Poly-B plumbing in Edmonton real estate.
Whenever real estate is changing hands in the Edmonton market there are certain things that Realtors, home inspectors, and buyers are always on the lookout for - potential problems. Depending on the age of the home there are certain things to watch out for like aluminum wiring in 1970’s built homes, or in the case of today’s topic: Poly-B plumbing.
Imagine for a second putting your home up for sale not having any idea that your home has Poly-B lines. You receive an offer on your property that is a bit less than you had wanted, but you’re buying your new home and just need it done. This offer is subject to an inspection, and once the home is inspected the buyer's agent has news. The buyers want $20,000 off the price because of the plumbing. What? Why? You’ve lived in the home for years with no issues at all, what's the deal?
Poly-B plumbing can be one of those hiccups when it comes to a real estate transaction, but don’t panic, with the correct advice everything can be handled. Having an idea of the potential issues and replacement costs of Poly-B lines can ensure you’re well informed and most importantly, not surprised. The person I have called upon for the correct advice is Brian Comperelli - owner at Studio Plumbing and Heating. Brian and his company specialize in Poly-B plumbing re-pipes and help clients completely eliminate the old plumbing in their homes.
I have put together some common questions for Brian to answer regarding Poly-B piping.
1. How can you identify Poly-B piping in a home? Can you attach a photo?
A: Poly-B is flexible grey plastic piping that is used in water and heating. The tell tale sign of Poly-B is the color grey.
Some Poly-B piping that was cut out from a job.
A Poly-B tee that was also cut out of a home.
2. What age of homes were built with Poly-B lines?
A: We typically see houses in the 90’s where Poly-B was used.
3. I have heard the fittings can fail and pinhole leaks can develop, but coming from a plumbing professional, why is Poly-B a concern?
A: Both the fittings and pipe get pin hole leaks. I’ve personally seen more leaks on the pipe than I have seen in the fittings. The main concern behind Poly-B is the water damage that can happen when the pipe fails. Followed by the costly repair/patching to fix the leaks
4. From my experience less insurance companies are willing to insure Poly-B, what is your experience with this?
A: In my experience and more so in the last 2 years, 60% of the full house re-pipes that we completed are from clients who either bought a house with Poly-B and can’t get insurance, or they are existing homeowners that switched insurance companies and the new insurance company won’t cover them or their new premiums are much higher.
5. If someone has Poly-B in their home and wants to have it removed, will you have to rip down all of the drywall?
A: No most definitely not, there will be sections of drywall that will need to be removed. As a company policy we always cut neat holes and label them for the drywall repair. We do offer drywall repair if the home owner doesn’t want to hire a company. They can leave it to us. Completely up to the client.
6. If you are replacing all the plumbing in the home, how long will the client be without water? And how long does a job like this take?
A: During the day the water will be shut off while we are working. Typically Studio Plumbing’s days range from 6 - 10 hours on-site, an average day being 7 hours. If you can imagine we work on sections of a house at a time. So once we start a section we can’t leave until it is all hooked up or isolated. As an example, we had a fridge line and kitchen sink lines left to replace on the main floor of a two story home. We had time to replace the fridge line, but not the kitchen sink lines. Instead of starting the kitchen and not finishing (leaving the client without a kitchen sink over night) we had a shorter day and only replaced the fridge line. As an average the Poly-B replacement jobs we do take 3-5 days. We aim to make it as painless as possible for the homeowner. The homeowner doesn’t have to move out or stay in a hotel while we complete the job.
7. What are the new lines that you would install made of? What is the current industry standard?
A: The new standard is called PEX. There are a couple of options:
PEX A is expandable and crimpable
PEX B is crimpable
PEX pipe is made from cross-linked HDPE (High density polyethylene)
It is suitable for residential & commercial use for both potable and non-potable uses.
8. I know cost is a very job specific question, but if you had to give a broad idea of cost to have an entire house replaced what would that look like?
A: A broad range would be $4000 - $20,000. The main concerns are access, the location of the plumbing, walls, and number of bathrooms. Typically drywall repair ranges from $800 - $8000, this all really depends on the type of walls, ceilings & location of holes.
9. You obviously specialize in Poly-B, but what other services does Studio Plumbing and Heating provide?
A: Studio Plumbing is a full service Plumbing company. We do it all from small leaks under a sink, gas lines, furnaces, and new construction. The plumbing trade is very vast and we pride ourselves with being well rounded.
10. Where can people find out more about you and your company?
A: Check us out on Google, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube.
A huge thank you to Brian at Studio Plumbing for taking the time to shed some light on Poly-B piping. A very important part of any real estate transaction is being able to proactively spot problems before they arise, this way there are less surprises and the transaction can go ahead smoothly.
Regardless of how a transaction goes, my job as a real estate professional is to be proactive and look out for my clients best interest. Whether you’re buying or selling a house with Poly-B, connecting you with the correct advice is crucial. A well informed client makes the best decisions, and that's what I'm here to help accomplish. If you have any questions regarding buying or selling with Poly-B please don’t hesitate to reach out. And if you’re looking for advice on Poly-B in your own home please reach out to Brian.