Water Line Repair in Longmont, CO

Who is responsible for the water line in Longmont?

City of Longmont Water Utilities is clear on the sewer side: the sewer service line belongs to the property owner. For the water service line, the pages the city publishes don't state whether the handoff happens at the curb stop or the meter. In practice that means a quick call before digging. If water is surfacing at the meter or in the street, phone Water Utilities at (303) 651-8416 during weekday business hours; after hours the city routes calls through Longmont Public Safety Dispatch. If the wet ground is between the meter and the house, it's almost always a private plumbing repair.

Could my Longmont service line be lead or another old material?

The city's service line inventory classified every water service line in Longmont as non-lead, and it updates that record whenever maintenance or construction exposes a line. That's reassuring, but non-lead doesn't mean new. Longmont was founded in 1871 by the Chicago-Colorado Colony, and homes near the downtown Main Street corridor are much older than the subdivisions on the edges of town. Citywide the median home was built in 1991, and about 37% were built before 1980. Older lines tend to fail through corrosion and worn joints, while newer ones more often break at a fitting or where a fence post or sprinkler trench struck them.

What does the city require before the work starts?

Longmont requires a permit for any change to electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing systems. Permits go through Building Services at the Development Services Center, 385 Kimbark Street, (303) 651-8332. A plumber who replaces a section or runs a new service will normally pull that permit and schedule the inspection. Ask whether your job needs one before the trench is backfilled, because an inspector may want to see the pipe.

One local note

Longmont's water comes from the St. Vrain Creeks and the Colorado-Big Thompson Project and is soft, which is easy on pipes. That means a leak is more likely to come from ground movement, freeze damage or a failed joint than from mineral buildup. Hard freezes and sharp temperature swings along the northern Front Range are the season to watch. Close the main shutoff inside the house if a break is flooding the yard or basement.