Plumbing in New York

New York City's water supply is unusual for a major American city: it comes largely from unfiltered surface reservoirs in the Catskills and delivers naturally soft water, which sounds like an advantage but is actually mildly corrosive and requires ongoing chemical treatment to keep it from leaching lead and copper out of older pipes and solder joints. Multi story buildings add a layer most other places never deal with: apartment towers rely on rooftop gravity tanks, the wooden water towers visible across the skyline, along with pressure zone systems and long vertical risers that need periodic inspection and repair to keep water pressure consistent from the lobby to the top floor. Much of the city's prewar housing stock also still runs on original horizontal cast iron drain lines beneath basement floors, which corrode and settle differently than newer copper and PEX systems. New York has no single statewide plumbing license, so plumbers are licensed city by city, with New York City's Department of Buildings running its own separate master plumber program. Call +1 (866) 752-3641 to describe what you're dealing with in New York, and we'll help connect you with an independent local provider who covers your area, when service is available.