Plumbing – What could cause a 5 year old valves to corrode so quickly

corrosionplumbing

Unlike this question, the hot water heater is not a factor as it is happening to joints all over the house. Further all joints are either copper on copper or brass on copper.

I've taken over managing my inlaw's property and it seems every shutoff valve is corroded and leaking. The in laws claim the valves were replaced 5 years ago, and that's just what they look like after five years. I've replaced a few out of necessity, but would like to fix the root problem before changing the rest of the house over.

The area I'm in has pretty hard water due to winter road salting which may be part of the problem. However, I've asked my neighbors, but none of them seem to be having this issue.

What is causing my pipes to corrode so quickly?

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Best Answer

This doesn’t look like corrosion, primarily, but like buildup of minerals from small leaks. The valve’s thread may not have been sealed properly (or not been tightened correctly), hard to say under the buildup. The weld seems to be leaking a tiny bit – you could clean it with steel wool and put some talcum on it for easier observation.

JFTR, I agree that this is not normal after five years. I don’t know where in the world you live and if you could still demand a repair after five years, but this looks like sloppy work. That can happen in one or two places, but not all over the house.