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Plumbing & Water

The pipes behind the walls decide whether you face a quiet repipe or a sudden flood, and some materials are now insurance and health issues. Know the material before you buy.

The ten second check

What else is typical in a house this age?

Type the year the house was built and I will tell you what else tends to be true at that age, what it costs, and what to ask. One number, ten seconds.

A guess is fine. 1965, or just the 60s.

Anything worrying you? Tap any that apply, or skip it.

Free. No account. Educational and impartial, not a home inspection.

Polybutylene (poly-B) plumbing

Grey plastic pipe that can fail without warning, and that insurers increasingly refuse.

$6,000 to $20,000Address before purchase

Lead water service line

The pipe bringing water into older homes that may be lead, and how to test it.

$2,000 to $8,000+Address before purchase

Galvanized steel supply piping

Pre-1960 steel pipe that corrodes shut like a clogged artery.

$6,000 to $15,000Address soon

Water heater age & end of life

An 8 to 12 year part most buyers never check the age of, read it off the label.

$1,800 to $6,500Address soon

Cast-iron drain pipes

Pre-1975 drains corrode from the inside, scope them before you commit.

$500 to $15,000+Address soon

Kitec plumbing

Orange-and-blue pipe that can fail, a repipe and insurance issue to check before you buy.

$5,000 to $25,000+Address before purchase

Septic system

A failing septic is a five-figure surprise. Get a dedicated inspection before you buy.

$500 to $50,000Address before purchase

The septic tank

The cheap half to maintain, the costly half to ignore. What pumping and replacing a tank costs.

$300 to $12,000Address before purchase

The leaching bed

Septic's expensive failure. The lawn tells that reveal a dying drain field before you buy.

$15,000 to $25,000Address before purchase

The septic inspection

Your home inspector does not cover septic. The separate check to make a condition of your offer.

$300 to $1,500Address before purchase

Types of septic system

Conventional, holding tank, or aerobic. The type sets the running cost. How to tell which you're buying.

$2,000 to $6,000+Address before purchase

The sewer lateral you can't see

The buried pipe no photo shows. Scope it before you buy an older home.

$100 to $15,000+Address before purchase

Well water testing for private wells

No municipal water hookup: here's what testing a private well actually costs.

$350 to $15,000+Address before purchase

Tankless water heaters: maintenance and venting

On demand hot water trades the anode rod for a new maintenance job: descaling.

$150 to $6,500Address soon

Score a listing before you tour it

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