Cost to Run Water to Detached Garage

After you transform your detached garage into a habitable accessory dwelling unit, it needs utilities for proper operation. The plumbing system is one of the first concerns. Plumbing lines consist of water lines, drain lines, and sewer lines, including water supply and waste pipes, fixtures, and appliances. Installing plumbing appliances encompasses installing showers and tubs, bathroom and kitchen sinks, toilets, washing machines, and so on.

If you’re about to add a plumbing system to your detached garage, considering its overall costs is crucial for effective budget planning. Let’s find out what plumbing installation services you require and get a handle on how this will impact your construction expenses!

New Plumbing System Considerations

While some garage owners may require plumbing installation for washing their tools or cars, a lot of them are actually those who’ve turned part of their garage into a living space. A detached building is considerably useful for this purpose because the distance from the main house boosts the ADU’s privacy.

However, unlike attached ADUs, the separate location complicates the plumbing installation process. The reason behind this is that the main sewer line, water line, and drainage system are near the main house, so the ADU residents usually need to make changes to connect their units to the main house utilities.

There are various factors that homeowners who turn their existing garage into a habitable dwelling have to keep in mind:

• Local requirements. Before undertaking any plumbing work, it’s vital to get yourself familiar with the local building codes and regulations.
• Connecting the utilities. The distance and potential obstacles (like landscaping or existing structures) may prevent a pipe from coming smoothly from the main house to the detached garage.
• Location of fixtures. Tapping into the existing water lines and drainage system, as well as sewer lines, may be possible only from a specific side or area of the plot. Thus, when planning the garage conversion ADU layout, it’s essential to understand in advance where your fixtures will be.
• Water lines capacity. Remember that piping should be able to ensure the necessary water pressure and flow for all your fixtures in two living spaces: the main house and the garage. If it’s currently impossible, homeowners have to upgrade (enlarge by installing new water lines) or replace all plumbing systems so they can adequately handle the new water traffic.

All the above mentioned considerations are crucial for the future cost of the project. It’s common for people to run plumbing into their garage so they can set up a laundry room on the ground level of their house. But if you’re not among them, you need to be even more attentive and pragmatic when it comes to installing plumbing into your habitable ADU unit for daily needs.

Adding Plumbing to a Detached Garage

To determine what you pay for, it’s essential to understand the entire process of connecting your garage to the water supply and outfall utilities. The number and extent of services influence the cost of adding running water to your ADU.

If you want to better understand the process, let’s have a look at how plumbers run plumbing into a readily detached garage. The breakdown of the process encompasses such stages as:

1. The first step is to prepare materials and tools. The piping material is commonly PVC, CPVC, PEX copper, or stainless steel. The plumber needs it to repair pipes and replace damaged elements or to prolong it to your ADU, creating new pipes. The tools might involve a pipe cutter, a tape measure, a soldering torch (which may be useful for a copper pipe), a set of wrenches, and protective equipment.
2. To decide on the best route for your pipes, it’s necessary to inspect your garage. The professional plumber has a trained eye to determine the way to efficiently conduct work: the soil type, the distance to your main house, and the ways to avoid existing structures.
3. Make up your mind on the plumbing facilities you want to have. This means you need to choose between a sewer line and a septic tank, decide if you want both hot water and cold water, and decide what kind of sink and toilet you’re going to install.
4. Consider shut-off valves. If you don’t have them, you might end up finding yourself in a great predicament in case of emergency.
5. For garage conversion, it’s often necessary to dig the ground. It’s vital to be cautious of existing utilities like gas or electric lines that already lay underground. The plumbers recommend not doing it in cold seasons because the soil becomes hard. However, if it’s only the beginning of a colder season, we can still do it prior to the moment when the ground freezes.
6. A professional plumber is aware of how deep they can lay the pipes not to go against the piping regulations. Thus, they install new piping if required and connect the new lines to your main home plumbing at the right depth.
7. The plumber completes another important job: installing a garage drain. Homeowners can choose between gravity-fed drainage or pump drainage. The first one relies on gravity and is suitable for ground floor fixtures, whereas the second one is more fitting for underground (basement) plumbing fixtures.
8. The plumber put in vent pipes to stop dangerous sewer gasses from building up. Then they check the whole system to make sure there are no leaks or problems.

All in all, when planning to convert a detached garage into a livable unit, it’s essential to consider the extensive amount of modifications the project requires. The skill required from the plumbers is essentially high, which typically results in substantial costs for their job. Now, let’s discuss what homeowners should do to account for and possibly reduce plumbing costs!

Plumbing Cost Calculation

The cost of adding plumbing comprises material cost, cost for labor, permitting expenses, excavation works, the cost to run plumbing to a detached garage, rough and finish work, as well as potential electrical work costs.

