- Leaks don't stand a chance.
Cast Iron Pipe Lining in Gainesville, FL
Cast iron does not last forever. We reline it in place, no jackhammer.
Rather text? Send a photo of the problem to 352-377-9447 and we’ll tell you what it sounds like.
Two year parts and labor warranty
Manufacturer warranty on top. NuFlow Certified Contractor. Licensed Florida Plumbing Contractor CFC1430748.
Realistic cast iron lifespan in Florida conditions
40
to 60 yrs
Gainesville homes most likely on original cast iron
Pre-
1975
Design life of a properly cured liner
50
+ yrs
Cast iron pipe lining in Gainesville rebuilds a corroded drain line from the inside instead of digging it out. The pipe is cleaned back to bare metal, then an epoxy saturated liner is pulled in, inflated and cured, leaving a smooth jointless pipe with a 50 year design life. First Choice Plumbing is a NuFlow Certified Contractor serving Alachua County.
- Why cast iron fails here
Why does cast iron fail so fast in Florida?
Cast iron gets rated at 50 to 100 years on paper. In Florida the honest working range is closer to 40 to 60, and plenty of lines here start giving trouble earlier than that.
Here is the mechanism, in plain terms. Waste sitting in a drain gives off hydrogen sulfide gas. That gas meets moisture on the upper wall of the pipe and turns into a weak sulfuric acid, and that acid eats the iron. At the same time, everything that runs across the bottom of the pipe wears a groove into it. Plumbers call that channeling. So the pipe is being attacked from the top by acid and worn from the bottom by flow, and the middle is what is left holding your house up. Add heat, humidity and a high water table, which is every day around here, and the clock runs faster.
What you notice is not the chemistry. What you notice is that the same bathroom backs up twice in a season. That the slow drain you snaked in March is slow again in June. That there is a smell you cannot place. That there is a soft or damp spot on the floor. Or that a home inspector shines a light at your cleanout and starts writing.
The hard part is that all of it is under a slab, under a driveway, under a finished floor. You are being told there is a serious problem in a place you have never laid eyes on, and then you are handed a number with a lot of zeros.
Here is what is actually at stake. Snaking a channeled pipe does not fix it, it just buys a few months and takes a little more metal with it each time. Left alone, cast iron does not quietly hold on. It opens up. Then you are not paying for a drain repair, you are paying for a drain repair plus water damage under your floor, and you are having that conversation with an insurance carrier instead of with a plumber.
Not sure whether it is the pipe or something else? Start with what a camera and a leak locate can tell you.
- Line it, repair it, or replace it
Can every cast iron line be lined?
No. And we would rather say that here than after you have put money down.
A liner needs two things from the old pipe: a path to travel and a wall to press against. Corroded is fine. Ugly is fine. What matters is whether the pipe still holds its round shape and its slope.
Good candidates for lining: cast iron that is cracked, rusted or pitted but still round; pinholes and rust holes; channeling along the bottom where the wall is thin but the pipe is intact; roots at the hub joints; heavy scale that keeps causing backups; and any line where reaching it means opening a slab, a driveway, a parking lot or a finished floor.
Not candidates, at least not before other work: a section that has collapsed, because there is no path left to pull a liner through. A belly, meaning a low spot where water stands, because a liner follows the shape of the pipe it is in and will not lift a sagging line back into grade. A severe offset at a joint where the halves no longer line up enough for the liner to seat across. A pipe that has lost its round cross section entirely.
When we find one of those, the honest answer is a spot repair on the bad section, or replacing that one run, and often it is a small dig on the worst spot plus lining everything else. That is usually a smaller and cheaper conversation than the whole-house replacement somebody else quoted, and we will walk you through the options with the footage in front of you. Pipe repair
There is a third answer nobody likes to hear from a plumber, which is that sometimes your cast iron is fine and the problem is a clog, roots at one joint, or grease. If that is what the camera shows, we clear it and you go on with your life. Drain clearing
This is why we camera the line before we quote and why we will not price a lining job over the phone. Anybody who will is guessing with your money. For the method itself, see Trenchless Pipe Lining (NuDrain) in Gainesville, FL.
- $69 to come out
- Waived on larger jobs. Licensed CFC1430748. NuFlow Certified Contractor.
- Camera first, then a price
- We will not price a lining job over the phone. You see the footage, then you see the number.
- Meet the owner
Who is doing the work?
We are First Choice Plumbing, a locally owned shop out of Hawthorne. Will Harrod holds the Florida plumbing contractor license, CFC1430748, and the company is a NuFlow Certified Contractor, which is what lets us install NuDrain. Will walks the lining estimates himself, so the person telling you what your pipe needs is the person whose license is on it. Big Mike runs service and drains and has seen the inside of more cast iron in this county than he cares to count. Ben is coming up fast. Kim answers the phone and does the dispatching.
