# Partial Repiping in Columbus, Ohio > Partial repiping in Columbus: the hot side, one bath group, one floor or the main, with the boundary, transitions and retained old pipe set out in writing. URL: https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/partial-repiping/ One section of the water supply replaced, such as the hot side, a bath group, a floor or the basement main, with the boundary and the old pipe that stays written into the scope. Last Updated: October 29, 2026 One section of the water supply replaced, such as the hot side, a bath group, a floor or the basement main, with the boundary and the old pipe that stays written into the scope. Last Updated: October 29, 2026 **$275** City of Columbus plumbing permit for a 1, 2 or 3 family home, two inspections, even for one section **$225** Charge for each additional inspection trip in Columbus, worth avoiding when work is done in stages Not every house needs every pipe replaced at once. [Slate Repiping Columbus](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/) offers partial repiping in Columbus and the nearby Franklin County suburbs, replacing a defined section of the water supply such as the hot side, a bathroom group or a floor. The work is carried out by licensed and insured plumbing contractors under the plumbing permit for the address. A partial repipe is a real choice with its own risks. Old pipe stays in service beside new, and the boundary between them becomes the most important line in the scope. A partial repipe does not mean the house is repiped, and a scope that blurs that difference leaves an owner, a buyer or an inspector with the wrong idea. Where the problem is everywhere, a [whole-house repipe](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/whole-house-repiping/) is usually the better answer; where it is one leak, [pipe repair](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/pipe-repair/) may be enough. The [repipe vs repair guide](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/repipe-vs-repair/) lays out where each fits. ## What the first visit has to settle The first question is whether the problem is local. One pinhole in a copper line below a bathroom, a single corroded galvanized branch or a hot side that has failed while the cold side holds up can all justify a section. Leaks in several rooms on both hot and cold, rusty water at every tap or weak flow everywhere usually point at the whole system. The walk-through traces each problem line back toward the main and records what it is made of along the way, using the same checks in the [pipe material guide](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/how-to-identify-pipe-material/). It also measures static pressure and flow, because weak flow at one fixture can come from a clogged cartridge or a half-closed stop rather than the pipe. Where the section boundary would sit is marked on the spot, along with whether the old pipe at that point is sound enough to join. ## Where the boundary goes A boundary is drawn where old pipe is still in good condition, where a joint can be reached later and where a shutoff can be added. Drawing it a few feet further than the obvious point often costs little and avoids joining new pipe to the most corroded length of old. ### Hot side only Replacing every hot line from the water heater to the fixtures is one of the most common partial scopes. Heat speeds up corrosion, so in a galvanized house the hot side often scales first, and in a copper house hot lines with fast-moving water can wear at elbows. A hot side repipe leaves the cold lines and the main in place, and the scope says so. ### Cold side, the main or one bath group Some houses need the reverse: the basement main and cold branches replaced because steel near the meter is restricting the whole house. Others need one bath group, from the point where its lines leave the main to the fixtures. In a two-story Columbus house, the riser to the upstairs bath is often the most restricted pipe in the building, because it is the longest vertical run. ### One floor A floor-by-floor scope replaces every line on that level and the risers that feed it. It suits houses where one floor was already redone during a past remodel, or where an owner wants to replace the upstairs now and the basement later. ## Joining new pipe to old Every place where new pipe meets old needs a listed transition fitting. Where new copper meets retained galvanized steel, a dielectric fitting keeps the two metals apart. Where PEX meets old copper, a listed adapter is used rather than a push fitting buried in a wall. Each transition is put where it can be reached later, ideally next to a new shutoff, so the next stage can start there without opening the same wall twice. The retained old pipe also needs a check. Cutting into a corroded steel line can loosen scale, and changing flow patterns can push it downstream. Aerators and cartridges on fixtures still fed through old pipe may need cleaning after cutover. ## What stays old, in writing The scope for a partial repipe lists the old pipe that stays in service, its material and roughly where it runs. That list matters later. A buyer’s inspector who sees new PEX in the basement may assume the house is repiped; the written scope shows what was done. If galvanized or polybutylene remains, the [guide to buying a house with old pipes](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/buying-house-with-old-pipes/) explains how that comes up in a sale. The list also shows which fixtures are fully on new pipe. A sink fed by a new branch that still draws through an old steel main can keep showing rust or weak flow, and the owner should know that before the job, not after. ## When a section costs more over time A partial repipe costs less now and more in total if the rest of the system follows. Each stage needs its own permit, its own openings, its own patching and its own pressure test, and some walls may be opened twice. In Columbus, each extra inspection trip is $225 on top of the permit. Planning the whole system once, then building it in phases, reduces that waste: the trunk lines are sized for the full house, and each boundary is placed where the next phase will join. Doing a section while walls are already open for a remodel avoids much of it, as the [repiping during renovation](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/repiping-during-renovation/) page explains. Lining old pipe is sometimes offered as an alternative to replacing a section, and the [pipe lining vs repiping guide](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/pipe-lining-vs-repiping/) covers where that does and does not fit. ## Price, permit and testing There is no public price range for a partial repipe