Plumbing Inspection in Chantilly, VA

What usually turns up in a Chantilly house?

Chantilly grew around the Route 50 and Route 28 interchange in western Fairfax County, with neighborhoods like Franklin Farm and Greenbriar, and the median home was built around 1987. Copper supply lines are typical, so the findings tend to be about equipment: water heaters on their second round, pressure regulators that no longer hold steady, shower valves with worn cartridges, and washing machine hoses that have never been changed. Fairfax Water's moderately hard to hard water, about 7.5 grains per gallon on average from its Potomac plant, adds sediment to older tanks.

Which local rules come into play?

Fairfax County Land Development Services requires a permit even for a direct water heater replacement, applied for online through PLUS, so ask the seller whether past heater swaps were permitted. If the property has lawn irrigation, the County's Cross Connections Group requires a testable assembly tested every year by a certified tester on its authorized list. In-ground pools, directly connected hot tubs and home fire sprinklers are covered by the same program.

Who is responsible for the sewer and water lines?

Fairfax County's Wastewater Management program owns the public mains, and the owner maintains the private lateral to the main; the County doesn't locate private laterals. If sewage backs up with nothing running, call the County's 24-hour line, 703-323-1211, first. On the water side, Fairfax Water owns the line up to and including the meter, and the customer owns everything after it. Its Lead Free Fairfax survey asks owners to report their pipe material, which a plumber can identify during the visit.

Some Fairfax Water customers receive water from Fairfax Water's own plants and some from the Washington Aqueduct, and in spring the water may smell more like chlorine during the annual switch in disinfectant.

A local note

Ask the plumber to put findings in writing and sort them into urgent items, such as an active leak or a relief valve with no discharge pipe, and items to plan for, such as a heater nearing the end of its life. Washington Gas serves Chantilly. If you ever smell gas, leave the house first, then call 911 and 844-WASHGAS (844-927-4427), option 1. For water emergencies on the utility side, Fairfax Water's after-hours number is 703-698-5613.