Whole-house repiping is the full replacement of a home's domestic water supply lines, typically swapping aging polybutylene, galvanized steel, or pinhole-leak-prone copper for cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) or new copper, run through the attic and walls instead of through the slab.
Some houses are one bad fitting away from a full repipe. Most homeowners don't know it until the second or third pinhole leak in 18 months, or until the water bill jumps because a slab leak has been bleeding for weeks. The decision point is usually the same: spot-repair gets you another six months, repiping gets you 50 years. We do both, and we tell you straight which one makes economic sense for your house.
Greater Orlando has three pipe-era problems baked into the housing stock. Galvanized steel supply lines (pre-1965) corrode from the inside out, scale up, and produce brown water and low pressure long before they actually leak. Polybutylene gray plastic supply (installed 1985 to 1995) fails at the brass fittings. The famous "poly" failure that drove a class action in the late 90s. And any house with poly is on borrowed time even if it hasn't leaked yet. Aging copper (1965 to 1990s) develops pinhole leaks where the wall has thinned, especially on the hot water side. Houses in MetroWest, parts of Hunters Creek, Apopka, and Deltona built in the 1985-1995 window all need a poly look. Older neighborhoods like Pine Hills and Conway are seeing copper aging out.
Poly is the gray plastic supply line found in homes built from about 1985 to 1995. The pipe itself is mostly OK; the failure point is the brass insert fittings, which crack and start weeping. Once one fitting goes, the rest are usually not far behind, and insurance companies have started excluding poly from coverage entirely. Repipe is the only real answer. Spot-repairing fittings is throwing money at a problem that comes back.
Type L or Type M copper installed in the 1960s-90s has done its time. Pinholes start showing up on the hot water side first, then the cold. After two or three pinholes in different parts of the house we usually recommend a partial repipe (hot side only) or a full one. Spot-repairing the third copper leak is more expensive over time than just running new PEX through the attic.
Galvanized supply lines (pre-1965) scale up from the inside as the zinc coating wears off and the steel oxidizes. The first symptom is reduced pressure, then brown water on first draw, then eventually leaks at threaded joints. Galvanized is almost never repaired in 2026. It's replaced, because every fitting upstream and downstream is at the same end of life.
Each pinhole repair on aging copper runs $250 to $700. After three of them you're at $1,500 to $2,000 and the next leak is coming. A PEX repipe runs $5,500 to $12,000 depending on the size of the home and the routing, and it's a 50-year fix. The math usually flips around the third leak. If your home is older than 30 years and you've had any leaks at all, get the math done.
| PEX (cross-linked polyethylene) | Copper (Type L) | CPVC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lifespan | 50+ years | 50+ years | 25–40 years |
| Install method | Flexible, fewer fittings | Soldered or pressed | Solvent-welded |
| Pinhole risk | None | Some, on aging pipe | None |
| Cost | $ | $$$ | $ |
| Best for | Most residential repipes | High-end builds, exposed runs | Tight budgets, limited use |
| Job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Partial repipe (hot water lines only) | $3,800–$7,500 |
| Full repipe (PEX, 1,500–2,500 sq ft home) | $5,500–$10,000 |
| Full repipe (PEX, 2,500–4,000 sq ft home) | $8,500–$14,000 |
| Full repipe (copper, same range) | $11,000–$22,000 |
| Polybutylene replacement (insurance-driven) | $6,500–$12,000 |
Ballpark Orlando-area ranges. Your exact price depends on the job, and we give a firm, free quote before any work starts.
FBC-P 605 covers approved water supply materials: PEX-A (ASTM F876/F877), CPVC (CTS), and Type L copper. Orange County and most municipalities require a plumbing permit for whole-house repipes, with rough-in and final inspections. Drywall must be opened only as needed per FBC-P 308.
Whole-house PEX repipe in the Orlando metro runs $4,500 to $9,500 for a typical 3BR/2BA, with a 2026 median of $6,200 for 1,800-2,200 sq ft of single-story slab-on-grade construction. CPVC runs slightly less ($4,200 to $8,500). Type-L copper is $9,000 to $18,000 and is rarely chosen now outside special cases.
Permit issuance in Orange County is 5 to 10 business days. The repipe work itself runs 2 to 4 days for a typical single-story home (longer with multi-story or finished walls). Final inspection is 1 to 3 business days after work completion; drywall patching follows.
PEX systems we install: Uponor AquaPEX-A (ProPEX expansion fittings), Viega ManaBloc home-run manifold, SharkBite EvoPEX push-fit, and Apollo PEX-A. CPVC: FlowGuard Gold and BlazeMaster.
Pinhole-leak-driven repipes concentrate in 1960s-80s copper-supply ZIPs: 32789 (Winter Park), 32792 (Goldenrod), 32803 (College Park), 32804 (Audubon Park), 32806 (SoDo), and 32812 (Conway). Polybutylene-replacement repipes in 32825, 32828, 32837 (1980s-90s housing).
Get a real estimate. Call (407) 964-8940 and we'll walk the house, identify what's in the walls, and quote the full repipe with PEX or copper. Your choice.
