# How long does it take to repipe a house?

> How long a repipe takes depends on access, stories, finishes and inspection. The phases of an Austin repipe, what slows each one, and water-off time.

URL: https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/how-long-does-a-repipe-take/

It depends on the house, and anyone who quotes a number before seeing it is guessing. A repipe is a chain of phases: assessment, permit, running new lines, cutting fixtures over, the pressure test and City inspection, then patching. Each phase stretches with stories, finishes, access and the inspection calendar. [Grackle Repiping Austin](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/) schedules repipes so the water is back on at the end of every work day, and the estimate gives the schedule for your house.

Key takeaways

- The schedule is set by access, stories, finishes and how many fixture groups the house has
- Water is shut off only during cutovers and is back on at the end of each work day
- The City inspection happens before walls close, so its timing sets when patching starts
- Patching, texture and paint are often the longest tail, and the estimate says who does them
- A slab leak reroute of one line is a much smaller job than a whole-house repipe

## The phases of a repipe, in order

| Phase | What happens | What makes it longer |
| --- | --- | --- |
| First visit | Pipe material checked, static pressure read at a hose bib, attic or crawlspace access looked at, and the places walls can open marked | A house with several pipe materials from earlier repairs, or no attic access |
| Estimate and permit | Scope written with permit, pressure test and patch lines; the City plumbing permit pulled by a registered responsible master plumber | Permit office workload; a house outside Austin’s city limits with a different permit office |
| Protection and prep | Floors and furniture near each opening covered | Full rooms, built-ins, items stored in the attic |
| Running new lines | New hot and cold lines run through the attic, crawlspace or walls while the old system keeps working | A second story, low attic headroom, long runs to the far side of a slab house, copper instead of PEX |
| Cutover | Each fixture group connected to the new pipe and the old lines capped | Many bathrooms, seized shutoff valves, water heater connections to rebuild, a regulator and expansion tank to add |
| Pressure test and inspection | New system held under test pressure, then inspected by the City with walls open | A failed test or inspection, and the wait for a reinspection slot |
| Patching | Openings closed, then textured and painted if the estimate includes it | Plaster, tile, matched textures, owner-supplied finishes |

## What decides how long the pipe work takes

**Access.** Austin is a slab town: City plumbing permits mention slabs more than three times as often as pier-and-beam crawlspaces. On a slab house, new lines run through the attic and drop down interior walls. A tall, open attic is the quick case; a low-slope roof, a cathedral ceiling or a finished attic room forces longer or harder routes. A pier-and-beam house with a workable crawlspace can be faster, because lines run under the floor.

**Stories.** A one-story house gets every drop from the attic. A second story means drops to the ground floor through walls or chases from above, which adds openings and time.

**Fixture groups.** Each bathroom, the kitchen, the laundry, the water heater and each hose bib is a branch to run and connect. A two-bath house and a four-bath house of the same size are not the same job.

**Material.** [PEX](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/pex-repiping/) runs in long flexible lengths with few joints. [Copper](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/copper-repiping/) needs more fittings and more open wall. The [PEX vs copper guide](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/pex-vs-copper/) covers the trade-offs beyond time.

**Finishes.** Tile showers, stone backsplashes and built-in cabinets slow access. Where a house has plaster walls, they are cut and patched differently from drywall.

## Living in the house while it happens

Homeowners usually stay. The new system is built alongside the old one, so the water stays on for most of each day. It goes off when a section is cut over, and it is back on at the end of each work day. Openings are cut where lines reach fixtures and covered when work stops. Expect noise and dust in the rooms being worked on, people in the attic, and a few hours each day when one bathroom or the kitchen is unavailable.

Old pipe that can be reached is removed. Pipe in the slab or inside walls that stay closed is capped and abandoned in place, because removing it would mean breaking concrete or opening far more wall than the job needs.

## Inspection: the phase you do not control

Austin requires the new piping to be pressure tested and inspected by the City before walls close, so nothing gets patched until the inspection passes. The inspection date depends on the City’s calendar, not the plumber’s. A failed inspection means corrections and a reinspection, which in Austin costs $83.85 and needs another slot. The [Austin repipe permit guide](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/repipe-permit-austin/) explains what the inspector checks.

