Pinhole, joint failure, or freeze burst—calculate the full cost to repair a pipe leak by pipe material, repair method, location, and access so your quote covers demo, repair, and restoration before the water damage compounds.
Pinhole leaks in copper pipe are caused by corrosion — either from aggressive water chemistry (low pH, high chloramine content) or electrolytic action from dissimilar metals. If you find one pinhole in a 20-year-old copper supply system, the entire run is susceptible. Patch the pinhole and the customer calls you back in 6 months with another one. The correct conversation is: "This is a systemic issue. I can patch this today, and you should budget for repiping within 2–3 years." Offer to repipe now at a price. Not every customer will buy it, but every customer who does saves you the warranty argument when the next pinhole appears.
A pipe leak under a concrete slab requires leak detection (often electronic), jackhammering or saw-cutting the slab, excavating to the pipe, making the repair, backfilling, and concrete patching. The plumbing repair itself may take 2 hours. The slab work takes 4–8 hours and requires concrete materials. Many plumbers quote only the pipe repair and sub the concrete work without adding it to their quote — then the customer gets a second bill for concrete restoration they weren't expecting. Price slab leak repairs as a complete scope: pipe repair + concrete removal + backfill + concrete restoration. Or exclude concrete explicitly in writing.
Galvanized steel supply pipe has a service life of 40–70 years. If the home has original galvanized supply lines and you're repairing a leak, you're repairing a pipe that's failing globally — the interior has likely built up corrosion deposits that restrict flow and the exterior is developing leak points. Your repair warranty on a galvanized system should be limited: "Repair warranted 90 days — full system replacement recommended." Put this on the invoice. A galvanized repair that fails again in 8 months is not your failure to fix the pipe; it's a system that's past its service life. Document your recommendation.
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Get the Plumber's Kit →Pipe leak repair pricing depends heavily on access — a leak behind drywall costs far more than one under a sink. This calculator prices the repair based on pipe type, access difficulty, repair method, and any restoration work required. It also accounts for water damage assessment time and the diagnostic work involved in locating a hidden leak.