Water Line Repair & Replacement in Sacramento County
A leak on the line between the meter and your house rarely means the whole pipe has to go. We find the break, open the ground at that one spot, and repair it, so you are not paying to replace pipe that still has years left in it.
The Pipe Between the Meter and the House Is Yours
Your water utility owns the meter and everything on the street side of it. The service line that runs from the meter to your house belongs to the property. When that line leaks, the repair is the homeowner’s to arrange, and so is the water that runs through the meter until it is fixed.
That line is usually buried a foot or two down and runs under the front yard, a walkway, or the driveway. A leak on it does not stay in one place. Water follows the trench the pipe was laid in, softens the soil around it, and often surfaces several feet away from the actual break.
Repair means we fix the failed section and leave the rest of the run in service. It is the right call when the pipe is sound and one fitting, one joint, or one damaged length has given out. When the line itself is worn out, a repair only buys time, and we will tell you that instead of selling you a patch.
We Find the Break Before Anyone Digs
Guessing where a buried leak is turns one hole into three. Before we open the ground, we narrow it down.
First we confirm the leak is on the service line and not inside the house, using the meter and a pressure check with every fixture closed. Then we trace the path of the pipe from the meter to the point where it enters the building. With the route known, electronic leak detection picks up the sound of water escaping under pressure and pinpoints the spot to dig.
The result is an opening sized to the break, not a trench along the whole line. On a lot with mature landscaping or a concrete driveway over the pipe, that difference is most of the cost.
Repair a Section or Replace the Line
Once the pipe is exposed, we can see what the rest of it is likely to do next. The material decides most of the answer.
Usually a repair
- Copper or modern plastic pipe with a single failed joint or fitting
- A section damaged by digging, a fence post, or tree roots, on pipe that is otherwise sound
- A leaking connection at the meter or where the line rises at the house
Usually a replacement
- Galvanized steel that has rusted from the inside and is leaking in more than one place
- Polybutylene, the gray plastic pipe used in many homes from the late 1970s into the 1990s
- A second leak on the same line within a year or two of the first
If replacement is the better value, we quote both options side by side and you decide. A replacement runs new pipe from the meter to the house, is pressure tested and inspected under a permit, and we backfill and restore the surface when the job is done.
How a Water Line Repair Goes
What we do not do is put the yard back. We backfill and compact the opening so it does not settle, but re-seeding lawn and replacing concrete or pavers are separate trades, and we say so before the first shovel goes in.
Water off, leak confirmed
Locate and quote
Expose and repair
Pressure test and backfill
Why Homeowners Call Us Back
In-House Licensed Technicians
Upfront Flat-Rate Pricing
One Opening, Sized to the Break
1-Year Labor Warranty
Water Line Repair Questions We Hear Most
- Is a leak between the meter and the house my responsibility?
Yes, in most cases it is. The utility maintains the meter and the pipe on the street side of it. The service line from the meter to the house belongs to the property, so the repair and the water lost through the meter are on the owner. If the leak is at the meter itself or on the street side, call your water provider first.
- Should I shut the water off until you arrive?
Yes, if water is surfacing or the pressure in the house has dropped. Close the main shutoff where the line enters the house. Leaving the line under pressure keeps washing soil out from around the pipe, which makes the opening larger when we dig.
- Can you repair the line without digging up the yard?
No, not entirely, but the digging is limited to the break. Trenchless methods are not used on water service lines, so the pipe has to be exposed where it failed. Because we pinpoint the leak first, that is usually one opening rather than a trench.
- My line runs under the driveway. Do you have to break the concrete?
Not always. If the break is under the slab, we compare cutting an access opening through the concrete with rerouting a new section around it, and we price both. Either way, replacing the concrete afterward is done by a separate trade, and we tell you that up front.
- Is the service call fee charged on top of the repair?
No, it is not. The service call fee is applied toward the cost of the work. If you approve the repair, it comes off the total rather than being added to it.
Water Coming Up in the Yard?
Shut off the main and call us. We serve Sacramento County and the surrounding area, day and night.