As a Chicago property manager, it is very important that you stay up-to-date on your building’s infrastructure. While water supply lines and drain pipes do last decades, they do not last forever. This has never been so relevant as it is today. America’s aging infrastructure is a huge problem in all states. The entire country averages a D when it comes to drinking water and wastewater. A “D” means that the system is poor and at-risk for a failure. The state of Illinois received a C- for drinking water and a D+ for wastewater.
What’s the Grade for Your Building Plumbing System?
If you hired a plumbing contractor to come out and inspect your water supply lines and wastewater drains, what grade would your building receive? If your building is like most older buildings in the city, your plumbing is probably about the same age as your building, and if all you’ve been doing is performing repairs when the lines burst, break or become clogged, you could be headed for a nightmare scenario.
If you are only repairing your pipes when they break, you could be costing yourself more money in the long and short-term. When pipes start to age past their recommended useful lives, they can develop leaks. If those leaks go undetected, you could experience a catastrophic pipe burst that results in major water damage to your floors, ceilings and drywall.
When Should You Start Thinking About Plumbing Restoration and Replacement?
The answer to this question depends on the number of recent pipe failures and the number repairs that you have over the last 12 months as well as the age of your pipes. You can expect your water supply lines to last between 20 and 70 years, depending on the material. Galvanized steel only lasts 20 years while brass and copper pipes can last more than 50 years, according to House Logic.
Drain lines can last more than 75 years, providing they aren’t infiltrated by roots or become severely clogged. If you still have lead pipes in your building, you will need to have those replaced, relined or coated as soon as you can.
When it comes to reviewing your water pipe repairs, look at the last 12 to 24 months. Is there a specific area of your building that is most affected? Are the repairs increasing in frequency or becoming more complex and expensive? Are you starting to experience heavy water damage that is requiring the repair and/or replacement of large sections of drywall, flooring or ceilings? If you answered yes to most of these questions, you may want to consider replacing or restoring your pipes.
Pipe Restoration with Nu Flow
Here at Nu Flow, we perform pipe restorations on all types of water supply and drain lines, including lead, copper, brass, galvanized steel and PVC. Restoring your pipes by either coating them or relining them can save you money and ensure your pipes provide water to your Chicago residents for decades to come.
Pipe restoration is also less invasive than traditional pipe replacement. Traditional pipe replacement typically involves removing drywall and/or dirt in order to remove your existing pipes and replace them with new pipes. Pipe restoration involves accessing your pipes at the beginning of the area to be restored and at the end of the restoration area. This creates far less collateral damage, and it is less intrusive for your residents. Our pipe restoration professional will even give you a precise schedule for your repairs that indicates which units will be affected on which days. This helps limit the inconvenience to your residence while you restore your pipes, and if you need an extended restoration plan, we can help you develop a schedule that spreads the work out over months or even years.
To learn more about how pipe restoration can help you save money on your pipe repairs, call us at 815-790-9000.