## Wall and ceiling openings, and drywall repair

How many openings a repipe needs depends on framing, fixture locations and where the pipe can run, which is why no honest estimate promises “no walls opened”. On a slab house with an open attic, openings are usually small and sit at each fixture group: behind a vanity, at the shower valve wall, behind the washer box, at the kitchen sink. Ceiling openings show up where an attic run cannot reach a wall from above.

Drywall repair is a separate phase with its own pace. The patch is set, taped and finished, and joint compound needs time to dry between coats before texture and paint go on. Matching an older texture or a plaster wall takes longer. Some estimates close openings only and leave texture and paint to the owner; others include all of it. Ask which, and ask for the number of openings, before comparing schedules. The [repipe cost guide](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/repipe-cost-austin/) explains how that line changes the price.

## Slab leak reroutes and spot repairs

A [slab leak reroute](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/slab-leak-reroute/) abandons one leaking line under the slab and runs a replacement overhead. It is the same kind of work as a repipe on a much smaller scale: one route, one or two fixture connections, a pressure test and an inspection. The leak has to be found and confirmed on a supply line first, and that step has its own scheduling. A spot repair through the floor adds breaking and pouring concrete and replacing flooring. The [repair or reroute guide](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/slab-leak-repair-or-reroute/) compares the two.

## Getting a schedule you can hold someone to

Ask for the schedule as phases, not a single number: when lines are run, when each bathroom is cut over, when the inspection is requested and who patches afterward. If a reroute might later turn into a [whole-house repipe](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/whole-house-repiping/), the [guide on whether repiping is worth it](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/is-repiping-worth-it/) helps decide which to schedule first.

## Questions about this guide

### How long will the water be off during a repipe?

Only while a section is being cut over to the new pipe. New lines are run while the old system still works, and the water is back on at the end of each work day, so the house is not left without water overnight.

### How invasive is repiping a house?

Less than people fear on a slab house with an open attic, where new lines drop down interior walls through small openings at each fixture group. Tile walls, built-in cabinets, a second story and a finished attic mean more or larger openings. The estimate lists each opening before work starts.

### How long does a slab leak repair take compared with a repipe?

A slab leak reroute replaces one line, so it is a much shorter job than a whole-house repipe. Finding the leak comes first, and a spot repair through the floor adds concrete and flooring work. Either way it is permitted and inspected like a repipe.

## Related service

### Whole-house repiping

Every hot and cold supply line from the main shutoff to the fixtures replaced, permitted under Austin's plumbing code, pressure tested and patched.

Details →

## More guides

- Cost Guide [How much does a repipe cost in Austin?](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/repipe-cost-austin/)What a whole-house repipe typically costs in the Austin area, what sits inside that price, and the handful of things that move one house from the low end to the high end.
- Learn [Do I need a plumbing permit to repipe a house in Austin?](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/repipe-permit-austin/)A repipe in Austin is permitted work. This guide covers who can pull an Austin plumbing permit for a repipe, what the inspector checks and when, what a failed inspection costs, and how the rules change in Round Rock, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Kyle and the other suburbs.
- Decision Guide [Is repiping worth it, or should I keep fixing leaks?](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/is-repiping-worth-it/)Repiping is worth it when the pipe itself is the problem: leaks keep coming in different places, the material is known for failing, or the house is being bought or sold with it. When one line has failed in otherwise sound pipe, a repair or reroute is the better buy.
- Decision Guide [PEX vs copper: which pipe should an Austin house be repiped with?](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/pex-vs-copper/)Neither pipe wins everywhere. This guide compares PEX and copper on the things that decide an Austin repipe: price and access, attic heat and freeze, the water your utility delivers, joints and the layout of the house.
- Decision Guide [Should a slab leak be repaired or rerouted?](https://gracklerepipingaustin.com/guide/slab-leak-repair-or-reroute/)Three ways to fix a leaking water line under a slab, and the conditions that make each one the sensible choice: how many leaks, what the pipe is, what is on the floor and what the attic allows.