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Plumber showing a Fairfax, VA homeowner her main water shutoff
Plumbing in Fairfax, VA

Plumber in Fairfax, VA

Grey plastic pipe at the water heater is polybutylene, and plenty of Fairfax houses built between the late 1970s and the mid 1990s still have it. We repair it, repipe it, and fix the rest of the plumbing too.

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Fairfax has a grey pipe problem

If your Fairfax house went up between the late 1970s and the mid 1990s, look at the pipe above your water heater before you call anyone.

Dull grey plastic means you are planning a repipe. Copper means you are probably not.

Either way, plumbing work in Fairfax starts with a look at what is actually in the walls, priced in writing.

Worth knowing here

The polybutylene window

From roughly the late 1970s to the mid 1990s, builders put grey polybutylene supply pipe into new houses and townhouses. If your Fairfax house went up in that window, look at the pipe by the water heater.

Fairfax County built fast in those years. Burke, Fair Lakes, Centreville and the townhouse communities off Route 50 and the Fairfax County Parkway filled in while polybutylene was the cheap choice. It fails at the fittings with no warning, and usually behind a finished wall.

Why Fairfax homeowners call

Planned repipes of polybutylene

You found grey pipe at the water heater. We price a full repipe in writing, so you can plan the work on your schedule instead of the pipe's.

Leaks behind townhouse walls

Stacked townhouses share walls and run plumbing over finished ceilings. A drip on the lower level can start one floor up and one unit over, and we trace it before opening anything.

1960s ramblers in Kings Park and Mantua

Kings Park and Mantua went up in the 1960s with cast iron waste lines and copper, and their original valves have often seized. Valve replacement and drain clearing are the usual jobs.

Houses in the City of Fairfax

Old Town Fairfax and the streets around Main Street and Chain Bridge Road are inside the independent city. The water comes from Fairfax Water, and the permit comes from the city.

Rentals near George Mason

Landlords with houses and townhouses near George Mason University call for toilets, water heaters and drains between student leases.

Water heaters at the end of their life

A rusty relief valve, a wet drain pan or water that never gets fully hot are the signs a Fairfax tank is near the end.

What we do in Fairfax

How far Fairfax is from our shop

The City of Fairfax lies close to 19 miles northwest of Bryans Road on a ruler line, and roughly 16 west of the Capitol, inside our coverage.

We cross the Potomac on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge after coming up MD 210, then follow I-495 to I-66 or Little River Turnpike, VA 236, into Fairfax.

George Mason University sits south of the city on the map. The Historic Fairfax Courthouse marks Old Town, Fair Oaks Mall the west side, and the Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metro station the north.

Map of Fairfax, Virginia and the route from All Purpose Plumbers in Bryans Road, MDThe City of Fairfax is shaded, with George Mason University, the Historic Fairfax Courthouse, Fair Oaks Mall and the Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metro station marked. A dashed line runs about 19 miles southeast to the shop in Bryans Road, Maryland. The route follows MD 210 north, crosses the Potomac on I-495, and follows I-66 or VA 236 Little River Turnpike west into Fairfax.Potomac RiverOccoquan RiverMD 210I-495 BeltwayI-66VA 236about 19 milesFairfaxAll Purpose PlumbersBryans Road, MD5 milesN
Close-up of Fairfax.
© OpenStreetMap contributorsGet directions

All Purpose Plumbers, 6965 Heather Drive, Suite A, Bryans Road, MD 20616. View on Google Maps

Plumbing questions from Fairfax

How do I know if my Fairfax house has polybutylene pipe?

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Look at the pipe coming into the water heater and under a sink. Polybutylene is dull grey plastic, about half an inch to an inch across, often stamped PB2110. It went into many Fairfax County homes built from the late 1970s to the mid 1990s. If you have it, we price a repipe in writing so you can plan it instead of waiting for the leak.

Do I pull a permit from the city or the county?

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It depends on which side of the line the property sits. The City of Fairfax issues its own permits. Everything around it is Fairfax County, through Land Development Services. The water comes from Fairfax Water either way, since it took over the city system in 2014. Give us the exact address and we tell you which one applies.

Do I have to repipe the whole house at once?

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No. Some owners do it in one job, and some replace the worst runs first. We lay out both in writing so you can choose.

Do you work in Burke, Centreville and Fair Lakes?

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Yes. Burke, Fair Lakes, Fair Oaks and Centreville all sit inside our service area, and they are where a lot of the polybutylene houses are.

Do you work in Vienna and Oakton?

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Yes. Vienna is its own town and Oakton sits in Fairfax County. Both are inside our service area.

Does polybutylene always leak?

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Not on a schedule anyone can predict. Plenty of systems run for years, then a joint lets go. Home buyers and inspectors flag it, which is one more reason owners plan the swap.

How fast can a plumber get to my house in Fairfax for an urgent problem?

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We don't run an on-call service, so we won't promise a time to the door. A burst pipe, a backup or a dead water heater in Fairfax gets a slot inside 48 hours, during our 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM hours, before routine work. Close the main shutoff first. In a townhouse with polybutylene, that main valve is the one thing that matters before anyone arrives.

Do plumbers in Fairfax offer drain cleaning and repair in one visit?

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Often, yes. When the clog is in a fixture drain or a trap, we clear it and make the small repair on the same visit. When the camera shows a broken or sagging line, the repair is priced in writing first and booked once you approve it, because digging or lining a line needs a permit and a plan.

Areas served around Fairfax

Fairfax CityFair OaksFair LakesKings ParkMantuaBurkeAnnandaleOaktonViennaCentreville

Nearby Areas

Request Plumbing Service in Fairfax

Or call (240) 695-4415, every day from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM.

We take insurance jobs. Financing may also be available for qualifying projects. Ask when you call.

Guides for Fairfax plumbing

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Our work carries a 60 to 90 day warranty.

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