Lining cast iron is a trade inside a trade. It is easy to sell and easy to do badly, and when it is done badly nobody finds out for years. We would rather turn a lining job down than put a liner over a pipe that needed something else. Leaks don’t stand a chance.
- Will Harrod, owner. Holds the license, CFC1430748, and walks the lining estimates himself.
- Big Mike runs service and drains.
- Ben is coming up fast.
- Kim answers the phone and does the dispatching.
- Do you actually have cast iron?
How do I know if my house has cast iron drain pipes?
Four checks, and you can do the first three yourself in about ten minutes.
1. Check the age of the house.
This is the fastest answer. Cast iron was the standard drain pipe in Florida homes into the early and middle 1970s, and PVC took over after that. Gainesville did a lot of its growing in the 1960s and 1970s, so a very large share of the houses in the older parts of town are sitting on original cast iron. If your house is from 1975 or earlier and nobody has repiped the drains, assume cast iron until a camera says otherwise.
2. Look under a sink and at the cleanout.
Cast iron is thick, dull dark gray, and it is not smooth like plastic. Where it comes out of the wall or the floor you will often see rust staining, a hub and lead joint, or a heavy threaded cleanout plug. PVC is white or off-white and light. ABS is black and light. If you have a mobile home, that black drain pipe is usually ABS, not cast iron.
3. Try a magnet.
A refrigerator magnet sticks to cast iron. It will not stick to PVC, ABS or copper. It is not sophisticated and it works.
4. Put a camera down it.
This is the only check that tells you the condition, not just the material, and condition is the entire decision. A camera shows how much wall is left, whether the bottom has channeled out, whether roots are in the joints and whether the line still holds its grade.
Plenty of houses have a mix. The main line under the slab is cast iron, the branch somebody redid during a 1990s bathroom remodel is PVC. That is normal and it changes the scope, which is another reason we look before we quote.
Not sure what you are looking at? Send Kim a photo by text at (352) 377-9447 and we will tell you what it is. No charge for that.
- Inspections, insurance and selling the house
What does cast iron mean for my insurance or my home sale?
A lot of people land on this page because of a letter, not a backup.
Florida carriers have gotten strict about older plumbing. On an older home, a four point inspection looks at roof, electrical, HVAC and plumbing, and plumbing now includes the drain lines. When an inspector writes up cast iron in poor condition, carriers commonly ask for more information before they will write or renew the policy, and what they usually want is a plumber’s scope of the line showing its actual condition.
That is the part worth hearing clearly. In a lot of cases the ask is documentation, not demolition. A camera report on your drains costs a fraction of a repipe, and sometimes it shows the line is in better shape than the inspection assumed.
Selling works the same way. A buyer’s inspector flags cast iron, the buyer asks for a credit sized by fear rather than by facts, and the deal stalls. Footage of the actual pipe, plus a written scope of what it would take to line or repair it, turns a scary unknown into a line item both sides can negotiate.
What we can do and what we cannot. We can put a camera down your line, document what is there with footage and photos, and give you a written scope and price. We do that on insurance-driven leaks all the time. Insurance claim leak detection What we will not do is tell you what any carrier will accept, or argue a claim for you. That is between you, your agent and your adjuster, and anybody promising you otherwise is selling something.
Need the drains scoped for an inspection or a closing? Book a camera inspection.
- What to expect
What happens when you call us about cast iron?
We come look, for $69.
Kim answers the phone and gets you on the schedule, and she batches the route so your window means something. We find the cleanouts, run a camera through the line and find out what you are actually dealing with. You watch the footage with us. You get a written scope with the options laid out, lining, spot repair, replacement or nothing at all. On a larger job that $69 comes off the ticket.
We clean the pipe.
Descaling the cast iron back to bare metal is its own step and its own day, sometimes two on a badly built up line. We do not rush it and we do not skip it, because everything about whether this job lasts is decided right here.
We line it and we prove it.
The epoxy saturated liner is pulled into position inside the old pipe, inflated against the wall and cured in place. What is left is a smooth, jointless pipe inside your cast iron, with no hub joints for roots to find. Most residential runs are back in service the same day. Then the camera goes back down and you get the after footage for your records. It is your pipe, so it is your video.
Permitting: repairing or altering a drainage system generally requires a permit here. Unincorporated Alachua County permits through the county Building Division, and the City of Gainesville and the other municipalities permit through their own building offices. We pull it.
Our work carries a two year parts and labor warranty, with the liner manufacturer’s warranty on top of that. And we patch every hole we cut, by a professional drywall contractor, on the jobs where we have to open something.
