What should the plumber show you first?
Galvanized pipe is steel coated with zinc, and over decades it corrodes from the inside. Age alone isn't proof it has failed. Ask what the plumber actually found: leaking or rusted joints, rust-colored water, or weak flow at several fixtures.
Note where the problem shows up before they arrive. Weak flow at one faucet often points to that fixture or its branch (see why pressure is low at one faucet but normal elsewhere). Weak flow everywhere, on both hot and cold, points toward the main runs or the service line. Ask how they'll test pressure and flow to tell those apart before quoting a whole-house job.
Is the service line in the quote?
A quote that says "whole-house repipe" can still stop at the meter. Ask for a simple sketch showing where new pipe starts and ends: service line, meter, main runs, branches and fixture connections. Ask which galvanized sections will stay in place.
The Philadelphia Water Department says residential service lines in the city are owned entirely by the property owner, and its online service line map shows what the city's records say yours is made of: lead, galvanized, copper or "incomplete records." Check it before you sign (our guide on finding out if you have a lead service line walks through it).
If the map says galvanized, take it seriously. PWD notes that lead from a home's plumbing can build up on the corroded walls of galvanized pipe over decades. EPA's lead rule FAQ treats a galvanized service line that is, or ever was, downstream of a lead line as "galvanized requiring replacement." EPA's replacement guidance also says the new federal rule bars water systems from doing partial lead or galvanized-requiring-replacement replacements outside emergencies or coordinated main work, so ask your plumber how indoor work and the service line will be handled together rather than piecemeal.
Who pulls the permit in Philadelphia?
Replacing water supply piping is not a minor repair. The Philadelphia L&I plumbing permit page lists installation, alteration, renewal, replacement and repair as permitted work, and exempts only small same-material repairs such as faucets, valves and clearing stoppages. Alterations in buildings with four or fewer dwellings, up to four stories, can qualify for an EZ permit, which skips plans. A private water service is filed separately, through a Site Work / Utility Permit.
L&I requires a licensed master plumber to oversee the work. Ask whose name goes on the permit, who schedules inspections, and what must be inspected before walls are closed. You can look up a contractor's license yourself on the city's contractor search. More on which jobs need a permit is in which plumbing jobs need an L&I permit. In Bucks or Montgomery County, ask your township's code office, since permit rules differ by municipality.
What should the written price spell out?
- Indoor repipe, service-line work and wall or ceiling repair as separate line items.
- Which fixtures and branches are included, and any old pipe left connected.
- New shutoff valves and where they'll be.
- How long the water will be off, and who patches, paints and hauls debris.
- How extra work found inside walls gets approved before it's billed.
Compare bids only after they cover the same pipe. Two totals for different scopes can't be compared.
Ask why the plumber picked copper or PEX for your house rather than accepting that one is always better. Federal Building America guidance notes PEX holds up better to freeze-thaw cycles than copper, which matters for runs along exterior walls or in crawlspaces, but either material still needs insulation and a way to drain lines in cold spots.
How do you protect drinking water during and after the work?
EPA warns that work that disturbs a lead service line can suddenly release more lead, and recommends having your water tested. PWD recommends using only cold water for drinking and cooking, flushing out water that has sat in the pipes (it says six hours of sitting is enough for corrosion), cleaning faucet aerators, and using a filter certified by NSF for lead reduction. Boiling doesn't remove lead. PWD also offers free water tests for customers worried about lead, so ask for one after the job, and ask your plumber to clean every aerator before they leave.
Before final payment, get the passed inspection, an updated sketch of what was replaced, and the product and warranty details.