Cast-iron and galvanized pipes are two of the materials the city’s own 1938 Building Code allowed in New York plumbing, which is why a pre-war house can hold several generations of pipe at once. The code that the Department of Buildings still posts lists extra-heavy cast iron, galvanized steel or wrought iron, lead, brass and copper for drainage and vent piping inside a building, and lead, galvanized iron or steel, copper and brass for water supply. A visit shows the part of that system a person can see and run water through. It does not show the part under the floor or in the yard.
Inspecwise is a New York State-licensed, InterNACHI-certified home inspection practice based in South Ozone Park, Queens. This guide separates supply pipes from drain pipes, lists what the state Standards of Practice require an inspector to report about each, and explains why lead, galvanized pipe and the sewer line each lead to a different next step. A home inspector is not a plumber or an engineer; the plumbing opinions in this guide belong to the licensed trade.
Supply pipes and drain pipes: what the 1938 code allowed
Water comes into a house through supply pipes under pressure and leaves through drain, waste and vent pipes by gravity. They are separate systems, and the code let them be built from different metals. Article 15 of the 1938 New York City Building Code, which covers plumbing and gas piping, set the materials. This is what the code allowed, not what any one house has, and a house may have been repiped in part.
| Part of the system | Materials the 1938 code listed | Note from the code |
|---|---|---|
| Water supply pipes for plumbing systems | Lead, galvanized wrought iron or steel, copper, brass | Wrought iron and steel pipe had to be galvanized. |
| Drainage and vent piping inside structures | Extra heavy cast iron, galvanized steel or galvanized wrought iron, lead, brass or copper, alone or in combination | Galvanized steel or wrought iron pipe could not be used underground. |
The code does not say how long any of these pipes lasts, and neither do we. It does explain why a pre-war basement can show a cast-iron stack and galvanized risers beside copper. In the city’s tax-lot file (PLUTO 26v2), 135,977 Queens lots and 134,772 Brooklyn lots with a one-, two- or three-family building are recorded as built before 1940, so this is a live question across a large part of the city. The other systems in those houses are covered in our pre-war home inspection guide.
What a home inspection sees in a plumbing system
Under the Standards (19 NYCRR 197-5.8), the inspector observes and reports on visible, readily accessible parts of the plumbing: interior water supply and distribution, including fixtures and faucets; drain, waste and vent systems; water heating equipment, vents and pipes; fuel storage and distribution; sumps and ejector pumps; and active leaks. The inspector also runs the water. Faucets, hot water systems and pumps are operated, water is run at random locations to check functional flow, and waste lines from random sinks, tubs and showers are checked for drainage. The report must describe the supply, drain, waste and vent piping materials, the water heater and the location of the main water and fuel shut-offs, and state whether the water supply and waste disposal are public, private or unknown.
| The inspector reports | Outside the required inspection | Who answers |
|---|---|---|
| Visible supply and drain piping, with materials | Exterior plumbing and any underground drainage system | A camera inspection of the line, by a plumbing or sewer-scope company |
| Flow at random locations; drainage from random sinks, tubs and showers | Operating valves other than faucets | A licensed plumber |
| Active leaks that can be seen | Any plumbing component that is not readily accessible | A plumber, after access is opened with the owner’s permission |
| Water heater, vents and pipes; fuel storage and distribution components | The gas supply system, for materials, installation or leakage | A licensed plumber and the gas utility |
| Whether supply and waste are public, private or unknown | Whether the water is potable; private wells; septic systems and cesspools | A water-testing laboratory; well and septic specialists |
Two limits matter for old pipes. The Standards leave the remaining life of any system, the cause of a condition and the method or cost of correcting it out of the inspector’s duties. And inspections under them are not technically exhaustive and need not find concealed conditions. A pipe inside a wall is exactly that.
How cast-iron and galvanized pipes show up in an inspection
What the inspector sees is the visible run: cast-iron stacks and branches where they cross a basement ceiling, galvanized risers beside the water heater, and the piping under sinks. The report names the material and describes its condition. It flags a leak that is active during the visit. And it can tell you what happened when fixtures ran: whether a tub drained, and whether flow at a faucet held up.
