Pipe Replacement Case Study
My good friend Andy had been a lifelong advocate of renting but after a recent change of heart, he finally took the plunge and has bought a beautiful Islington town house. The stucco fronted Georgian dream house was built in the 1830s and quite sensibly, Andy chose to get a full survey conducted.
Inevitably a house that’s almost 200 years old is going to have some issues but in among the usual advisories of chimneys pointing and damp cellars was a warning about a short section of lead pipe in the drinking water supply. The previous owners had ignored this but should a short section of pipe cause concern?
It’s easy to see how something as mundane as a section of lead pipe could be ignored, it’s not the most exciting thing to be spending money on when new curtains and sofas are competing for budget but fortunately Andy reached out to me for advice and a water test.
It’s estimated that over five million homes in the UK have lead supply pipes and the long-term health effects of lead pipes are well known, high blood pressure leading to cardiovascular disease, kidney damage and brain damage leading to impaired IQ to name a few. Whilst other countries have funded lead pipe replacement schemes the UK has been slow to act, little wonder then that many people don’t see lead pipe replacement as a priority.
It’s understandable that some people might be alarmed to discover a lead pipe but unfortunately, it’s very common. The good news is that it’s super easy to fix. In this article we walk through Andy’s journey to healthy lead-free water.
Testing
Andy ordered one of our Standard Water Test kits so he could test the lead concentrations at his Kitchen tap. In Andy’s case, a test wasn’t strictly necessary as his lead pipe had already been identified, it was there in his basement, obvious and unashamedly exposed to all. However, lead pipes can be hidden in walls, floors and ceilings and that’s where a simple water test can be invaluable in helping detect the problem.
Unsurprisingly the test came back positive for lead and Andy sought further advice from me. Over the years we’ve worked with a few pipe replacement companies across the country and had recently been talking with Charly Wise owner of ‘CW Pipewise’ a ‘Water Safe’ / WIAPS (Water Industry Approved Plumbers Scheme) approved company. Andy contacted Charly for a quote which he was happy to provide.
Sequential testing
Happy with the quote (£818 inc VAT) Andy booked in with Charly’s company to have the pipe replaced. There’s an experiment that I’ve been keen to conduct for a while now and knowing I had a friend with section of lead pipe was a golden opportunity.
I wanted to perform a sequential sampling test, sampling different sections of the pipe from the tap, back to the lead pipe and beyond. I asked Andy if he’d be open to me experimenting with his plumbing “of course but you’d better crack on as he’s coming to replace it next week”.
That Thursday, armed with a box of sampling bottles and a tape measure we measured the pipe runs then took 20 samples that we estimated would be around the section of lead pipe. I was very excited with the results we got back; they show a clear peak in lead around the distance we thought the lead pipe would be (17m). Sequential sampling is great but also expensive the main difficulty is estimating the distances and volumes needed to draw through.
As you can see in the chart below, the lead levels form a clear bell curve, spiking at the 17-meter mark where the lead pipe sat.
Pipe Replacement Day
On a sunny March morning Danny (one of Charly’s team) turned up to complete the work, knowing I intended to write a blog Andy gave me a call to see if I wanted to pop over and inspect the works, I jumped at the chance.
Danny was a friendly and knowledgeable chap who was more than happy to explain his work to me (even letting me have a bit of the extracted lead pipe for analysis). The job seemed straight forward and by lunch time they had replaced the offending lead with a safe modern 25mm blue plastic (MDPE) pipe and a new internal isolation valve. The job was made good and Danny left leaving everything clean and tidy.
Certification
Lead pipes have historically been used for supply pipes (between the stopcock and the house) and the communication pipe (between the water main and the stopcock) the latter is the property of the water company but generally they will only replace their lead pipes once the homeowner can provide a certificate that demonstrates they’ve replaced theirs.
An important consideration when choosing a pipe replacement company is whether they are a member of an approved contractor scheme. Members of these schemes can issue a compliance certificate. The certificate is sent to the water company (in this case Thames Water) to tell them that the lead plumbing your side of the external stopcock has been replaced. Without this important certificate the water company won’t replace any lead pipes that may be on their side.
Peace of Mind at the Tap: Andy’s Takeaway
With a fresh glass of lead-free water in hand, Andy can finally get back to the fun stuff—like picking out those new curtains and sofas. While lead pipes are undoubtedly a serious health concern, Andy’s experience is a great reminder that they don’t have to be a nightmare. Testing your water is quick and straightforward, and as Danny proved, replacing the old pipe is remarkably easy and hassle-free. If you live in an older property, don't let lead linger in the background: get it tested, get it swapped, and enjoy total peace of mind at your kitchen tap.
