How we measured this
The City of Orlando publishes every permit it issues, and each record carries the declared value of the work.(source: City of Orlando Open Data, 2026) We pulled all plumbing permits issued from 2023 through 2025 whose job description is a repipe or re-pipe, removed duplicate sub-permits on the same parcel in the same month, and dropped values under $1,500 or over $200,000.
That leaves 808 real jobs, priced by licensed plumbers and filed with the city. The median is $4,995. A quarter came in under $3,870 and a quarter over $6,770, with the tenth and ninetieth percentiles at $2,495 and $9,255.
One caveat specific to repipes: the data mixes partial and whole-house jobs, because the permit record doesn't always say which. Read the range as "what repipe permits are worth here", not "what a whole-house repipe costs".
| Year issued | Permits counted |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 254 |
| 2024 | 329 |
| 2025 | 225 |
Plumbing permits described as a repipe or re-pipe. Deduplicated by parcel and issue month; declared values under $1,500 or over $200,000 excluded. 2025 is a partial reflection of the year as filings continue to post.
Why costs move so much here
The spread between $2,495 and $9,255 in that permit data isn't noise. These are the things that decide where your job lands.
Whether it's a partial or a whole-house repipe
Largest single swingA repipe of the wet wall behind two bathrooms is a different job from replacing every supply line in the house. The permit data mixes both, which is a large part of why the middle half of jobs spans several thousand dollars. Ask bidders to state the number of fixtures and the number of bathrooms they are repiping.
Slab vs. attic routing
UpMost Central Florida homes sit on a slab, so plumbers usually reroute new lines up and through the attic rather than break concrete. That is generally the cheaper path, but it means more drywall cutting at every drop. A house where lines must come through the slab is the expensive version.
Drywall repair and paint — included or not
Watch this lineA repipe opens a hole at every fixture drop. Some bids include patching and texture, some patch but don't paint, and some hand you an open wall. Two bids thousands apart are often the same pipe work with different finishing. Make each one say drywall repaired, textured, and painted — or not.
CPVC vs. PEX vs. copper
VariesPEX is the common choice locally because it runs with fewer fittings and flexes through tight attic spaces. Copper costs more in both material and labor. The material choice belongs in writing on the bid, along with the manufacturer.
Polybutylene in older Orlando neighborhoods
Often forces the jobHomes built roughly between the late 1970s and mid-1990s in this metro can still have polybutylene supply lines. Insurers increasingly decline or surcharge houses that still have it, which is why many Orlando repipes are triggered by an insurance inspection rather than a leak.(source: Florida Legislature, 2024)
Hard water
Shortens the clockCentral Florida draws from the Floridan aquifer and the water is hard. Scale accumulation shortens the practical life of fixtures, water heaters, and older galvanized lines, which is part of why repipes here come sooner than in softer-water metros.(source: Orange County Utilities, 2026)
Occupied vs. vacant during work
Up if occupiedWater goes off in stages. A crew working around a family in the house, or staging work to keep one bathroom live, takes longer than one working an empty house.
Get three quotes, itemized the same way
Bids are only comparable when they describe the same job. Ask every plumber for these lines in writing.
- Number of fixtures and bathrooms included, stated explicitly
- Pipe material and manufacturer (PEX, CPVC, copper)
- Whether every supply line is replaced, or only named sections
- Drywall: cut, patched, textured, painted — say which
- Water heater connections and shutoff valves — replaced or reused
- Permit fee as its own line, pulled by the licensed plumber
- Days of work and how many hours per day water will be off
- Warranty on labor and on the pipe manufacturer, in years
Repipe questions homeowners ask
- Where does the median repipe price on this page come from?
- From the City of Orlando's own permit records. The city publishes every permit it issues along with the declared value of the work. We took 808 plumbing permits described as a repipe, issued 2023–2025, removed duplicate sub-permits and values outside $1,500–$200,000, and measured the distribution: a median of $4,995 with the middle half of jobs between $3,870 and $6,770. It covers permits inside city limits, not the whole metro.
- How do I know if my Orlando house needs a repipe?
- The usual triggers here are repeated pinhole leaks, dropping pressure at multiple fixtures, discoloured water on first draw, or an insurance inspection flagging polybutylene supply lines. A licensed plumber should be able to tell you which of those applies after looking at the lines in the attic and under sinks.
- Does a repipe need a permit?
- Yes. Replacing supply piping is permitted plumbing work, and the licensed plumber pulls the permit — never the homeowner. A repipe done without a permit and inspection is the kind of thing that surfaces later during a sale or an insurance claim.
- Should the plumber be state-licensed?
- Plumbing is a state-regulated trade in Florida. Certified plumbing contractors hold a CFC-prefixed license you can look up yourself in the state licensee database. Check the number before you sign, not after.
- How many quotes should I get?
- Three, all describing the same scope. Repipe bids are unusually easy to mis-compare because of drywall finishing and fixture count, so get all three to state the same list of lines and then compare the totals.
Sources
- City of Orlando Open Data (2026). Permit Applications dataset (declared value of work on issued permits)
- Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation (2026). Licensee search — plumbing contractor licenses (CFC prefix)
- Orange County Utilities (2026). Water quality reports — Central Florida groundwater hardness
- Florida Legislature (2024). § 553.844 and Florida Building Code plumbing provisions
Permit figures last computed September 2026 from permits issued 2023–2025.
For homeownersPost a job, get bids
Instead of contacting contractors one at a time, describe your project once on Knuckl and let licensed Orlando-area subcontractors bid on it.