Here is the honest limit. A drain pipe can look fine in the basement and be a different story where it runs underground to the street. Exterior plumbing and underground drainage are outside the Standards, which is where a camera inspection of the sewer line comes in. Our sewer scope guide explains what the camera sees, and our home plumbing inspection post covers the rest of the plumbing section.
A pipe’s material alone is not a finding. Cast iron and galvanized steel were ordinary materials in their day, and the question for a buyer is condition: leaks, staining, repairs, reduced flow, and what the licensed plumber says after looking at the same run.
Galvanized pipe and lead: a water-quality question, not an inspection finding
Galvanized pipe and lead are linked because lead can travel and settle. The EPA says lead particles can attach to the surface of galvanized pipes and, over time, enter your drinking water. Penn State Extension says galvanized steel pipe contains lead and can absorb lead from other lead sources that can be released again into the water. So galvanized pipe in a house that also has lead pipe, solder or a lead service line is a different case from galvanized pipe on its own.
The EPA is direct about detection: because you cannot see, taste or smell lead in water, testing is the only way to know whether there are harmful amounts. New York City adds three facts. The city’s Department of Environmental Protection reports a 1961 ban on lead water service lines and a 1987 ban on lead in household plumbing, yet says some older homes, particularly one-to-four-family homes, may still have lead pipes and fixtures. The state Department of Health says homes built before 1986 are more likely to have lead pipes, fixtures and solder. And the owner owns the service line from the street main to the house entirely.
The Standards say the inspector is not required to evaluate the potability of any water supply, so a lead question is answered by a test. DEP offers a free lead test kit through 311 or an online form, and a service line map you can search by property; the page said it was providing one kit per household. The state Department of Health notes that commercial laboratories that are certified can test for lead in drinking water. Water testing is a separate service from the home inspection; see our page on water quality testing.
The street connection: who owns what, and whom to call
In New York City the water service line and the sewer service line each belong to the property owner. The water service line connects the home to the water main in the street, and the sewer service line connects the property to the City sewer in the street.
| Line | Who is responsible | Where to start | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water service line, street main to the house | The homeowner, entirely | DEP service line map; free lead test kit through 311 | NYC DEP, lead and drinking water |
| Sewer service line, house to the City sewer in the street | The property owner, who must maintain and repair it | Report a backup to 311; DEP inspects | NYC DEP, sewer backup |
| City sewer main and catch basins | The City | 311; a claim to the Comptroller within 90 days if you believe the City was at fault | NYC DEP, sewer backup |
If raw sewage is backing up into your home, DEP says to report it immediately to 311 or its online form. It says it will inspect the location within six hours of receiving the complaint, although heavy rain or snowmelt may cause delays. If the backup traces to a private sewer service line, the owner is issued a Notice to Repair. Repairs could be covered by homeowners insurance or by DEP’s Service Line Protection Program if you are enrolled, so ask your own insurer. Keep your 311 tracking number and the DEP Customer Service Request number. A backup does not by itself prove the pipe is broken: DEP calls blocked pipes from grease, wipes and other items the most common cause of sewer backups in New York City.
Heavy-rain backups and flooding are covered in basement water after heavy rain, and see also our guide to flood zone home buying.
Who does the work: licensed master plumbers in New York City
Plumbing work in New York City is a licensed trade. The Department of Buildings says permits for plumbing work are only issued to a Licensed Master Plumber, and that only licensees, or the employees they supervise, may work on piping systems. Its permit page lists ordinary plumbing maintenance and repair under a separate heading, as work that must be performed by a Licensed Master Plumber, and points to Administrative Code section 28-105.4.4 for what counts. DEP gives the same instruction for lead: the surest way to remove lead is to replace the lead service line or lead fixtures, by hiring a licensed master plumber. Ask to see the license before you sign, and ask your attorney about permits and records. We did not research plumber licensing outside the five boroughs, so ask the village, town or county building department.
