A lot of Denver's housing was built before anyone alive today was born. That's what makes the neighborhoods great — and it's why the plumbing in them needs someone who has seen it before.
Old Denver houses, old Denver pipes
In neighborhoods like Highland, Sunnyside, Berkeley, Park Hill, and around City Park, it's common to find clay tile sewer laterals, cast-iron drain stacks, and a mix of galvanized, copper, and whatever the last three owners added. Each of those materials fails in its own way, and the fix for one is the wrong fix for another.
In Denver, the sewer line from your house to the city main is generally the property owner's responsibility. When a clay lateral under a hundred-year-old tree starts backing up, roots are the usual cause, and clearing and root cutting get it flowing again. If it keeps coming back quickly, that's a sign the pipe itself may be damaged.
Common Denver calls
- Recurring main line backups from roots in clay laterals
- Slow drains from scale buildup in old cast-iron lines
- Water heaters squeezed into tight basement utility rooms
- Leaks at old shutoff valves that won't fully close anymore
- Fixture and remodel work in bungalows and Denver Squares
Lead service lines
Some older Denver homes still have a lead water service line. Denver Water runs a lead service line replacement program for its customers — if you're not sure what your line is made of, check with Denver Water first. We can look at what enters your house at the meter and tell you what we see.
How we schedule Denver calls
We're based in the Denver metro, so most of the city is a short drive. Some calls are scheduled by appointment. If water is actively leaking, call — we'll tell you honestly how fast we can get there, and if someone else can get there faster, we'll say so.
Denver plumbing at a glance
| Water provider | Denver Water |
|---|---|
| Water hardness | About 105 mg/L on average in 2025 (roughly 6 grains per gallon), ranging from 55 to 124 mg/L. Moderately hard, and a little harder in winter. |
| Homes | Median year built 1975, and about 1 in 6 homes dates to 1939 or earlier |
| Lead service lines | Denver Water is replacing them at no direct cost to customers: 36,816 replaced from 2020 through 2025 |
| 2026 watering rules | Lawn watering and spray irrigation ended Sept. 30, 2026. Sprinklers stay off into spring 2027 until Denver Water says when lawn watering can resume. Rules by provider → |
| Toilet rebate | Up to $100 for a WaterSense toilet averaging 0.8 gallons per flush or less |
Sources: Denver Water 2026 water quality report; Census ACS 2019–2023 via Point2Homes; Denver Water lead program annual report; Denver Water drought rules; Denver Water toilet rebate. Checked October 2026.
Sprinkler blowouts in Denver
Denver yards run from small bungalow lots in Highland and Sunnyside to big lawns in Park Hill. A two-zone system can crack a backflow preventer just as easily as a ten-zone one, so even small systems need every zone cleared and the backflow drained.
When to book: Book from late September through October, before the first hard freeze. Sprinkler blowouts in Denver →
Backflow testing in Denver
Denver Water requires assemblies on commercial, irrigation, fire, and other services to be tested at installation and every year after, and it sends a reminder 30 days before the test is due. We test, tag the assembly, and email the report to Denver Water.
First test $95 per device for new customers. Backflow testing in Denver →
What we do in Denver
- Drain cleaning and main sewer line clearing, including root cutting
- Water heater repair and replacement, tank and tankless
- Leak detection and repair, including slab leaks
- Frozen and burst pipe repair, same day for active leaks
- Backflow testing and repair, with the report for your water provider
- Sprinkler blowouts and spring startups
- Toilets, faucets, disposals, and shower valves
- Water softeners and whole-home filtration
Nearby
We also serve Cherry Creek, Thornton, Westminster, Aurora, Englewood, and the rest of the Denver metro. See every city we serve →