Repiping in Damascus, MD

Signs the supply lines are wearing out

• Pinhole leaks in more than one place over a couple of years
• Blue-green crust on copper joints in the basement or utility room
• Water stains that return on a ceiling under a bathroom
• Pressure that has faded at every tap
• Rusty water from older sections that were never replaced
• A water meter or well pump that cycles when nothing is running

Local conditions in Damascus

Damascus is a historically rural town in upper Montgomery County where MD 27, MD 108 and MD 124 meet, surrounded by family farms and equestrian centers. Its housing is older than most of upcounty Montgomery, with a median build year of 1984. Homes from the 1970s and 1980s were usually plumbed in copper; some from the later years of that span had plastic systems that are no longer used.

WSSC Water serves the Damascus core and runs a small local wastewater plant here, the Damascus Water Resource Recovery Facility. Montgomery County assigns every property a water and sewer category, and some outside the core are designated for individual wells and onsite wastewater systems, so check your property before assuming public water. For WSSC customers, WSSC is responsible for the service line up to the property line and the owner from there into the house.

What affects the cost

• House size, number of bathrooms and total length of the runs
• Open versus finished basement ceilings
• Whether the system starts at a meter or at a well pressure tank
• Reconnecting water treatment, outdoor hydrants or barn lines
• PEX or copper
• Patching and finish work after the new lines are in

What happens when you call

You'll reach an independent plumber who works in Damascus and the surrounding farm country. Be ready to say whether you're on WSSC water or a well, roughly when the house was built and where leaks have shown up. After looking at the exposed pipe, the plumber can tell you whether a repair, a partial repipe or a whole-house job fits. Plumbing work in Montgomery County is permitted and inspected by WSSC Water, including on properties with private wells, and the plumber normally files the permit.