in Columbus, because sections vary too much. The length of pipe, the number of fixtures served, the openings, the material and the number of transitions set the price. The [repipe cost guide](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/repiping-cost/) explains each of those drivers. A partial repipe still needs a plumbing permit. Inside the City of Columbus, Building and Zoning Services issues it at $275 for a 1, 2 or 3 family home with two inspections, and repiping is not on the City’s minor work list. Suburban permits run through the city and Franklin County Public Health, as the [Columbus repiping permit guide](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/repiping-permit-columbus/) explains. The new section is pressure tested before walls close, with the boundary joints watched closely, then flushed. ## What's included - A written boundary: which lines are replaced and where each one ends - A list of the old pipe that stays in service and its material - New hot, cold or both in the replaced section, in PEX or copper - Transition fittings at each point where new pipe meets old - A shutoff valve at the boundary where it helps isolate the old section later - Pressure test of the new section and a check of the joints at the boundary - Flush and cleaning of aerators and cartridges downstream - The plumbing permit and its inspections ## Common ways to draw a partial repipe | Boundary | What it replaces | What it leaves | | --- | --- | --- | | Hot side only | Every hot line from the water heater to the fixtures | All cold lines and the main | | Basement main | The main from the shutoff and the branches in the basement ceiling | Risers and branches inside walls | | One bath group | The lines feeding one bathroom from where they leave the main | Everything else in the house | | One floor | Every line on that floor and the risers that feed it | The other floors and anything not on the riser | | Kitchen or laundry | The supply to that room, often with a remodel | The rest of the system | ## Related resources - Decision Guide [Repipe vs repair: which does your house need?](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/repipe-vs-repair/)Three honest answers exist for old water pipe: fix the leak, replace the worst section, or replace the system. The leak history, the pipe material and what is planned for the house decide which one fits. - Decision Guide [Pipe lining vs repiping: which fixes old supply pipe?](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/pipe-lining-vs-repiping/)Epoxy lining coats the inside of old water pipe instead of replacing it. It can avoid some wall openings, but it keeps the old pipe, its joints and its layout. Here is how to weigh it honestly. - Learn [How do you identify lead pipes and other pipe materials?](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/how-to-identify-pipe-material/)A refrigerator magnet, a coin and a flashlight answer most of the question. This guide shows what each pipe looks like, how to check safely, where Columbus's map helps, and what each material means for the house. - Cost Guide [How much does it cost to repipe a house in Columbus?](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/repiping-cost/)Typical Columbus-area ranges for a whole-house repipe in PEX or copper, what sits inside the price, the permit fees by office, and why two quotes for the same house can differ. - Learn [Do you need a permit to repipe a house in Columbus?](https://slaterepipingcolumbus.com/guide/repiping-permit-columbus/)Which office issues the permit for your address, who is allowed to pull it, what it costs, what changed with county plan review in February 2026, and what happens when a repipe is done without one. ## How a repipe runs 1. First call Describe the houseIts age, the pipe you can see in the basement, the leaks so far and which floors lose pressure. 2. Walk through Map and scopeMains, branches, shutoffs and fixtures traced from the meter; material, openings and permit agreed in writing. 3. Pipe day Replace and reconnectWater shut off in stages, new lines run, fixtures and the water heater reconnected. 4. Sign off Test, inspect, patchPressure test and flush, permit inspections, then the openings are closed. ## What this work looks like Shutoff valve and brass transition fitting where new red PEX meets older copper in a basement ceiling, blue tape on the joist, in a Franklin County house New red PEX hot lines and a shutoff valve leaving the top of a basement water heater, in an older Columbus home Old galvanized water pipe tee in a basement ceiling with rust and white mineral crust at its threaded joints, in an older Columbus home Red and blue PEX lines on white hangers across bright basement ceiling joists, in an older Columbus home ## Partial repiping questions ### Does a partial repipe need a plumbing permit in Columbus? Yes. Replacing water distribution piping is not on the City's minor work list, so even one section takes the regular plumbing permit. Inside Columbus that is $275 for a 1, 2 or 3 family home with two inspections. In most suburbs the city issues the permit after Franklin County Public Health reviews the plan. ### Why does the hot water line usually fail before the cold? Heat speeds up corrosion. In galvanized steel, the hot side usually scales and rusts faster than the cold. In copper, hot lines served by a recirculation pump keep water moving almost constantly, which can wear the inside of elbows. That pattern is why a hot-side-only repipe is one of the more common partial scopes. ### Can a house be repiped in stages over a few years? It can. Each stage needs its own permit and its own openings, and the boundary from one stage becomes the starting point of the next. Planning the whole system first, then building it in sections, keeps each stage from being undone by the one after it. ### Will a partial repipe stop rusty water at every faucet? Only at the fixtures fed entirely by new pipe. Water that passes through retained galvanized steel on its way to a faucet can still pick up rust. The scope should say which fixtures are fully on new pipe and which still draw through old sections. ## Related services ### Whole-house repiping Every hot and cold supply line from the main shutoff to the fixtures, replaced in PEX or copper, pressure tested and inspected under a City or suburban plumbing permit. ### Pipe repair A leaking joint, a split section or a rotted galvanized nipple repaired in matching or listed transition material, with an honest read on the pipe around it. ### Repiping during renovation New water supply piping run while a remodel has the walls open, with the scope set before demolition and the plumbing inspection timed ahead of insulation and drywall.