Stop Kitec Before It Floods Your Home

If your home was built between 1995 and 2007, there’s a real chance you’re living with defective Kitec plumbing that could burst without warning. We replace failing Kitec systems with reliable piping before disaster strikes.

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Licensed California Contractors

Licensed California Contractors

Every technician carries proper C-36 licensing and full insurance coverage, protecting your property throughout the entire Kitec repipe process.

24 Years Local Experience

24 Years Local Experience

We've handled El Dorado County's unique plumbing challenges since 2009, from hard water issues to the acidic soil that accelerates pipe failure.

Transparent Flat-Rate Pricing

Transparent Flat-Rate Pricing

You get the quoted price upfront with free estimates. No hourly billing, no surprise charges after we start your Kitec replacement project.

Same-Day Emergency Response

Same-Day Emergency Response

When Kitec pipes burst, we respond fast. Emergency plumbing repairs are often completed within hours of your call, minimizing water damage.

Professional Kitec Repiping Services

What Kitec Repipe Actually Means for Your Home

Kitec repipe means completely removing every section of defective Kitec plumbing from your home and replacing it with durable copper or PEX piping. This isn’t a patch job. We’re talking about a full system replacement that eliminates the ticking time bomb hiding in your walls. Kitec was installed in thousands of Northern California homes between 1995 and 2007 as a cheaper alternative to copper. The bright orange and blue pipes seemed like a great idea at the time. But the brass fittings contain excessive zinc that corrodes over time, and the pipes themselves can’t handle normal water heater temperatures. The result? Complete pipe bursts that flood homes with zero warning. The question isn’t if your Kitec will fail. It’s when. And whether you’ll catch it before it destroys your floors, walls, and everything you own.

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Testimonials

Quality Work. Happy Customers.

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Kitec Replacement Benefits

What Changes After We Replace Your Kitec

You stop wondering when your pipes will burst and start living without that constant background worry about coming home to a flooded house.

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Your insurance company stops threatening to drop your coverage or jack up your premiums because of defective plumbing.

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Water pressure returns to normal throughout your entire home as we eliminate the zinc oxide buildup that's been choking your pipes for years.

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Your home value stays protected because buyers won't walk away when they discover Kitec during inspection or demand massive price reductions.

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You eliminate the risk of mold growth and structural damage from the catastrophic flooding that happens when Kitec pipes burst open completely.

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You stop throwing money at temporary repairs that don't fix the underlying problem and just delay the inevitable complete failure.

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Your new copper or PEX system will last 75 to 100 years instead of failing within a decade like Kitec does.

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Kitec Pipe Failure Risks

Why Kitec Fails and What Happens When It Does

Kitec doesn’t leak. It bursts. The brass fittings go through a process called dezincification where the zinc literally leaches out of the metal, leaving behind weak, crumbling connections. At the same time, the aluminum-core pipes can’t handle water temperatures above 180 degrees, even though most water heaters regularly exceed that. When these two problems combine, you don’t get a slow drip you can catch early. You get a complete structural collapse of the piping system. The manufacturer knew there was a problem and recalled Kitec in 2005. They settled a class action lawsuit for $125 million. That settlement deadline passed in January 2020, which means homeowners today get exactly zero compensation for replacing their defective plumbing. You’re on your own for the cost, but at least you can control the timing instead of waiting for an emergency that floods your home at 2 AM. El Dorado County’s hard water and acidic soil make the problem worse. The mineral content accelerates corrosion, and the soil chemistry attacks pipes from the outside while dezincification destroys them from the inside. If your home was built in Placerville, Cameron Park, El Dorado Hills, or anywhere else in the county between 1995 and 2007, you need to check your plumbing. Look near your water heater or under sinks for bright orange or blue pipes stamped with “Kitec,” “KTC,” or “IPEX.”

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Why Kitec Fails and What Happens When It Does
Residential Kitec Repiping Process

How We Replace Your Kitec Without Destroying Your Home

We complete most Kitec repipes in just a few days while you stay in your home and maintain your normal routine. Day one focuses on removing all the defective Kitec piping and installing new copper or PEX lines throughout your entire plumbing system. We access pipes through strategically placed small openings rather than tearing out entire walls. Every connection gets tested for leaks and proper pressure before we move forward. Day two handles wall patching, texture matching, and getting everything back to the way it looked before we started. You’ll need to arrange final paint touch-ups, but we take care of the drywall repair, taping, and texturing. Most customers tell us they can’t even tell where we worked once everything’s finished. We handle all the permits and coordinate required inspections with local building departments in El Dorado, Placer, and Sacramento Counties. California law has specific requirements for plumbing work, and we know exactly what needs to happen to keep your project compliant. Your water stays on at the end of each day, so you’re never without working plumbing overnight.

