# Replacing galvanized with copper pipes.



## Twinvtec (Feb 5, 2009)

What's up people;

I am in the process of renovating my second floor bathroom, and I am in need of some advise. 
The last owner change all the hot water pipes to copper but left the cold water with galvanized pipes. 
So the cold water pipes are rusting out and need to be replace. 
The pipe for the cold water that run upstairs looks to be 1"- 1/4 and the hot water 1/2" coming off a 3/4" main.

What I would like to know is; Should I run a 3/4" pipe to the second floor and then branch it out into 1/2" pipes for all the fixtures or should I run 1/2" straight up from the basement to the second floor? 
Here are some pics of the set up. Any help would be appreciated Thanks.


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## Nestor_Kelebay (Jun 17, 2008)

TwinVtec:

You're always going to be better off with the 3/4 inch pipe running upstairs.

A 3/4 inch pipe can deliver the same flow capacity as two 1/2 inch pipes, so you can supply full flow to two upstairs plumbing fixtures at the same time.

That way, the shower won't scald you if someone flushes the toilet.

Use a dia-electric coupling between the old iron piping and the new copper piping.


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## Bob Mariani (Dec 1, 2008)

Using 3/4" is not always a best solution. I changed my 1/2" to 3/4" and now it takes forever to get hot water out of the sink. Reason, more water in 3/4 to cool, more water to move before it draws from the water heater. But I plan to fix it by adding a instant tank heater and still keep the 3/4 for better flow to the multi-head shower. So I agree use the 3/4, just wanted to add a downside you may need to consider. Also may look into a recirculating pump.


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## majakdragon (Sep 16, 2006)

Not sure why the line was increased so much after the meter. 3/4" would be the best bet to supply the upstairs fixtures, with 1/2" take-offs for each fixture. I would try to get rid of all the galvanized pipe since I see no reason to keep any of it. Having a small line off the meter, and then increasing it as much as they did, makes no sense.


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## Twinvtec (Feb 5, 2009)

*Galvanized pipes*

Thank You guys for all the replies. 
I am going to change the galvanized pipe and replace it with copper. 

The line that comes in from the meter is 1" and all the others are 3/4" and then they branch out into 1/2" copper pipes for the hot and cold water for the first floor. 

They also ran 1/2" copper pipes for the hot water to the second floor but left the old ones for the cold. I really don't know why they did that, maybe because they did not wanted to break the walls or something.


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## Twinvtec (Feb 5, 2009)

*What do you guys think?*

Hello everyone;

I just finished replacing the old galvanized pipes, here are some pics.Tell me what you guys think, not to bad for my first time.


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## wombosi (Apr 22, 2008)

yea, real nice work man. i recently did the exact same job in my house. replaced a long run of totally corroded galvanized pipe wiht copper.
really satisfying looking at all the gleaming work.

one thing, if you care at all about looks, immediately after you melt the sotter, take a wet rag to the pipe/fitting area and rub it hard. it will clean all the flux and burn marks off it. (wear gloves and be careful.)


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## Twinvtec (Feb 5, 2009)

*galvanized pipes*



schmolze said:


> yea, real nice work man. i recently did the exact same job in my house. replaced a long run of totally corroded galvanized pipe wiht copper.
> really satisfying looking at all the gleaming work.
> 
> one thing, if you care at all about looks, immediately after you melt the sotter, take a wet rag to the pipe/fitting area and rub it hard. it will clean all the flux and burn marks off it. (wear gloves and be careful.)


 
Thank you for the reply. This was my first time doing this type of work so it was a learning experience. I learned about wearing gloves the hard way after I burned my little finger on my right hand...lol... but yes the next time I will use a wet rag to clean up all weld spots. Thank You.


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## majakdragon (Sep 16, 2006)

Nice job. Glad you didn't have any problems. I always wear a brown cotton glove when soldering. Works well for wiping the joints while the solder is still liquid. I go back later and wipe the joints with a wet cloth to remove the melted flux. Problem I have found with using a wet rag while the joint is hot, is it immediately solidifies the solder.