Water Line Connection

You will probably receive a comprehensive estimate for the cost of engaging a plumber to run plumbing in a detached garage. If you don’t need extra work, but only connection, this work to redirect plumbing will cost you around $700-1,500, contingent on the scale of the undertaking. The overall cost depends on the kind of pipes, quantity of fixtures (sink, toilet, shower, etc.), as well as piping transformation type.

Material Cost

The most widespread materials to pick for your pipes are CPVC, PEX, and copper. However, there are other options available for plumbing facilities, such as polypropylene, brass, steel, cast iron, and others. While CPVC and PEX are cheaper options, such materials as copper, stainless steel, and cast iron are way more expensive. Thus, the final material cost heavily depends on what materials you select. Therefore, we can estimate that the material cost may range from around $0,40 to $12 per linear foot.

Labor Expenditures

To install plumbing into your existing garage, you may need more than a single plumber. Based on the extent of the work needed, the plumbing team may consist of a single person or a whole group, like plumbers, an electrician, a site excavation professional, and an HVAC technician if HVAC lines are in question. Your local plumber may cost around $45–$200 per hour, while other specialists may take fees in the following amounts: electrical: $50–$100 per hour; excavator and HVAC technician: $50 to $150 per hour. To run plumbing in a garage, you may need one to three days.

Plumbing Permits

The scope of the plumbing project plays a crucial role in determining how much they will charge you for permits. There may be more than one permit needed for your project, and the number of permits depends on local regulations. To count approximately how much you might need, expect to pay $100-300 for each permit.

Earthwork Cost

In many cases, when you run plumbing to a detached garage, your project mandates digging trenches to accommodate the new plumbing lines or creating access points for connecting the garage’s plumbing to the main house lines. The expenses of digging for adding plumbing pipes usually range from 5 to 12 per linear foot. Therefore, you can anticipate that for excavating a 20-foot trench, you may pay from $100 to $240.

Finishes and Electrical Work Cost

If some of your fixtures have electrical elements or you wish to install tankless water heaters, you may have to hire an electrician. In any case, you’ll eventually have to invite this specialist to connect your detached garage to electricity, so expect to pay about $1,000-3,000 for this service.

Besides, to run plumbing to an ADU, specialists cut and frame openings in the ADU’s walls and floors. That’s why the team may also involve a carpenter who costs between $30 and $200 per hour.

Fixture Installation

Another high-cost item is the installation of fixtures. For instance, installing a sink may cost from $150 to $800, while a bathtub installation can demand $400–$1,900.

Why Hire Licensed Plumbers

Attempting to do it yourself is a risky venture. Of course, if you’re a plumber by profession with great experience, you are aware of all the pitfalls that the plumbing process presents. On the other hand, if you decide to run plumbing into your ADU based on a few videos you watched on YouTube, you will likely encounter a lot of negative repercussions. Not only can you fail to perform the job correctly, but you may also accidentally damage the existing lines.

In fact, hiring a seasoned plumbing team will make your project more cost-effective in the long run. Having training and vast experience, professional plumbers also have access to special tools and equipment. If your project is complex, they may conduct it quickly and effectively, avoiding pricey mistakes. Besides, the majority of reputable plumbers provide guarantees for their work quality. In case something goes wrong, you can repair it for free or at a low cost.

Alternatively, improper installation, breakage, leakage, or violation of the legal rules can lead to water damage to your property, the growth of mold, and potential judicial consequences.

So, if you need to connect your ADU to the main sewer line, install new plumbing to support additional fixtures, or perform any other works connected with ADUs, reach out to A+ Construction & Remodeling for comprehensive assistance!

Frequently Asked Questions — FAQ

How can you make your garage conversion project cost-effective if you need a plumber?

First, minimize the need for large-scale rerouting of the pipeline. Also, before you add plumbing, prepare the space for it yourself, cutting your costs a bit. In addition, it makes sense to seek quotes from multiple licensed specialists to compare expenses and services.

Are copper pipes better than PVC pipes?

Comparing copper pipes and PVC (polyvinyl chloride) pipes, we need to pay attention to two factors: durability and price. While copper pipes have a longer lifespan and can withstand high temperatures, which makes them great for hot water, PVC pipes are a more budget-friendly option. Nevertheless, they have such benefits as not being insusceptible to corrosion and being easier to install due to their lightweight nature.

What does frost line have to do with plumbing?

When you connect plumbing to your ADU, it’s essential to be mindful of this term. The frost line means freezing depth, which is the depth to which the ground freezes during a cold month. When plumbers design the piping, they take this particular measurement into account to make sure the water in your pipes doesn’t freeze. Otherwise, it may lead to the pipe bursting.

How do upgrades to plumbing affect property taxes?

Upgrades to plumbing can potentially affect property taxes in certain cases. For example, when the amount of modifications is very significant, like in the case of the addition of new bathrooms or kitchen facilities. When assessing the property’s value for taxation, evaluators usually take these improvements into account. Yet, increased property value is good when it comes to resale, so it’s vital for property owners to weigh all the pros and cons.