Main Water Line Repair in Atlanta, GA

In older Atlanta houses, main water line repair often comes down to what the buried pipe is made of. The service line carries pressurized water from the meter to the house, and depending on when the home was built it may be galvanized steel, copper, lead, polybutylene or one of several newer plastics. Each fails in its own way, and the material usually tells you whether a single repair makes sense or whether the line has reached the end of its life.

Identifying the pipe where it enters the house

Find the spot where the line comes through the foundation, usually in a crawlspace, basement or garage, near the main shutoff. Then look closely:

• Copper has a penny-brown or green surface and scratches to a bright orange.
• Galvanized steel is dull gray, has threaded joints and attracts a magnet.
• Lead is also gray but soft; a gentle scratch with a key turns it shiny silver, a magnet will not stick, and joints often look like rounded bulges.
• Plastic may be black polyethylene, gray polybutylene, white PVC or colored PEX.

The few inches you can see do not always match the whole run, since earlier repairs sometimes joined a new material to an old one underground.

How each material tends to fail

Galvanized steel corrodes from the inside, so flow fades over the years and rusty water appears after the supply has been off; leaks often start at the threaded joints. Copper generally lasts a long time but can develop pinholes where soil or water chemistry is aggressive. Polybutylene, used in homes from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s, became known for failures at fittings and in the pipe itself. Older polyethylene can split at insert fittings and clamps, and rigid PVC may crack when the ground settles. Lead is soft, and lines of that age commonly leak at joints.

When repair is enough and when it is not

A single pinhole in an otherwise healthy copper line is a reasonable candidate for a spot repair: the leak is exposed, the damaged length is cut out and new pipe is joined in. A galvanized line is a different story, because the rust narrowing one section is narrowing all of it. Lead and polybutylene are usually replaced once they are uncovered, rather than repaired and reburied. If the piping inside the house is the same galvanized steel, it is worth discussing whole house repiping at the same time so the new service line is not feeding old, restricted pipes.

Choosing the new pipe

Modern water service is commonly run in copper rated for underground use, polyethylene tubing or PEX approved for buried service. Flexible plastic suits trenchless installation, where the new line is pulled through a bored path, while copper is often chosen for open trenches. The length of the run, the soil, the water pressure and the fittings at each end all factor in, and the plumber should explain why one was picked for your property. Trench and trenchless installation are compared in more detail in our overview of water line repair and replacement in Georgia.

How replacement is carried out

1. Public utilities are marked through a Georgia 811 locate request, and private lines such as irrigation or yard lighting are flagged by the owner.
2. A trench is dug, or pits are opened at the meter end and the house end for a trenchless pull.
3. The new pipe is connected on the property side of the meter and at the house, usually with a new main shutoff valve.
4. The line is pressure tested and left exposed for inspection before backfill.
5. The trench is filled, compacted and rough graded, and pressure is checked inside the house.

Atlanta permits for water line work

The Office of Buildings in the Department of City Planning requires a permit to install, repair or replace plumbing in Atlanta, and homeowners may apply for their own. The city's list of trade inspections includes an underground inspection, which is why a new service line stays uncovered until it has been looked at.

Common questions about Atlanta service lines

How can I tell whether my service line is lead?

Start with the scratch and magnet test at the point where the pipe enters the house: lead scratches to a bright silver and a magnet will not hold. Many water providers now keep records of service line materials and may be able to tell you what theirs show for your address. A plumber can confirm the material when the line is exposed.

Can galvanized pipe be cleaned out instead of replaced?

Not in any practical way for a buried line. The buildup inside galvanized pipe is the pipe wall itself turning to rust, so scraping or flushing it does not restore the metal and can open new leaks. Replacing the run with copper or an approved plastic is the lasting fix, and it usually restores flow that the household had forgotten it ever had.

Who looks after the meter end of the line?

In most systems the water provider owns the meter and the pipe on the street side of it, and the property owner is responsible from the meter to the house, though your provider can confirm exactly where its share ends. Connections at the meter are coordinated with the provider when needed. If a leak turns out to be inside the walls rather than in the yard, it becomes a job for leak detection and repair instead.

Not sure what your line is made of?

If you cannot tell what your service line is made of, or whether it is still worth saving, Alpha Plumbing and Sewer can identify it and walk you through the choices at (404) 409-4448.