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How We Replace Your Kitec Without Destroying Your Home
Kitec Repair FAQs

Common questions about our Kitec Repair services

Check the exposed pipes near your water heater, under sinks, or in your utility room. Kitec pipes are distinctively bright orange for hot water lines and bright blue for cold water lines. The pipes will typically have “Kitec,” “KTC,” “IPEX,” “PlumbBetter,” or “Kitec XPA” stamped directly on them. You might also see brass fittings that look dull or have white crusty residue forming around the connections. Another telltale sign is a yellow warning sticker inside your electrical panel indicating the pipes can’t be used as an electrical ground because they contain aluminum. If your home was built or renovated anywhere in El Dorado, Placer, or Sacramento County between 1995 and 2007, there’s a significant chance you have Kitec. We can confirm it for you with a free inspection.

Most Kitec repipes in El Dorado County range from $5,000 to $30,000 depending on your home’s size, how many bathrooms you have, pipe accessibility, and whether you choose copper or PEX replacement piping. A typical one to three bedroom home with standard layout usually falls in the middle of that range, including all the drywall patching, taping, and texturing. Larger homes or properties with complex plumbing systems cost more because there’s simply more pipe to replace. The final price also depends on how easy it is to access your existing pipes. Homes with crawl spaces or unfinished basements cost less than homes where we need to access everything through finished walls. We provide free estimates with transparent, flat-rate pricing so you know exactly what you’ll pay before we start. No hourly billing and no surprise charges after we’ve already begun work.

No, and here’s why that’s actually good news for your wallet long-term. Repairing Kitec is not a permanent solution because the defects exist throughout the entire system, not just at one leak point. The brass fittings are all corroding from the inside out through dezincification, and every section of pipe has the same temperature limitations that caused the problem in the first place. If you patch one leak today, another section will fail next month, and another after that. Homeowners who try to repair Kitec piece by piece end up spending more on multiple emergency repairs than they would have spent on one complete repipe. Plus you’re living with constant anxiety about when the next burst will happen. Industry experts anticipate Kitec will eventually reach a 100% failure rate because the defects are universal to every installation. The question isn’t whether your Kitec will fail, but when. Complete replacement lets you control the timing instead of dealing with an emergency flood at the worst possible moment.

Most residential Kitec repipes take one to two days for the actual plumbing work, with an additional day for wall patching and restoration. You can absolutely stay in your home during the entire process and maintain your normal daily routine. We work efficiently to minimize disruption, and we always have your water back on by the end of each work day so you can use bathrooms, kitchen, and laundry normally each evening. The process starts with strategically accessing your pipes through small openings rather than removing entire wall sections. We remove all the defective Kitec piping and install new copper or PEX lines throughout your home’s plumbing system. Every connection gets pressure tested before we move to the next section. Then we handle drywall repair, taping, and texture matching so your walls look like we were never there. You’ll just need to arrange final paint touch-ups after we complete the structural restoration. Most customers are surprised by how quickly the project moves and how little it disrupts their lives.

Unfortunately, most homeowners insurance policies will not cover the cost of replacing Kitec plumbing because insurance typically doesn’t cover damage from faulty materials or workmanship, only sudden and accidental water damage. Some policies might cover the water damage if a Kitec pipe bursts, but they won’t pay for replacing the defective piping system itself. The class action lawsuit settlement that provided compensation to affected homeowners closed to new claims in January 2020, so that option no longer exists either. However, having Kitec in your home definitely affects your insurance situation. Many insurance companies charge higher premiums for homes with Kitec plumbing due to the elevated risk of catastrophic failure, and some insurers refuse to provide coverage at all until you replace the system. Once you complete a Kitec repipe with proper materials, those insurance complications disappear and your home becomes normally insurable again. We recommend calling your insurance provider to understand your specific policy terms and to let them know once you’ve completed the replacement.

Kitec failures are catastrophic, not gradual. When Kitec pipes fail, they don’t develop slow leaks you can catch with a bucket. The pipes burst open completely, releasing the full force of your home’s water pressure until someone shuts off the main water supply. This can flood your home with hundreds of gallons in minutes, causing extensive damage to floors, walls, furniture, electronics, and personal belongings. The water damage often leads to mold growth if not addressed immediately, and you may face structural repairs to your foundation, framing, or drywall. Insurance may cover some of the water damage itself, but as mentioned earlier, they typically won’t pay to replace the Kitec system that caused the problem. The total cost of emergency repairs, water damage restoration, mold remediation, and eventual Kitec replacement far exceeds the cost of proactive repiping. If you suspect your Kitec is failing, look for warning signs like sudden drops in water pressure, water temperature fluctuations, discolored water, or white crusty residue forming around brass fittings. If you see pipes that are bulging or turning black, that’s an emergency. Contact us immediately for same-day service before complete failure floods your home.
01

Inspection and Estimate

We verify you have Kitec, assess your entire system, and provide transparent pricing before any work begins. Free estimates, no pressure.

02

Complete System Replacement

Licensed technicians remove all Kitec piping and install durable copper or PEX throughout your home, typically completed in 1-2 days.

03

Testing and Restoration

We test every connection, patch all access points, and ensure your home looks like we were never there except for reliable plumbing.

Get Fixed

Ready to Fix That Plumbing Problem?

Contact Murray Plumbing now for straight answers and honest pricing. No pressure tactics, just real help from experienced El Dorado County, CA plumbers who actually care about getting it right.

530-499-2223 Get a Free Quote
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