Brass Water Supply Piping Inspection, Diagnosis, Repair, Replacement, Life Expectancy InspectAPedia® -
Inspecting, Installing, Repairing, & Diagnosing Brass Water Pipe Problems
Brass water supply piping inspection, diagnosis, repair
Life expectancy of Brass water supply pipes
Types of pipe fittings & connections used with brass water pipes in buildings
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This page lists our in-depth articles on inspecting, testing, and repairing problems with brass water supply plumbing. Our page top photograph shows a great place to look for brass piping: in the plumbing access behind the tub wall of an older home. This photograph was taken in a home built in Poughkeepsie, NY in 1935. We found brass water supply pipes, brass drain piping, lead drain pipes, and asbestos pipe insulation all in this opening.
The articles at this website will answer most questions about water supply & drain piping, wells, & water tanks as well as many other building plumbing system inspection or defect topics. Reproduction of this web page electronically at other websites is prohibited.
Brass Building Water Supply: how to identify, inspect, repair, replace
Distinguishing Brass Water Pipes from Copper Piping
Watch out: on older buildings brass water supply piping may have been used, and may be at or near the end of its useful life. It can be tricky to tell the difference between brass water supply piping and copper water supply piping if you are not experienced with these materials, as their colors are similar, especially when both types of piping have become an oxidized brownish color with age.
Both brass and copper are non-magnetic, so they won't respond to a "magnet" test to look for iron or steel.
Brass water supply piping, unlike copper, is a thicker material that is usually joined by threaded fittings of the same size and pipe thread specifications (NPT) as iron and galvanized iron piping.
Usually, brass piping is also so rigid that it is not bendable. Or not very bendable anyway. So in our photograph (left) of water supply piping at a bath tub in an older home, the larger-diameter left-hand pipe is surely brass, connected to a galvanized iron fitting at its bottom end. The right-hand vertical pipe may be copper tubing as is the darker copper pipe at left behind our brass one.
Don't worry about that odd little machine in bottom center of the photo - we were collecting an air sample in this wall cavity.
More Photographs of Brass Water Supply Piping
Our brass pipe photograph at above left helps identify brass water supply piping: the combination of shiny gold-colored metal (scratch it to see), and threaded pipe fittings confirms that the material is brass, not copper. A brass union and brass water pipe fittings in our photo at above right also show the threaded connections characteristic of this material.
Here we show vintage brass water supply piping rising to a third floor bath tub in an older home.
The water shutoff valve is probably chromed brass, and you can also observe a larger diameter brass tub drain pipe just behind the brass water pipe and valve shown in the foreground.
At the right edge of the photo is a second brass water supply pipe riser, and in the floor we noticed a brass cap over a floor-access plumbing drain access.
Incidentally, from its age, location, and retrofit status, this tub drain did not work very well - it was un-vented. More recently a plumber had installed a vacuum breaker on this drain line, found in a nearby attic knee wall crawl space.
Life Expectancy of Brass Water Supply Piping
Unlike it's look-alike cousin galvanized iron piping, brass water pipes are less likely to become clogged internally by rust build-up. However if the building water supply is heavy in minerals, mineral deposits, particularly in hot water pipes, can over time clog brass water piping just as it may cause clogs in galvanized iron or copper water pipes.
We often find brass water supply piping working well after more than 50 years and we have inspected and found in good condition brass water supply pipes in buildings more than 75 years old, including some of the photos shown in this article that were obtained in a home built in 1935.
We suspect that the life expectancy of brass water pipes may depend on part on the corrosivity or aggressiveness of the building water supply.
Photos of Brass Drain Piping
Brass drain pipes and on occasion chrome-plated brass drain piping may be more commonly found in buildings than you realize. Lots of plumbing traps and some tub drain parts were made of brass or chrome-plated brass.
This photograph shows brass drain connections at a bath tub. We scratched the horizontal drain connector to better-show its characteristic brass color.