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## scowl (Jan 22, 2009)

Twinvtec said:


> They also ran 1/2" copper pipes for the hot water to the second floor but left the old ones for the cold. I really don't know why they did that, maybe because they did not wanted to break the walls or something.


I did that in my house because the galvanized hot water pipes were in much worse condition than the cold water pipes. Also the hot water pipes were running all over the house instead of running directly to the places that needed hot water. The water to my shower was heating 30 feet of steel pipe instead of 12 feet of copper pipe for example.

Over the years whenever I busted open a wall that had a cold water galvanized pipe in it, I would replace it with copper. Then ten years later I finally got around to replacing the rest of the galvanized plumbing with copper. I also added some convenient gate valves and freezeless outdoor faucets (or sillcocks, or bibs, whatever your local vernacular calls them).

This is one DIY project that was more fun to do spread out over several years.


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## Twinvtec (Feb 5, 2009)

*Galvanized pipes*

Thank you all for the replies;

It had been 2 weeks and no water leaks that is a good sign. 
Now its time to move on with my next project, the bathroom remodel. 
I am going to remodel the upstairs bath, it is going to be a complete remodel from the floors,walls and all the hardware. 
I am going to be posting my progress in the construction forums under Complete bathroom remodel. 
Here are some pics of what I am working with.


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## 4just1don (Jun 13, 2008)

boy that bath sur is purty now,,,why remodel?? where did the toilet tank go?? Is it up above??Never saw one like that!!


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## majakdragon (Sep 16, 2006)

4just1don. I did a doubletake since you rarely see a Sloan valve in residential plumbing. Looks like a 1" supply line also. Nothing "water saving" about this set-up unless the flow is adjusted real low.


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## ironrange (Feb 18, 2009)

Regarding the upstairs bathroom group. You have one toilet, one lav, one bathtub with a shower I presume. You have a total of 6 fixture units. If your water pressure is between 40 and 60 lbs and the run from the basement is less than 150 feet(which it is of course) code says you can use 1/2" to all three fixtures. 3/4" would be overkill and does not supply greater pressure to your fixtures in this case.


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## KGP (Feb 12, 2009)

I am in the midst of the same project... the bathroom even looks the same, haha! I replaced with Pex and everything is holding so far. I have to rock tomorrow and start taping, then comes the tile! Here are a few pics of my project. Before and during (since I am not actually finished yet)

What amazed me the most about this project was how everyone talks about how bad the economy is... yet I could not get a contractor for ANY trade to show up other than the "Demo" guy. Although I am quite handy... I just did not feel like doing yet another bathroom in my house myself so I asked my wife to handle the job for me by getting prices ect... again, the ONLY guy that even showed up was the demo guy (pictured). My wife tricked me, knowing I could do the work but as long as it was "started" for me, as there was no way in hell I was ripping that thing out and carying that tub down... even with help... man, she dupped me. haha!


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## Clutchcargo (Mar 31, 2007)

You work fast. Nice job.


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## KGP (Feb 12, 2009)

Clutchcargo said:


> You work fast. Nice job.


who me or OP?
I am 10 day in... still have a good 7 to go till I am finished... I would have fired myself twice so far... once I was so drunk on the jobsite that I almost fell through the floor into the room bellow. LOL!!


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## Clutchcargo (Mar 31, 2007)

I see, I thought the two posts were from the same poster. You have a very similar bathroom to the OP. That would have been impressive even for a pro to knock out in 2 days let alone a DIYer.


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## Twinvtec (Feb 5, 2009)

*Galvanized Pipes*

Thank You for the replies. I wish I was that fast...lol... I am still in the demo stage. You can view my progess in the Project Showcase section under Complete Bathroom remodel. Suggestions are welcome.


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