Plumbing bills come from failures, and the part that failed is rarely the expensive bit. What costs money is reaching it: digging a yard, breaking a slab, pulling 150 feet of pipe out of a well, or drying a basement after sewage. This section prices each of those jobs, so you can judge a quote before you sign it. Start with whatever has gone wrong; if nothing has yet, start with the water heater, the one job most homes can plan for.
General information, not professional, legal or financial advice. Cost figures are published estimates and worked examples, not quotes. A licensed local contractor and your building department decide what your home needs.
Start with what failed
| What you see | What to find out first | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Water around the base of the water heater, or no hot water | Whether the tank itself leaks or a fitting, valve or part has failed | Water heaters |
| Sewage coming up a floor drain or the lowest toilet | Avoid contact, get the line cleared, then put it on camera | Sewer backups |
| Slow drains and gurgling all over the house | What a camera inspection shows along the line | Sewer lines |
| A high water bill, a warm patch of floor or the sound of running water | Whether the water meter moves when nothing is running | Slab leaks |
| No water or poor pressure on a private well | Whether the switch or tank failed, before the pump is pulled | Well pumps |
What drives the price
Across this section, five things move the bill more than the part does.
- Access. Under open lawn, digging a sewer trench can cost less than lining; under a driveway or patio, trenchless can save money. A slab leak under kitchen cabinets or old tile can cost more to cover up than to fix.
- Scope. “Reroute” can mean one line or every pipe in the slab; “replace the pump” can include the pipe, wire and tank.
- Fit. A like-for-like water heater reuses the gas line, vent and wiring; tankless or a heat pump may not.
- Timing. Many of these failures come without warning, and same-day, night or weekend calls can cost more. Our build-ups use ordinary hours.
- What’s left out. Permits, yard restoration, flooring, drywall and sales tax are often missing from published figures, and sometimes from quotes.
Water heaters: replace or switch
Angi puts a like-for-like tank replacement at $881 to $1,826, with an average of $1,348, and a tankless replacement at $1,400 to $3,900 (updated 16 October 2026). Our line-by-line build-up for a 50-gallon gas tank, permit included, comes to about $1,486. A leak from the tank itself usually means a new heater, but a failed element, thermostat or igniter may be a repair: Angi puts tank repairs at $100 to $500.
Running cost is the other half. In our examples, a standard electric tank costs $1,306 to put in and $608 a year to run, so over 10 years it costs more to run than to buy and fit. A heat pump tank costs more up front but ends within $10 of a gas tank over the same 10 years. The water heater replacement cost calculator prices your own swap and its running cost.
Tankless depends on what the house needs to take it. In our example, with no gas line or electrical work, the unit costs $1,508 more to put in than a new gas tank and saves about $97 a year in gas, so the energy savings alone take about 15.5 years to repay it. Our water heater guide prices the same switch with a $1,500 allowance for venting and a bigger gas line, and it comes to $4,741. At 84 gallons a day, tankless came out ahead. The tankless water heater cost calculator runs that comparison for your house.
Sewer lines and backups
A backup and a failing line are often one problem seen at different times. When sewage has come into the house, expect three bills: clearing the line, cleanup, and putting the room back. Our sewer backup repair cost guide builds all three for a 400-square-foot finished basement and gets about $5,000 to $9,500, with the flooring you choose moving the total most. Speed matters: EPA says wet materials dried within 24 to 48 hours will, in most cases, not grow mold. Insurance often pays nothing unless backup coverage was added before it happened, and FEMA says flood insurance covers sewer backup only if it directly results from flooding. The guide also prices a backwater valve.
If the camera then finds roots, cracks or a broken pipe, the job becomes a repair or a replacement. Angi’s average is $3,319, with a normal range of $1,388 to $5,323, from 1,037 projects that include partial repairs (updated 29 October 2026). Our build-up comes to about $4,080 to dig up and replace 50 feet under a lawn, and about $1,660 to fix one broken section. The sewer line replacement cost guide compares spot repairs, lining, pipe bursting and digging, and explains why the camera video, not the contractor’s preferred method, should decide. Who owns the part under the street depends on your city.
Leaks under a slab
Angi puts the average slab leak repair at $2,280, with most homeowners paying $630 to $4,400 including finding the leak (updated 22 September 2026). After the leak is found, the route to the pipe sets most of the price: break the concrete above the leak, reroute the line through the walls and attic, line the old pipe from inside, or tunnel under from outside.
Our build-up comes to about $1,170 for breaking the slab and about $1,820 for rerouting one line, both before new flooring. The floor is the hidden cost. Before anyone cuts concrete, EPA’s WaterSense program suggests reading the water meter before and after two hours with no water in use. The slab leak repair cost guide covers that check, the four methods and post-tensioned slabs. If you also see new cracks or sloping floors, our foundation inspection cost guide explains an independent assessment.
Well pumps
Angi puts a typical well pump replacement at $973 to $2,822, with an average of $1,897 from 1,339 projects (updated 31 August 2026). Our build-up comes to about $1,210 for swapping a 1/2 horsepower submersible at 150 feet, and about $2,160 when the drop pipe, wire and pressure tank are replaced too.
Pulling the pump is the expensive part, so ask what was tested first. A failed $37.99 pressure switch or $209.99 tank (retail prices) costs far less than a pull. The well pump replacement cost guide prices each part and pump type, and notes that Connecticut’s health department lists pump replacement as a reason to disinfect and test the well before drinking the water. A sump pump that drains a basement is a different job; see our sump pump replacement cost guide.
How these numbers are built
No government agency publishes installed plumbing prices. Each guide sets the published estimates side by side, dated and unaveraged, because each counts a different mix of jobs, then builds one job line by line. Labor starts from the BLS median wage for plumbers, $30.67 an hour in May 2025. Construction employers paid $51.96 an hour in total compensation for every $36.13 in wages in June 2026 (BLS), so we multiply wages by 1.44. Labor hours and a 20% overhead and profit line are our assumptions, labelled on every page. The full method is on how we estimate costs.
Before you sign a quote
- See the evidence. Ask for the sewer camera video, the leak detection report naming the line, or the readings that showed the well pump failed.
- Name the parts. Model numbers and sizes, and which parts are new or reused.
- Ask for the alternative. A spot repair against a whole line, a slab repair against a reroute, a tank against tankless.
- Restoration. Who patches the floor, walls or yard, and whether it’s in the price.
- Permit and license. Who pulls the permit and what it costs. Most states and some localities require plumbers to be licensed (BLS); your state board can confirm one.
- Warranty. Labor warranty in writing, separate from the part’s.
Safety
If you smell gas, leave the house now. PHMSA advises not switching lights on or off or using a phone near the smell, and calling 911 or the gas utility from well away. Carbon monoxide has no smell; CPSC advises CO alarms on every level of the home and outside sleeping areas.
If sewage is involved, CDC advises rubber boots, rubber gloves and goggles, keeping children and pets away until cleanup is done, and throwing out drywall and insulation contaminated with sewage. These guides give no repair steps: gas lines, slabs, trenches and pump circuits are work for licensed contractors.
Figures come from the guides linked above, where each is cited in full. CostPlain has no crew, does no jobs and takes no referral fees. Prices and rules change, and local quotes vary. Sources checked on 3 November 2026.
