Plumbing Services in Lubbock, TX

A softener and a reverse osmosis system do different jobs. A salt-based softener uses ion exchange to remove the calcium and magnesium that cause scale, which protects pipes, the water heater, and fixtures across the whole house. It does not purify drinking water.

Reverse osmosis pushes water through a fine membrane and reduces dissolved solids, nitrates, and arsenic, but it sends water to the drain as it works. EPA WaterSense-labeled under-sink units must hold that to 2.3 gallons or less per gallon treated, and the waste is one reason most homes use RO at the kitchen sink rather than for every tap. Because the city uses chloramine as its secondary disinfectant, whole-house carbon filters need catalytic carbon rated to remove it.

The common Lubbock setup is a whole-house softener plus an under-sink RO unit for drinking and cooking, and the softener also extends the RO membrane's life. Sizing is where softeners go wrong here: a four-person home on roughly 15-grain water removes about 4,800 grains a day, which usually points to a 40,000 to 48,000 grain unit. Our water softener cost guide walks through sizing and running costs, and our whole-house water filtration guide covers RO and other treatment.

A standard tank water heater typically lasts 10 to 15 years, and hard water pushes many toward the short end as sediment builds up in the bottom of the tank. Tankless heaters cost more up front, but the U.S. Department of Energy estimates they are 24 to 34 percent more energy efficient than a storage tank in homes using 41 gallons of hot water a day or less, and 8 to 14 percent more efficient in homes using around 86 gallons. DOE also puts most tankless life expectancy at more than 20 years.

On hard water, a tankless unit needs a service-valve kit and a yearly descaling flush, and many manufacturers recommend water treatment where hardness runs this high. Gas units often need a larger gas line and new venting, which is most of the price difference. Either way, the City of Lubbock requires a permit for water heater replacement, and the work is inspected.

Older Lubbock homes, especially houses in Tech Terrace and central Lubbock, may still have galvanized steel supply lines that corrode from the inside and cut water pressure. PEX is the usual replacement: it is flexible, needs fewer fittings, and tolerates freezing better than copper, though it is not freeze-proof. On a slab home the new lines usually run through the attic and drop down through the walls, which leaves drywall openings, and our drywall patching team closes them up as part of the job.

Slab leaks show up as a warm spot on the floor, the sound of running water with everything off, a water meter that keeps turning, or a sudden jump in the bill. Once the leak is located, the choice is a spot repair through the slab or rerouting that line overhead, and on clay soil the reroute often wins. Moving fixtures during a kitchen or bathroom remodel means cutting the slab for new drains, which we price as part of the remodel.