When the line from your meter to the house is past saving — galvanized end-of-life, a leak we can't isolate, or repeated failures on the same run — we replace it. New PEX-A line from meter to house, sized to your home, with a pulled permit and City inspection. Trenchless pipe-bursting keeps your lawn intact when the route allows; open trench is the honest fallback when it doesn't.
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Licensed CCB #255748 · Trenchless or Open Trench · Permit + City Inspection
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Someone will call you within 1 business hour. If it's urgent, call us directly at (503) 717-6786.
Most original galvanized service lines on inner-NE and SE Portland homes are at or past 60 years — the point where corrosion failures stop being one-offs and start coming in clusters. If you're already on the second or third leak, replacement is usually the cheaper math.
One spot repair is normal. A second leak six months later is a signal. By the third, you're paying for repeat trips and trench work that adds up to more than a single replacement would have cost in the first place.
When pressure-testing and locate work can't pin the leak to a single joint — or the failure is somewhere the line bends, dives, or runs under hard surfaces — replacement is faster and cheaper than a long exploratory dig that ends in replacement anyway.
Galvanized corrodes inward — the inside diameter narrows over time until pressure at every fixture drops. Once the run is heavily restricted, no amount of spot work brings the pressure back. A new PEX-A line restores full bore.
When the City has shut off service or tagged the line as a recurring waste-water issue, replacement on a clean schedule beats reactive repairs under a deadline. We work with PWB on the timing and pull the permit.
We confirm the failure is in the service line and not inside the house, then call in 811 utility locates so the route is fully marked before any equipment shows up. The colored paint on the lawn is the locate process working.
You see exactly what's planned before equipment shows up: trenchless or open trench, where the pits or trench will go, what surfaces get disturbed, what gets restored, and the schedule. No surprises mid-job.
Pulls a new PEX-A line through the path of the old galvanized — only two small pits, one at the meter and one at the house. Most straight runs qualify; lawn, hedges, and driveway stay intact. Faster and cleaner than open trench when the geometry and soil cooperate, which is most of the time on Portland lots.
Sharp bends, mid-run stub-outs (e.g., a hose bib tied in to the supply), or rocky soil that won't burst cleanly — sometimes the route doesn't allow bursting, and we'd rather tell you that up front than start a job we can't finish cleanly. The trench is smaller than most homeowners expect on a typical Portland lot.
The replacement line itself: PEX-A (Uponor), sized to the house based on home and fixture count, pressure rated for residential service. Single continuous run from the meter to the house with no joints buried in the lawn.
The city of Portland's Bureau of Development Services issues the plumbing permit and inspects the work before backfill. We pull the permit, schedule the inspection, and close it out — you handle no city paperwork. The closed permit gives the work a clean paper trail when you sell.
Trench backfilled in lifts and tamped, surface rough-graded, removed sod laid back where possible. Final landscape finish — fresh sod patches, planting beds, decorative work, driveway resurfacing — is a separate trade we'll pass along a referral for if you'd like one.
Confirm the failure is the service line, not the house, and call in utility locates before any digging
Trenchless or open trench, where the pits or trench will go, what surfaces get disturbed, what gets restored, day-by-day schedule. You approve the plan before equipment shows up
New PEX-A pulled through the path of the old galvanized — two small pits, no long trench across the lawn or driveway. Works on most straight runs from meter to house
When sharp bends, mid-run stub-outs, or rocky soil rule out bursting, we excavate carefully along the line. Smaller trench than most homeowners expect on a typical Portland lot
Single continuous PEX-A (Uponor) run, sized to the home based on home and fixture count, pressure rated for residential service. No joints buried in the lawn between the meter pit and the house entry
Portland Bureau of Development Services issues the plumbing permit, inspects the work before backfill, and closes the permit out. You handle no city paperwork
Trench backfilled and tamped, surface rough-graded, removed sod laid back where possible. Final landscape finish is a separate trade — happy to pass along a referral
Morgan founded and runs bluefrog from SE Portland. The business is woman-owned and LGBTQ-owned — a team that reflects the city we serve. When you call, you reach a local shop whose owner oversees every project, not a national dispatch center routing you to whoever's available.
