I had a house built in 2002
May/June 2002, Copper pipe was placed into hard plastic tubing and laid in the ground protruding up through the concrete.
June 2002 the concrete was poured and the house continued to be constructed. The plumbing was all connected together and water pressure was applied and continued through construction.
The house was completed in Jan 2003.
June 2004, the first pinhole water leak appeared in the main 3/4 inch line. This line was replaced and routed up the wall into the attic and down to the connection, at my cost.
September 2004, the second pinhole water leak occurred inside the home, hot water side to the kitchen sink. This line was pulled and replaced at my cost.
January 2005, the third pinhole leak occurred from the same area as the second but on the cold water side to the ice maker on the fridge. This was pulled and replaced, I have not been charged yet.
March 4, 2005, the fourth pinhole leak in the main water line again, (the one that was replaced in June 2004) this one was cut and spliced.
What can be done about this, where can I go to get answers?
Who should be responsible?
It is not a matter of question of if it will happen again but when.
Thanks for your reply
COMMUNITY FORUM
Sometimes pipe makers, especially pvc makers have bad batches of pipe, something goes wrong in the process of making the pipe. It's not that common with copper pipe today, there used to be a thin wall copper pipe that did this quite a bit.I would ask my plumber where the pipe came from and if there were problem from other houses he did at that time. I don't believe he's at fault but he should replace just to keep a good name.I would also see what the ph is of your water. A very high or low ph can be very corrosive and could cause this. You could us a simple pool test kit to find this out. If it's below 6 or above 8.5 i would find a treatment solution. if your connected to a water utlity and its out of that range i would contact them or a state health dept. because they should be treating it already!
The pH is 7.5
The plumber states he has not had this problem ever and does not have a clue what to do. We have another bldg with plumbing on the same water longer than the home with no problem. Can soft water be a cause?
The plumber states he has not had this problem ever and does not have a clue what to do. We have another bldg with plumbing on the same water longer than the home with no problem. Can soft water be a cause?
Yes extremely soft water is very "aggressive" and will corrode the metal ion's in your plumbing. Extremely soft water is 0-45 ppm of calcium carbonate. Do you soften your water?
Yes we have had a softner on the system from day one after the home was compleated. If soft water is such a problem should that not be told to people before the buy a softner? I thought a soft water would not hurt anything as it does for hard water build up.... I will have the soft water tech make a trip out and test the water and ask a few questions. How can I be sure it is soft water that is causing the problem and not a bad batch of copper?
I can't say that its definitly one or the other I'm just going on what you've told me. Has it leaked anywhere on the lines before reaching the softner? I suspect you have an ion exchange system the treats the water to 0 ppm of calcium carbonate. I would ask your soft water tech about blending water. This is where you let some water bypass the softner and then mix so it not so extremely soft. I would say the reason people aren't told about soft water being corrosive is because it may scare people away from buying or they just don't know.
I emailed the maker of the softner and expect them to say soft water does not harm copper pipes. I do have another area with water from the same well and No softner with copper pipes. I have had no leaks or problems execpt the coffee maker once in a while. This is a very expensive water softner and will expect something from the tech. They have a very well known name and this is very disappointing with great concern.
Have you noticed any blue/green stains in the sinks,tubs or toilets? If so this is from the corrosion of your copper plumbing.
No there are not any areas showing a blue green stain or any stains. The toilet bowl and water container are clear and stain free. The piece of copper pipe I have that had the leak does show blue green on the inside. I would think that is normal for copper being exposed to water. To do a real compairison would be to look in the other copper pipe that does not have a water softner and see what it looks like. To cut those pipes open, that is not an option at this time to prove a point. The softner tech is to be out in the morning.