Long Island and Westchester: private water and sewage
The Standards leave wells, pressure tanks and pumps, and on-site sewage disposal systems such as cesspools, septic tanks and drain fields outside the required inspection, and the report states whether water supply and waste disposal are public, private or unknown. The seller’s Property Condition Disclosure Statement asks the water source (well, private or municipal), whether water quality or flow rate has been tested, and the type of sewage system (public sewer, private sewer, septic or cesspool), including the age and last pumping date of a septic tank or cesspool. Read those answers before the inspection. Our guides to well water testing and property condition disclosure explain what follows from them, and our guide to add-on tests lists the others. Our pages for Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester cover the local housing stock.
A worked example: a 1930s two-family with a galvanized riser
Treat this as a made-up case rather than a record of a house we inspected. A buyer has signed a contract for a two-family in Queens built in the 1930s.
- The inspector runs the kitchen faucet, then the second-floor bathroom. Flow at the upstairs tub is weak compared with the kitchen. The report records the reduced flow and the visible galvanized riser in the basement, states that the cause was not determined, and recommends a licensed plumber.
- The basement drain stack is cast iron with visible rust staining at one joint. The report describes the stack and the joint. It cannot say what the underground line looks like.
- The buyer arranges a camera inspection of the line to the street and asks the seller whether the service line has ever been replaced. The disclosure form asks whether lead plumbing is present.
- The buyer requests DEP’s free lead test kit through 311 and checks the service line map for the address. A lab result takes time, so the buyer asks the attorney how to protect the timeline.
- The plumber, the camera operator and the lab each give an opinion. The buyer’s attorney decides, with the buyer, whether to ask for a repair, a credit or a price change.
The inspection produced a list of questions with owners. It did not decide the answers.
Questions about cast-iron and galvanized pipes
Do galvanized pipes contain lead?
Penn State Extension says galvanized steel pipe contains lead and can absorb lead from other lead sources that can be released again into the water, and the EPA says lead particles can attach to the surface of galvanized pipes and later enter drinking water. Testing is the only way to know the level in your water.
Can a home inspector tell whether my water service line is lead?
Only the visible part. The inspector must describe the supply piping materials seen, but the service line runs underground from the street main, and exterior plumbing is outside the Standards. NYC DEP offers a searchable service line map and guidance on how to identify the material of your service line.
Does a home inspection include the sewer line to the street?
No. The Standards leave exterior plumbing and any underground drainage system out of the required inspection. A camera inspection of the sewer line is a separate service.
Who pays to fix a broken sewer line in New York City?
The property owner is responsible for maintaining and repairing the sewer service line that connects the property to the City sewer main, according to DEP. Repairs could be covered by homeowners insurance or DEP’s Service Line Protection Program if you are enrolled.
What should I do if sewage backs up into my basement?
Report it to 311 immediately, or use DEP’s online form, and keep your 311 tracking number and any DEP request number. DEP says it will inspect within six hours of the complaint. If you believe the City was at fault, DEP says to contact the Comptroller’s Office within 90 days.
Is cast-iron drain pipe a defect?
No, the material is not a finding by itself. The Standards require the report to name the drain, waste and vent piping materials and to report components that are deficient or not functioning properly. What counts is the condition, which a visual inspection shows only where the pipe is visible.
How do I get a free lead test in New York City?
Call 311 or fill in DEP’s online form to request a free lead test kit. DEP’s page said one kit per household was being provided. Check the page for the current terms.
About the figures
Lot counts come from the PLUTO 26v2 file and cover buildings classed as one-, two- or three-family that have a construction year on record. Because PLUTO’s years for older buildings are often rounded, we use a share built before 1940 and never quote a median year.
Before you close on an older house
We work across the five boroughs, Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester, and travel elsewhere on request. The plumbing section of the report can be explained in English, Urdu, Punjabi or Hindi, whichever you are most comfortable in. Ask about the camera inspection and the water test when you book, so the dates fit your contract.
Call 718-925-7071 if you would like to talk it through first.