We price by the job, not by the hour. You see a written estimate after diagnosis and before we touch anything — no overtime charges, no surprises. The number on the estimate is the number on the invoice.
Every technician works under Oregon CCB #255748. We pull the permit, schedule the inspection, and close it out — you don't have to coordinate anything. The work meets Oregon code and gives your home a clean paper trail.
Every technician on our crew is a direct bluefrog employee — background-checked, Oregon-licensed, and accountable to Morgan personally. We don't route calls through a dispatch network or hand off to whoever's available. You'll get the right person for the job, not just whoever's next in the queue.
The team that shows up at your door.
Licensed · Background-checked · Portland-based4.9 average · 105 Google reviews
★★★★★
I recently requested an estimate from Bluefrog Plumbing and Drain of Portland for repiping of my home and was very pleased with the overall experience. They responded promptly to my inquiry and were able to schedule a visit quickly. Jeff was professional,…
★★★★★
We had Bluefrog install a new water heater in our cellar which is accessible via a very steep and rickety stairway. They managed to get the old heater out and new one in with care. Separately, they connected our new washer and dryer to the water supply and…
★★★★★
Pretty nasty job in a crawl space. The crew from Bluefrog were great. Showed up on time, got the job done. Very reasonable pricing. Will definitely use again.
★★★★★
Bluefrog Plumbing exceeded my expectations. They were able to schedule me the very same day for a water heater replacement, which I greatly appreciated. Eric arrived early, was professional and friendly, and got right to work. The installation was done with…
★★★★★
I had a pipe burst and called 8 or 9 places with zero luck — most couldn't help for 1 to 2 weeks. But Bluefrog's customer service went above and beyond to get me serviced the next morning, rearranging their schedule to help. The technician was prompt and got…
Trenchless pipe-bursting is our default — and it works on most straight-shot runs from the curb meter to the house. Only two small pits, the new PEX-A (Uponor) line pulls through the path of the old galvanized, and your lawn and driveway stay intact. When the route has sharp bends, multiple stub-outs (e.g., a hose bib tied in mid-run), or rocky soil that won't burst cleanly, an open trench is faster and cleaner. We tell you which method fits during the walkthrough and why.
Most replacements on a standard 50–75 foot Portland lot are a 1–2 day project. Trenchless tends to land closer to one day; open trench typically runs into a second day with the inspection on day two before we backfill. We give you a day-by-day schedule with the estimate so you know when water will be off and for how long (usually a few hours, not the whole job).
Trenchless leaves both alone almost entirely — only the meter pit and house-side pit get disturbed, both small enough to be patched. An open trench will cut a line across whatever's in the route, which is why we'd rather burst when we can. Either way, we backfill in lifts, tamp, rough-grade, and lay removed sod back where possible. Decorative landscape finish — fresh sod patches, planting bed restoration, driveway resurfacing — is a different trade we don't take on, but we're happy to pass along a referral.
No — only the segment from the water main in the street to the City's meter at the property line is owned by Portland Water Bureau. Everything from the meter to your house is the homeowner's responsibility, and that's the section we replace. The City does handle issuing the plumbing permit and inspecting the work; we pull and close it on your behalf.
Yes. The city of Portland's Bureau of Development Services issues the plumbing permit, and the work must pass inspection before the trench is closed. We pull the permit, schedule the inspection, and close it out — you coordinate nothing with the city. The closed permit gives the work a clean paper trail, which matters when you sell.
It depends on the length of the run (most Portland lots are 50–75 feet), the method (trenchless vs. open trench), what's in the route (driveway, mature landscaping, retaining walls), and the depth and material of the existing line. After the walkthrough you get a written estimate listing the method, route, restoration, and schedule. The estimate is free.
Sometimes — if the failure is a single joint or a short isolatable section and the rest of the run is sound, an in-place spot repair is often the right call. That's a different visit and a different scope from the full replacement on this page. If you haven't yet had someone diagnose the line, our service-line repair page covers the spot-repair-first process. We tell you straight which path your line actually needs.
We serve most of the Portland metro area — typically within 20 miles of SE Portland.
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No surprise fees — the price we quote is the price you pay.
No overtime charges · Upfront pricing · Licensed CCB #255748
