Repiping in Pfafftown, NC

Which Pfafftown homes are most likely to need it?

About 34% of homes in the 27040 ZIP were built before 1980, based on Census-derived counts by decade, and the typical house falls in the 1980s. That puts a lot of Pfafftown in two higher-risk groups: older rural homes off roads like Yadkinville Road and Transou Road that may still have their original galvanized or copper pipe, and subdivisions from the 1980s and early 1990s, when polybutylene was common. Newer houses in annexed sections are usually fine, and a single leak there is more likely a repair job.

Does it matter whether I'm on a well or city water?

It does, mainly at the starting point. Pfafftown is unincorporated and partly annexed into Winston-Salem and Lewisville, so some homes are on Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Utilities water and others draw from private wells. On WSFC water, the supply is soft (about 17.5 ppm average hardness) and chlorinated, and the 2025 report showed lead and copper not detected at the 90th percentile. On a well, the new system begins at the pressure tank, and the water's chemistry can affect how long copper lasts. Forsyth County Environmental Health permits new wells and includes an initial water sample with the permit; for an existing well, a test before choosing pipe material is worth considering.

Who issues the permit?

All of Pfafftown, whether it sits inside Winston-Salem, inside Lewisville or in unincorporated county, falls under the joint Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Inspections Division. That keeps things simple: one office, no matter which side of an annexation line you're on. The plumber normally applies for the permit and schedules the inspection before walls or floors are closed up. Expect the job to run several days, with water shut off for parts of each day as sections are tied in.

One local note

WSFC's service line inventory at cityofws.org/pipes covers the lines from the main to each home, not the plumbing inside. If you're on a well, there's no utility record at all, so the plumber's inspection is the only way to know what's in your walls. In an older farmhouse that has had additions, expect to find more than one pipe material, each of a different age.