Swap every rubber supply line for braided stainless
One-time · any month works
Why it matters
Every toilet and faucet in your house is fed by a small flexible line, and if those lines are gray or black rubber, each one is a little time bomb with a 5–10 year fuse. Rubber degrades from the inside — chlorine in the water attacks it where you can't see — so a line that "looks fine" means nothing. Braided stainless no-burst lines cost a few dollars more and remove the failure mode entirely.
This is a one-time sweep: toilets, bathroom faucets, kitchen faucet, dishwasher, and the ice-maker line behind the fridge. (Your washing machine hoses have their own card — same physics, bigger hose.)
What skipping it costs
$2,000–$15,000
A burst supply line is the most boring flood there is: a $8 rubber hose lets go under a sink on a Tuesday while everyone's at work, and eight hours later you're in a $15,000 insurance claim with fans in every room. Burst supply lines are one of the most common water-damage claims in the country — and the fix costs less than lunch.
Two ways to get it done
Do it yourself
You'll need: Adjustable wrench, Small bucket, Flashlight, Towel, Braided stainless supply lines (~$8–$15 each: toilets, faucets, dishwasher, fridge).
- One fixture at a time: close the angle stop (the little valve at the wall), open the faucet or flush the toilet to relieve pressure, towel and bucket under the work.
- Unscrew the old line — hand-loose plus a quarter turn with the wrench is usually all the tightness there ever was.
- Thread on the braided line: hand-tight, then a quarter to half turn. No tape needed on compression ends; do not gorilla it — the rubber washer does the sealing.
- Open the stop, run the water, and lay a dry paper towel under the connections. Check it again in an hour — dry towel means done.
- While you're under there, note any angle stop that wouldn't close fully or wept when exercised — those go on the replace list. (Your valve-exercising card keeps them honest annually from here on.)
- Dishwasher and fridge lines: same idea, pull-out access, and the fridge line should be braided or copper — never the gray poly tube that came in the box.
Hire it out
$150–$350National fair range — local labor moves this number.
A plumber will sweep the whole house in an hour or two for $150–$350 — a fair buy if crawling under sinks isn't your thing, and the right call if your angle stops are seized, because breaking a corroded valve off the wall turns a $10 job into drywall work.
Price the visit as lines-plus-only-failed-valves. A tech who tests each stop and replaces the two that actually seized is doing it right; one who quotes all twelve at $150 apiece before touching a wrench found a mortgage payment under your sink.
Ask the tech
- Which shutoff valves actually seized when you tested them, and which just needed exercise?
- Are you using no-burst braided lines everywhere, including the dishwasher and ice maker?
- What's the per-valve price if any angle stops genuinely need replacing?
Red flags you're being upsold
- Replacing every angle stop in the house at $100–$150 each when only the seized ones need it. Test first, replace what fails.
- A whole-house repipe conversation that started with one crusty supply line.
- Plastic-nut 'braided' lines from the bargain bin — the braid is fine, the nut is the failure point. Metal nuts or don't bother.
Second opinion time: Any quote over $800 for what began as supply-line replacement.
The call
DIY it one fixture at a time, no exceptions for 'it looks fine' — rubber fails from the inside. Hire it only if your shutoff valves are seized.