Financing is available on jobs over $500. Financing
- The difference is in the details
The difference is in the details
| What matters on a cast iron job | First Choice Plumbing | Typical Statewide Lining Outfit or Big-Name Brand |
|---|---|---|
| Whether lining is even right for your pipe | We camera it first and tell you when it is not | Lining is the product, so lining is the answer |
| Cleaning before lining | Full descale back to bare metal, priced as its own step | A quick jet and a liner over the top of the scale |
| Who writes your estimate | The owner, Will Harrod, license CFC1430748, on site | A commissioned rep who does not hold the license |
| Cost to find out | $69, waived on larger jobs, published right here | No price published anywhere on the site |
| Where the crew comes from | Hawthorne. Same faces on the follow-up call | A traveling crew routed in from another market |
| Proof the work is right | Before and after camera footage handed to you | You are told it went fine |
| Warranty | Two years parts and labor, manufacturer warranty on the liner | Commonly one year labor |
| If the answer is a clog and not a repipe | We clear it and go home | You still get the repipe quote |
Talk to the person who will actually be on your job. Financing available on jobs over $500. Financing
- The step that decides the job
Does cast iron have to be cleaned before it is lined?
Yes, and on cast iron it is not optional. This is the single biggest difference between a lining job that lasts and one that fails in five years.
Decades of rust, grease and mineral scale build up in layers on the inside of a cast iron pipe. We have opened four inch lines that were running through an opening about the size of a soda can. Epoxy does not bond to that. It bonds to pipe. So before any liner goes in, the pipe gets descaled with a specialized machine that runs chains and diamond bits down the line and mills the inside back to bare metal. Will’s description is the honest one: when it is done right, the inside of that old cast iron looks shiny new again.
It is worth knowing that this is a job, not a service call. Clearing a clog is an hour and a half. Descaling a heavily built up cast iron line is a day, sometimes two, with the right machine and somebody who has done it before. We price it as its own step, on purpose, so you can see what you are paying for. Drain descaling
If a company offers to line your cast iron without cleaning it first, or quotes descaling as a quick jetting pass, you have your answer about them. Jetting moves debris. It does not take scale off cast iron.
- What it looks like done right
What it looks like when it is done
The terrazzo is still your terrazzo. The tile is still your tile. The driveway never got opened and the oak in the front yard never got touched.
Under the slab, where the rusted-out pipe used to be, there is a smooth pipe with no hub joints and nothing left for scale to grab. The back bathroom drains the way it did when the house was new. You stop keeping the drain guy’s number in your phone. When the next inspection comes around, you have footage, a written scope and a warranty instead of a shrug.
And the house you already paid for is still in one piece.
Find out what your cast iron actually needs before anybody breaks a floor.
One visit, $69, a camera down the line, and you will know what is left of that pipe, whether lining fits, what it takes and what it costs. If the answer is a clog and not a repipe, that is what we will tell you, and you will still have the footage. Book Online
First Choice Plumbing | 6940 SE 221st St, Hawthorne, FL 32640 | Licensed Florida Plumbing Contractor CFC1430748 | Leaks don’t stand a chance.
40 to 60 years
Realistic cast iron lifespan in Florida conditions
Pre-1975
Gainesville homes most likely on original cast iron
50+ years
Design life of a properly cured liner
2 years
Our parts and labor warranty, manufacturer warranty on top
- Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
On paper cast iron gets rated at 50 to 100 years. In Florida the realistic working range is closer to 40 to 60, and some lines start causing trouble sooner than that. Heat, humidity and a high water table all push it. If your house is from the 1970s or earlier, the pipe is at or past that window.
Start with the age of the house. Cast iron was standard in Florida homes into the mid 1970s and PVC took over after that. Then look under a sink or at the cleanout for thick dull gray pipe with rust staining, and try a refrigerator magnet, which sticks to cast iron and not to PVC or ABS. A camera is the only way to know the condition rather than just the material.
Repeat backups in the same fixture, drains that get slow again a few months after being snaked, a smell you cannot trace, damp or warm spots on the floor, and rust flakes or dark water at a cleanout. On camera it looks like heavy scale, pitting, a groove worn along the bottom of the pipe and roots at the hub joints.
In most cases yes, as long as the pipe still holds its round shape and its slope. We clean the line back to bare metal, then pull an epoxy saturated liner through, inflate it and cure it in place, which leaves a new jointless pipe inside the old one. Collapsed sections, bellies and severe offset joints have to be repaired or replaced first.
For the right pipe, it is the better trade. A properly cleaned and cured liner is designed for 50 years or more and it removes the joints, which is where roots and leaks usually start. New PVC in a new trench lasts longer on paper, but it also means breaking the slab, opening floors, and paying a second bill to put the house back. When replacement is genuinely the right call, we say so.
