Running water is such an ingrained part of our lives, that it is difficult to imagine living without it. When you’re building a brand-new house, plumbing is a crucial part of the process. We’ve all paid for plumbing jobs in the past, but installing drain pipes and fixtures for any entire house is a whole other level of project. What do the final costs look like for this type of plumbing work?
We’ll kill the suspense now and provide some numbers. The average cost for plumbing a new house in Australia is as follows.
Pipework installation: $2000-$20,000
Appliance/fixture installation: around $600-$2,000 per item.
Hot water installation and heating unit: $2,000-$5,000.
Installing a septic tank: $7,000-$15,000
The above numbers should be taken as a rough guide, as there are a lot of factors that can alter your final costs. That’s exactly what we’ll be delving into for the rest of this article. Let’s look at new construction plumbing and discuss how much it costs. We’ll provide information to help you with estimating plumbing costs and the prices of plumbing services and plumbing installations.
Table of Contents
The Basics of a Home Plumbing Project
Components of Home Plumbing Systems
A basic home plumbing system will include the following components:
Water supply system: This consists of pipes supplying clean water from your water supply to your faucets.
Drainage system: A means of removing water once used.
Fixtures: Fixtures are anything in your home that uses plumbing. This includes sinks, showers, baths, taps, dishwashers, toilets, washing machines and outside hoses.
Breakdown of Plumbing Costs and Considerations
What Factors affect plumbing costs
Different layouts will have unique requirements when it comes to plumbing installations. Here are some of the most influential factors when it comes to the plumbing cost for a new home.
Home Size and Layout Impact on the plumbing system
You may think the size of your home would be the biggest factor in plumbing costs, but it isn’t as influential as you may think. While you may need extra pipe materials to cover the extra space, it’s actually the number of fixtures you have that will have a much bigger impact on overall price.
Design complexity
The complexity of your overall layout, including the amount of fixtures and the types of fixtures, will influence the final price. A home with multiple kitchens, bathrooms, swimming pool, and water features outside is going to require more material, labour and planning.
Choice of Materials On Plumbing Costs
Material costs are something to consider when weighing up the cost of plumbing. There are a few pipe materials used in Australia with the most common being:
Copper: Reliable, sturdy and the favoured option by many plumbers. It’s also the most expensive pipe material.
PEX Pipe: The newest pipe material, it offers a sturdier plastic option than PVC, while being more affordable than Copper. It can be vulnerable to UV rays, making it a poor choice for outdoors. It can be expensive to fix.
PVC Pipe: PVC is popular due to having lower average costs than both copper and PEX. However, it is also the most vulnerable to excavation damage and tends to have a shorter lifespan overall.
When choosing pipe material it is important to weigh up both the short-term and long-term effects. Your plumber will know more about this subject than we ever could, so chat with them about what they would recommend for your situation.
Cost of Plumbing Labor costs (hourly rate, location, and expertise)
Labour costs will usually be roughly $100-$150 per hour but this can vary depending on a variety of factors. More experienced plumbers charge more, and more complex jobs may attract a higher rate (either that or they’ll take longer and the plumbers will make their money that way). If your plumber has to travel (for example, you live in the country), that may also hike up the hourly rate. Having said that, plumbing costs in the city are on average higher than those in rural areas, so it really does depend on the situation.
Installing plumbing
The nature in which plumbing is installed in a new house means your plumber will be there for both the start and finish of your house-building project. Features such as septic tanks, and rough-in plumbing will be done in the early stages, whereas fixtures will be installed towards the end.
When receiving a quote, make sure it includes all stages of the build (including all labour cost estimates), as this will help avoid a nasty shock down the line.
Location and accessibility of the plumbing system
Ideally, the closer your plumbing system is to its intended destinations, the better for logistics and future repairs. This includes centralising your plumbing system as much as possible will help cut down prices.
Number of bathrooms and fixtures
Fixtures and features are the biggest influence on overall plumbing costs for new homes. This includes the number of sinks, bathtubs, showers, appliances, hoses and sprinklers. The cost of fixtures themselves plus the number you have will be the biggest determining factor as to how much the plumbing will cost.
Plumbing Cost for a New House
- $2,000 to $15,000 for new pipework installation (the size of your home will influence this price as well as your layout).
- $600 to $2,000 per bathroom appliance, kitchen or laundry
- $2,000 to $5,000 for a hot water service installation
Plumbing Installation
New plumbing installation cost (Finish plumbing)
Finish plumbing refers to the installation of any new fixture in your house after the initial infrastructure (pipes, etc) has been installed. Different plumbers will have their rates but usually, it’ll cost between $600-$2,000 per installation.
Rough-in plumbing costs
Rough-in plumbing refers to the initial stage of plumbing installation for a new home. This is where the plumbing infrastructure is installed before the walls of your home are closed. A professional will install all underground piping, utility connections, drain lines, vent stacks and all the infrastructure to provide running water and drainage to your house.
Rough-in plumbing is a big task and is a plumbing job that should be left to a professional. Even if you’ve fixed plumbing before or even installed a fixture, rough-in plumbing is a whole new level. It’ll usually take a professional crew a few days to complete.
Consider the costs of re-plumbing
Replumbing is the process of completely replacing an existing plumbing system. You’ll encounter this issue if you’re performing a knockdown rebuild. It’ll cost anywhere between $6,000 to $20,000, depending on the complexity of the job and where you’re located.
Plumbing System Components by Room/Area of Home
Faucet installation cost: $80 – $250 per faucet (taps, showerheads, etc)
Bathtub, toilets and sinks installation cost: $150-550+
Septic tank installation cost: $7000-$15,000
Hot Water heaters: $1,200-20,000 depending on how advanced your system is.
Sprinkler system installation cost: $70-2,000+
Managing Plumbing Costs
Benefits of water-efficient fixtures
Installing water-efficient fixtures will be more expensive initially, however, in the long run, they’ll save you a bundle in water costs. Anyone with a family will know how much water is used daily, whether it’s teenagers who spend too long in the shower or just water you use for cleaning and cooking.
Choosing Cost-Effective Materials
As discussed above, your choice of plumbing material will affect your final cost. While PVC is the cheapest option, it also is the most vulnerable to damage. The cheapest option may not be the best, as you may experience more problems and have to replace it sooner.
Factor in After plumbing repairs costs
Plumbing costs don’t end once your pipes are installed. No matter how careful you are, eventually, a washer will wear out or you’ll have some sort of plumbing problems. However, there are ways you can cut down on maintenance costs including:
- Install quality fixtures
- Only flush things that can be flushed down the toilet.
- Clean your sink drain pipes regularly.
- Fix leaks and issues sooner rather than later.
Plumbing Project Planning and Preparation
How to plan for a new plumbing installation
It’s important to know the scope of your project and what exactly you’re after. Changing plumbing after it has been installed is difficult and expensive, so it’s a good idea to get it right the first time. Talk with your builder and a professional plumber about the best plan for your new house.
Finding a reputable plumber near me
A reputable plumber will make all the difference both for your experience and the final result. Be sure to check online reviews and ask for referrals from any prospective plumber. It’s also worth verifying licenses and certifications. Any plumber unwilling to provide this information should be considered a red flag.
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