Boiling Springs is not a town in the legal sense. It is an unincorporated community, a census-designated place, and it has grown fast: about 4,500 people in 2000, about 8,200 in 2010 and more than 10,400 in 2020. Most of its houses went up with that growth, in subdivisions off Highway 9 and the roads that branch from it.
Because it is unincorporated, there is no town hall to pull a permit from. Plumbing and gas permits in Boiling Springs come from Spartanburg County Building Codes on North Church Street in Spartanburg, and county inspectors do the inspections.
Water is Spartanburg Water, which is generally soft. Sewer is a mix: some neighborhoods tie into the Spartanburg Sanitary Sewer District, and many homes are on septic. Natural gas is Piedmont Natural Gas where its mains reach.
The plumbing here is newer than in town, and that changes what goes wrong. There are fewer rusted pipes, more water heaters reaching the end of their lives at the same time across a whole street, more PEX fittings, and more questions about adding gas to a house that was built without much of it.
Boiling Springs at a glance
- Natural gas
- Piedmont Natural Gas. Piedmont Natural Gas runs distribution lines through the area, including along Highway 9, but not every street or subdivision has a main; homes without one use propane or electric.
- Water
- Spartanburg Water
- Sewer
- Spartanburg Sanitary Sewer District in parts; septic in many neighborhoods
- Permits
- Spartanburg County Building Codes
- Housing
- Mostly 1990s to 2020s subdivisions off Highway 9 and its side roads, with older rural homes on the edges.
Plumbing and gas in Boiling Springs: what to know
Original water heaters reaching their age
Most tank water heaters last roughly 8 to 12 years, so a house built in the mid-2000s with its original tank is past the age where most give out. Look for rust at the base, water in the pan, or a rumble when it heats. Replacing it on your schedule beats replacing it after it floods a finished garage or an attic.
Septic or sewer: know which you have
Many Boiling Springs homes are on septic. If yours is, slow drains throughout the house and a wet patch over the drain field point to the system, not the pipes, and that is a septic contractor's call. If you are on sewer, the line from the house to the tap is yours to maintain. Either way, we can camera the building drain and show you where the problem sits.
Adding gas to a newer house
Some homes here have a gas furnace and water heater, some have gas only to a fireplace, and some have none at all. If Piedmont has a main on your street, the utility sets the meter and we pipe from there. Gas logs, a range, a dryer and a line to the patio grill are the usual additions, each sized against everything else on the meter.
PEX and manifold plumbing
Many homes from the 2000s on are plumbed in PEX, often run from a central manifold with crimp or expansion fittings. PEX holds up well, but fittings at the water heater or under a sink can weep, and manufacturers call for keeping PEX away from a gas water heater's flue and the first stretch of pipe off the tank. Repairs use the same system the house was built with.