Watch out: even though the brass drain line in this photo appeared to be in good condition with no signs of leaks despite its age, there could be perforations developing on the non-visible underside of the brass pipe.
Worse, in this same location the brass tub drains connected to a lead plumbing drain that will be costly to replace when it leas.
Other water supply and drain piping and water pressure articles:
Pressure/Temperature Relief Valves, proper inspection methods, issues and hazards (article due in 2007)
Clearances Required for Wells Distance Between Well & Septic System and other water pollution sources, Online Table of Well Distances
FREEZE-PROOF PIPES: how to freeze-proof plumbing in a building, how to avoid freezing pipes, how to thaw frozen pipes: how to winterize a building against freezing and frost damage.
HOT WATER HEATERS - a detailed guide to all types of hot water sources, problems, inspection, repair
Plastic Water Supply & Drain Piping Failures, Leaks, Repairs, Lawsuits: Water Supply Piping Defects and Plastic or polybutylene water supply piping failures, leaks, and litigation.
PLASTIC PIPING - Leaks, Repairs, Lawsuits: Water Supply Piping Defects and Plastic or polybutylene water supply piping failures, leaks, and litigation.
Our main article on plastic supply and drain piping leaks, failures, litigation, repairs, at PLASTIC PIPING. Excerpts are just below.
PB (polybutylene with mechanical fittings) Piping leaks: especially in mobile homes and in the U.S. South, for example trailers and double-wides throughout Florida that were piped with this material - per M Cramer. See "Polybutylene Piping: Time Bomb?" Daniel Friedman, Journal of Light Construction, August 1996 [Technical Q&A].
If plastic water piping is installed, such as polybutylene water supply piping, it should be at least 18" from the water heater.
New mobile home and trailer units: 3/4" supply piping, min 6" off ground; shutoff valve required;
Tank Types Encyclopedia an encyclopedia of tanks in buildings, water tanks, fuel tanks, gas tanks, heating system expansion tanks, oil tanks, water cisterns, water pressure tanks, pressure booster tanks, antique, modern
Water Tanks - how to diagnose problems with water tanks, such as the need for air, how to add air, stop water pump short cycling to avoid damage - water storage water pressure tank safety.
Water Testing for contaminants in drinking water - what test are available, what tests to ask for, what they cost, how people cheat on water tests
Wells, Cisterns,& Springs types of sources of drinking water, what they look like, what goes wrong, what to do about it
WINTERIZE A BUILDING: how to freeze-proof plumbing in a building, how to avoid freezing pipes, how to thaw frozen pipes: how to winterize a building against freezing and frost damage.
Plumbing Links our big list of links to plastic piping and other plumbing defects
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Mark Cramer Inspection Services Mark Cramer, Tampa Florida, Mr. Cramer is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors and is a Florida home inspector and home inspection educator. Contact Mark Cramer at: 727-595-4211 mark@BestTampaInspector.com 11/06
Roger Hankey is principal of Hankey and Brown home inspectors, Eden Prairie, MN. Mr. Hankey is a past chairman of the ASHI Standards Committee. Mr. Hankey has served in other ASHI professional and leadership roles. Contact Roger Hankey at: 952 829-0044 - rhankey@hankeyandbrown.com. Mr. Hankey is a frequent contributor to InspectAPedia.com.
Arlene Puentes, an ASHI member and a licensed home inspector in Kingston, NY, and has served on ASHI national committees as well as HVASHI Chapter President. Ms. Puentes can be contacted at ap@octoberhome.com
Compression fittings for plumbing connections, Wikipedia photograph, web search 08/09/2010, original source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Robinetterie-raccords.JPG
Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.
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Plumbing Diagnosis & Repair: Water supply, drainage, septic systems, water testing, water contamination, defective plumbing materials & products.
The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 2010, $69.00 U.S., is available from Carson Dunlop. The Home Reference Book is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. InspectAPedia.com ® author/editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume.
Cheating on water tests: Testing Water for Real Estate Transactions - make sure your water test is valid
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