Plumbers in Reston, VA

A planned town of villages and lakes

Robert E. Simon founded Reston in 1964 on Garden City ideas, and it still reads that way: village centers at Lake Anne, Hunters Woods, South Lakes and North Point, four man-made lakes, a thick tree canopy and Reston Town Center at its core. It is an unincorporated census-designated place of 63,226 people (2020 Census), about 18 miles from downtown Washington, tied together by the Dulles Toll Road, Reston Parkway, Wiehle Avenue, Hunter Mill Road and the Fairfax County Parkway, with Silver Line stations along the toll road.

Plumbing from the planned-community era

Most housing went up between the 1970s and 1990s, and the median home dates to about 1983. Many of those houses and townhouses now carry original water heaters' replacements, aging shutoff valves, supply lines under sinks that have hardened, and drain lines that have collected decades of buildup. Fairfax Water notes that meters installed inside the house are common in homes built from 1971 to 1980; with an inside meter, the utility is responsible only for the meter and its remote reader, and the pipe on either side is the owner's.

Water and what's in it

Fairfax Water draws from the Potomac River at its Corbalis plant and the Occoquan Reservoir at its Griffith plant, on a system also linked to Washington Aqueduct supply. Chloramine is the disinfectant for most of the year, normally July through March, with free chlorine generally used from April through June, so the water may smell stronger in spring. Plant data show moderately hard water, around 7.5 grains per gallon on average from the Corbalis plant, so scale on heating elements and in tankless units builds slowly. Fairfax Water's Lead Free Fairfax survey asks owners to report the material of their side of the service line. Customer service: 703-698-5800.

When the drain backs up

Fairfax County's Wastewater Management program owns the sewer mains; the lateral from your house to the main is yours, and the county doesn't mark private laterals. With a backup, call the county's 24-hour number, 703-323-1211, to rule out the main. If the county finds its pipe clear, a plumber with a camera and cutter can find and clear the problem in your line.

Permits and gas

Fairfax County Land Development Services issues permits through PLUS (703-222-0801). Swapping a gas water heater, furnace or boiler like for like without new gas piping uses a Household Appliance permit; adding gas piping calls for a Residential Plumbing permit. Washington Gas serves most of the county. If you smell gas, get out of the house first, then call 911 and Washington Gas at 844-WASHGAS (844-927-4427), option 1.

Reston versus the District

Inside DC, DC Water and the DC Department of Buildings cover water, sewer and permits. In Reston those jobs are split between Fairfax Water and county agencies, and the housing is a generation younger than most DC rowhouses. Call with your village or street and a description of the problem, and you will be connected with an independent plumber who agrees on price and timing with you.