Pinhole leaks in attic pipe -- diagnosis and replacement questions

[Andrew Barss]

I had a flood, due to a leaking pipe in my attic crawlspace (brick house, built 1943, Tucson AZ, pipe likely put in during 1970 kitchen remodel).

The leak was apparently due to corrosion the plumber attributed to a mixture someplace in the system of galvanized steel (what leaked) and copper. I'm trying to decide whether to repipe the whole house, which is going to be expensive and a pain, or not. My gut tells me to do it, but thought I'd ask anyone who knows more about plumbing than I do, especially in this sort of house, for advice on how to proceed.

Thanks,

Andy Barss

[hrhofmann]

Are you going to be in the house for several years, if so, I'd replace. You have peace of mind that way.

[chaniarts]

you'd only get the corrosion where the two metals touch.

as soon as you fix that one, you'll get a leak 2 other places.

i'd repipe with pex if i was staying in the place longer than a few months.

regards, charlie cave creek, az

[aemeijers]

Do you wanna screw with it twice? Some things fall in the 'Life is Too Short' category. Bite the bullet and upgrade the run end-to-end. It'll make the house easier to sell, if the pipe is where the inspector can see it. Any other runs that are easy to get to while plumber has his tools out should be replaced as well.

[Robert Allison]

Having been a Preferred Contractor for several insurance companies, I will point out this little bit of info, then you can make up your mind fully armed with all the data that you need;

When dealing with leaking water pipes, hoses, supply lines, etc. in homes with some age, the insurance companies will pay for all damage to the home caused by the leak, but not the leak itself. That is considered "maintenance". In addition, now that the homeowner knows that there are problems with his aging plumbing system, if a second leak and flood should occur, the insurance company will not pay, since the homeowner did not take adequate steps to perform the necessary maintenance on his home (ie. replace the failing plumbing).

Robert Allison

[Andrew Barss]

chaniarts wrote: : Andrew Barss wrote: :> I had a flood, due to a leaking pipe in my attic crawlspace (brick :> house, built 1943, Tucson AZ, pipe likely put in during 1970 kitchen :> remodel). :>

:> The leak was apparently due to corrosion the plumber attributed to :> a mixture someplace in the system of galvanized steel (what leaked) :> and copper. I'm trying to decide whether to repipe the whole house, :> which is going to be expensive and a pain, or not. My gut tells me :> to do it, but thought I'd ask anyone who knows more about plumbing :> than I do, especially in this sort of house, for advice on how to :> proceed. :>

:> Thanks, :>

:> Andy Barss

: you'd only get the corrosion where the two metals touch.

That's what I thought as well, but the plumber showed me a length of galvanized steel cut out of the middle of a longer length in the attic, with the hole in it. And pointed out some elbows in an exposed wall (exposed as part of the renovation we have in progress) that he said were showing signs of the corrosion, and they're minimally several feet away from any copper.

So, is this possibly the result of something else?

-- Andy Barss

[chaniarts]

yes. acidic water would cause corrosion, and you would expect this to occur anywhere in any of the pipes. a good plumber would know that, and a good plumber would know that you can only get a galvanic reaction where dissimilar metals touch.