Repiping in Accokeek, MD

Accokeek homes and water service

Accokeek was a rural tobacco-farming area on the Potomac and is now mostly suburban. The Moyaone Reserve, west of Route 210, has individually designed mid-century homes on wooded lots of five acres or more, and those houses may have original copper or galvanized pipe. Newer subdivisions, built from the 1990s on, usually have copper or plastic supply lines.

Water and sewer service vary by address in Accokeek, so check your bill or property records before the visit. If you are on WSSC water, its What's Your Pipe Type? map shows the service line material for your address, and WSSC banned lead as a service line material in 1954. If the home has its own well, the repipe begins at the pressure tank instead of a meter.

WSSC Water issues permits for and inspects plumbing in Prince George's County, and requires a plumber holding its license for interior re-piping. That applies whatever the water source. WSSC also permits all natural gas and LP gas installations in the county, so if a propane water heater is reconnected during the repipe, it is part of the same permitted work.

Large wooded lots and custom mid-century designs can mean long pipe runs and unusual layouts. Expect the plumber to spend time tracing where existing lines go before giving a price, especially in homes that have been added on to over the years.

Repair, partial repipe or full repipe

Signs to note

• Pinhole leaks on copper in different places
• Rusty water from older galvanized lines
• Weak pressure at several fixtures
• Leaking fittings on a plastic system

Timing

Repiping is often scheduled in milder weather, when crawlspaces and unheated areas are easier to work in. Do not wait through winter if lines run through unheated spaces and are already failing, though: older pipe in cold spots is the most likely to split during a hard freeze.