ᐅ Experience with Old Heating System Piping

Good morning,

who here has a house with old heating pipework (50 years or older)? Have you ever experienced any problems? If yes, how did you first notice the issue and how did you resolve it?

Background to the question: Our house is from the 1960s, and the pipework is made of copper; at first glance (exposed in one or two spots in the screed) it still looks good. On the ground floor, the floors are very high quality, so following the plumber’s advice, we are mostly leaving the pipework as is.
In the basement, we have to redo the floors anyway. Right now, the screed is exposed. Should we keep the pipework or replace it? I imagine it would be quite involved. On the other hand, if not now, when? And how would you even find a leak under the basement floor? (If there is a leak on the ground floor, I can imagine the ceiling or wall below getting damp, wallpaper peeling off, etc.)

If it’s relevant: The old gas burner is being upgraded to a modern gas condensing boiler. We want to keep the old cast iron radiators; freshly painted white, they really look great again.

I appreciate all answers, whether personal experiences or advice.

Träumerle schrieb:

Who has a house with old heating pipes (50 years or older)? Ever had any problems?

No, the pipes look (almost) like new. Partly steel pipes, partly copper. Built in 1967. Oil burner. But there is an enormous amount of sludge inside the radiators (which will be removed anyway since new radiators are much more efficient and save a lot on heating costs).

Träumerle schrieb:

We want to keep the old cast iron radiators; freshly painted white they look really great again.

Throw those old things out. Then you can lower the supply temperature and save on heating costs.

Thank you for your reply. So, you are keeping the old piping in place and you don’t have any concerns about it?

Träumerle schrieb:

So you are keeping the old piping in your house and have no concerns about it?

Exactly. But of course, it can be different in other houses.

House and heating pipes are over 50 years old, made of black steel and cast iron. Some pipes were embedded in the ground under the floor and corroded very slowly over time. This was noticed due to pressure loss, but before that, the desk was shaking because the floor was swelling 😡

With my current experience, I would remove everything and start fresh. Water in or under the floor is simply no fun.

This is an older house with somewhat newer pipes and radiators (around 2005). Therefore, I can’t contribute much regarding durability, but I can share my experience: If you start working on larger sections without also addressing logically connected tasks at the same time, you will soon regret it. This has happened to me several times now because, in an attempt to save money, I didn’t include tasks B or C along with task A. These oversights will only end up costing more in the long run. At least, depending on the renovation phases, it might be worth considering addressing everything gradually in sections (by riser), as long as the old and new plumbing work reasonably well together.