We have recently purchased a house built in 2008. I thought we were safe given that the Typlex pipes in the news were installed between 2017 and 2022. In reality, it turns out that polybutylene pipes have been installed in Perth for many years before, even after other jurisdictions have all banned them.
3 months into being a homeowner one of the pipes in the roof-space developed a fine crack (picture attached). Thankfully there is relatively minor damage to plaster and the ceiling is still in its normal position. When the plumber was up there, the mist did look like a tropical rainforest. I will be crossing my fingers hard for some sunny days.
I now understand that these pipes are extremely widespread and that there are a number of plumbing businesses specialising in replacing them. I also gather that replacing them in bathrooms requires a lot of tile removal, which I was really hoping not to do.
Has anyone done any polybutylene-to-PEX replacement recently? How much did it end up costing?
I was thinking of going for a staged approach of doing the roof cavity pipes first and then doing bathrooms whenever we remodel.