About Chicago Lake Repiping

What the work covers

The work is about one system: the pressurized water supply, from the service line at the basement wall through the main shutoff to every fixture. Drain and sewer piping are separate systems and separate work.

• Whole-house repiping: Whole-house repiping replaces every hot and cold supply line from the main shutoff to the fixtures in the material the local code lists, then pressure tests it before the walls close.
• Galvanized pipe replacement: Galvanized pipe replacement swaps restricted steel supply pipe for copper, with code-listed transitions wherever old pipe stays and a flush after every cutover to clear loosened scale.
• Copper repiping: Copper repiping replaces water supply piping in tube of the weight the design and local code call for, joined by an approved method and supported so it can move as it heats.
• PEX repiping (suburbs): PEX repiping for Chicago suburbs whose plumbing code lists it: a manifold or trunk-and-branch layout, joined to the copper service at the main shutoff.
• Two-flat repiping: The shared basement main, both units' risers and branches, and a shutoff in each apartment, planned around two households and one cutover.
• Partial repiping: A partial repipe replaces a defined part of the supply piping, such as one bathroom, one riser, the hot side or one floor, with every joint to the pipe that stays named on the quote.
• Main shutoff and basement main: Main water shutoff valve replacement covers the valve and the basement main from the meter to the first branch, sized for the building, with a pressure-reducing valve where pressure runs over 80 psi.
• Riser replacement: Plumbing riser replacement in condo and apartment buildings, stack by stack in copper, with each unit's tie-in, the association's approval and the City permit planned before the first shutoff.
• Commercial repiping: Commercial repiping for mixed-use buildings, small offices and restaurants, in copper, with the permit path, the shutoff windows and the business's hours settled before work starts.
• Lead service line replacement: A full replacement of the buried water service from the main to the building, with the City's free programs checked first and the new line's basement tie-in planned with the piping it feeds.

Standards the work follows

• Chicago Plumbing Code, Chapter 18-29. The City code that lists copper, brass and galvanized steel, and not PEX, for water distribution inside a building.
• Illinois Plumbing Code. The state code many suburbs adopt, with or without local amendments on pipe materials.
• Express Permit Program. The City of Chicago permit route for repairing or replacing existing piping, risers and water heaters.
• Lead service line rules. Illinois requires a lead service line to be replaced in full, from the water main to the building.
• Pressure testing. New piping is tested before the walls close, and the openings are closed as the quote describes.

How pricing works

The site publishes typical Chicago-area price ranges so you can set a budget before anyone visits. The price for your building comes after the walk-through, once the piping, the finishes and the permits are known.

Where the work happens

Chicago Lake Repiping works across Chicago and nearby Cook County suburbs.

• Auburn Gresham
• Austin
• Evanston
• Greater Grand Crossing
• Lake View
• Near North Side
• Oak Park
• Roseland
• South Shore
• Park Ridge
• Skokie

All service areas