Repipe work often follows slab leak detection when the leaks make the math obvious, or water leak detection when hidden leaks have run up the bill. New water heater work and fixture upgrades are common adjacent jobs. Common in Deltona and Apopka homes from the polybutylene era.
Most residential repipes finish in two to four days. The first day is rough-in: running new PEX through the attic, dropping lines to each fixture, abandoning the old slab-routed runs. The second day is connections and pressure testing. Days three and four are drywall patching where access cuts were made.
No. You'll lose water for portions of two days during the cutover and pressure testing, but the home stays livable. We turn water back on at end of day, even mid-job. Vacation rentals and second homes sometimes do the work between guests.
Standard repipes include drywall patching at access cuts. Texture matching and painting are usually a homeowner-coordinated job. We leave the wall smooth and ready for paint. Some repipes include full patch-and-paint as an upgrade, and we quote that explicitly.
Yes. PEX is NSF/ANSI 61 certified for potable water and has been used in residential supply for over 30 years in the US (much longer in Europe). It does not leach and has no taste issue when installed correctly.
You can, and we do partial repipes for budget-driven jobs. But the rest of the system is the same age and material, so the next leak is coming. Most owners who start with a section repipe end up doing the full house within 18 to 36 months. The math usually favors doing it once.
Generally no for the planned upgrade. Some carriers will cover the cost of repairing damage from a slab leak (drywall, flooring, cabinets) but not the cost of preventing the next leak. Polybutylene replacement was sometimes funded by class-action settlements in the 90s/2000s; that window is closed for most homeowners now.
Look at the pipe coming into the water heater and at the main shutoff. Polybutylene is gray plastic, usually with brass or copper fittings. If you have any gray plastic supply line, that's poly and it should be planned for replacement.
PEX repipe averages $5,500 to $14,000 for typical Orlando homes. Copper repipe of the same square footage runs $11,000 to $22,000 because of material cost and installation labor. Both last 50+ years; PEX is faster to install and easier to route.
It's real work. Access holes get cut in walls, the attic gets crawled, and the home is without water for parts of two days. But compared to spot-repairing leaks every six months for the next decade, a single 3-to-4-day job is far less disruptive over time.
Our team is available around the clock to better assist you. Call now for fast, friendly help.
We work across eight regions of Greater Orlando. Reasons the service matters change by neighborhood, county, and home era.
Inner-ring historic homes (College Park, Thornton Park, Audubon Park) often have a mix of original galvanized supply and partial copper repipes from the 1990s. Full PEX repipes are increasingly common as the patches age out.
Downtown Orlando, Thornton Park, College Park, Audubon Park, Baldwin Park, Delaney Park, Parramore, and Fairview Shores
Conway, Belle Isle, and Pine Castle 1960s-80s homes carry aging copper supply at peak pinhole-leak age. After two or three slab leaks, the math favors a full repipe over more spot repairs.
Lake Nona, Waterford Lakes, Avalon Park, Alafaya, Azalea Park, Rio Pinar, Union Park, Conway, Belle Isle, Pine Castle, Sky Lake, Hunters Creek, Meadow Woods, Williamsburg, and Lake Buena Vista
MetroWest and Hunters Creek hit the polybutylene era hard. Many homes from 1985-1995 used poly supply and need replacement regardless of leak history. Pine Hills aging copper is another driver.
Pine Hills, MetroWest, Doctor Phillips, Windermere, and Goldenrod
Apopka and Ocoee 1980s-90s polybutylene homes are the largest repipe segment in west Orange. Older Apopka homes north of US 441 carry galvanized that's due for replacement.
Apopka, Maitland, Winter Park, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Oakland, Gotha, Zellwood, Clarcona, Bithlo, Wedgefield, and Christmas
Casselberry and Longwood 1980s-90s subdivisions have polybutylene supply at end of life. Older Sanford historic-district homes have galvanized supply that needs full replacement.
Sanford, Lake Mary, Heathrow, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Fern Park, Forest City, Wekiwa Springs, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Geneva, and Lake Monroe (community)
Deltona's 1960s-80s GDC homes have copper supply at peak pinhole-leak age. Repipe demand here is steady as homes hit their second round of slab leaks.
DeBary, Deltona, Orange City, Enterprise, Osteen, DeLand, and Cassadaga
Eustis, Tavares, Mount Dora historic-district homes carry original galvanized supply. Older Clermont subdivisions have polybutylene from the 1980s-90s. Both call for full repipes.
Eustis, Tavares, Mount Dora, Sorrento, Montverde, and Clermont
Poinciana's 1970s-now construction spans every pipe era. Original copper, 1980s polybutylene, 1990s CPVC, 2000s+ PEX. Repipe demand here is constant. Older Kissimmee subdivisions face the same polybutylene replacement pattern.
Kissimmee, Saint Cloud, Buenaventura Lakes, Poinciana, Intercession City, Davenport, Four Corners, Reunion, and Celebration
A few of the communities we serve. View all →
We provide whole-house repiping across 75 cities and neighborhoods in Greater Orlando. Click your city for local detail, pricing, and what we typically see there.