them to use !!

And , BTW, it is not the “latest and greatest”……. It has been around for MANY, MANY years !!