Yes, and on cast iron it is the step that decides the job. Epoxy bonds to pipe, not to rust and grease, so the line has to be descaled back to bare metal with a machine that mills the inside. Expect a day, sometimes two, on a heavily built up line. If someone offers to line cast iron without descaling it, that is your answer about them.
That is up to your carrier and we will not tell you otherwise. What we can tell you is that Florida carriers and four point inspections now look closely at drain lines on older homes, and that what they usually ask for is documentation of the pipe's condition. We can camera the line and give you footage, photos and a written scope. What your carrier does with it is between you, your agent and your adjuster.
It depends on the length of the run, the diameter, how much cleaning the pipe needs and how we get access to it. We do not price lining over the phone, because a number given blind is a number that changes later. It is $69 for us to come out, camera the line and put a real written price in your hand, and that $69 comes off the job on larger work.
- FAQ
Frequently asked questions
On paper cast iron gets rated at 50 to 100 years. In Florida the realistic working range is closer to 40 to 60, and some lines start causing trouble sooner than that. Heat, humidity and a high water table all push it. If your house is from the 1970s or earlier, the pipe is at or past that window.
Start with the age of the house. Cast iron was standard in Florida homes into the mid 1970s and PVC took over after that. Then look under a sink or at the cleanout for thick dull gray pipe with rust staining, and try a refrigerator magnet, which sticks to cast iron and not to PVC or ABS. A camera is the only way to know the condition rather than just the material.
Repeat backups in the same fixture, drains that get slow again a few months after being snaked, a smell you cannot trace, damp or warm spots on the floor, and rust flakes or dark water at a cleanout. On camera it looks like heavy scale, pitting, a groove worn along the bottom of the pipe and roots at the hub joints.
In most cases yes, as long as the pipe still holds its round shape and its slope. We clean the line back to bare metal, then pull an epoxy saturated liner through, inflate it and cure it in place, which leaves a new jointless pipe inside the old one. Collapsed sections, bellies and severe offset joints have to be repaired or replaced first.
For the right pipe, it is the better trade. A properly cleaned and cured liner is designed for 50 years or more and it removes the joints, which is where roots and leaks usually start. New PVC in a new trench lasts longer on paper, but it also means breaking the slab, opening floors, and paying a second bill to put the house back. When replacement is genuinely the right call, we say so.
Yes, and on cast iron it is the step that decides the job. Epoxy bonds to pipe, not to rust and grease, so the line has to be descaled back to bare metal with a machine that mills the inside. Expect a day, sometimes two, on a heavily built up line. If someone offers to line cast iron without descaling it, that is your answer about them.
That is up to your carrier and we will not tell you otherwise. What we can tell you is that Florida carriers and four point inspections now look closely at drain lines on older homes, and that what they usually ask for is documentation of the pipe's condition. We can camera the line and give you footage, photos and a written scope. What your carrier does with it is between you, your agent and your adjuster.
It depends on the length of the run, the diameter, how much cleaning the pipe needs and how we get access to it. We do not price lining over the phone, because a number given blind is a number that changes later. It is $69 for us to come out, camera the line and put a real written price in your hand, and that $69 comes off the job on larger work.
40 to 60 years
Realistic cast iron lifespan in Florida conditions
Pre-1975
Gainesville homes most likely on original cast iron
50+ years
Design life of a properly cured liner
2 years
Our parts and labor warranty, manufacturer warranty on top
- Where we work
Where do you line cast iron?
Across Greater Alachua County and the rural areas around it. Gainesville, Hawthorne, Alachua, Newberry, Micanopy, Waldo, Melrose, Keystone Heights and the surrounding county.
Most of this work sits in the older parts of town. The neighborhoods that filled in through the fifties, sixties and seventies are where the original cast iron is, and so are the older commercial corridors, where a restaurant or an office building cannot take the floor apart to fix a drain. Commercial plumbing
If your property is out past the county line, call anyway and tell us where you are. Some of it we cover, and some of it we will point you somewhere better.
Don’t see your town? We likely still come out — call 352-377-9447
- Leaks don't stand a chance.
Tell us what's going on and we'll take it from there
You get a real person, a $69 visit, a flat price before we start, and a company that patches what it cuts and answers the phone when you call back. If a smaller fix is the right call, we’ll tell you that too.
First Choice Plumbing is a locally owned, owner led plumbing company working Gainesville, Hawthorne and Greater Alachua County. Leak detection, repipes, water heaters, drains, trenchless lining, well water filtration and septic. We find it, we fix it, we guarantee it.
Florida Certified Plumbing Contractor CFC1430748
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First Choice Plumbing
6940 SE 221st St
Hawthorne, FL 32640 - Office Mon to Fri, 8 to 5. Emergency line 24/7.
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