Burnaby's Poly-B sits in a fairly narrow band of the city, and knowing which side of it you're on saves you a call.
If your Burnaby home was built between roughly 1985 and 1997 — much of Edmonds, South Burnaby, parts of Lougheed and Government Road, and a substantial number of the townhouse complexes across the city — grey Poly-B is likely.
If you're in Burnaby Heights, Capitol Hill or Willingdon Heights, your house is probably too old for it. Those neighbourhoods are 1940s–60s, which means galvanized steel: rigid grey metal, threaded joints, pressure that has quietly declined for decades. Also worth replacing, for entirely different reasons.
If you're in a Metrotown or Brentwood tower from 1995–2007, the material to check for is Kitec — orange and blue with brass fittings.
Not sure? Photograph the pipe at your hot water tank and send it to 604-865-7979. Free identification, no visit, no sales call.
Why this is different here
The townhouse dimension
This is the part specific to Burnaby, and it changes who makes the decision.
A large share of Burnaby's Poly-B is in townhouse complexes from the late 80s and 90s — and a townhouse complex is a strata. Which means Poly-B here frequently arrives not as a leak in one unit, but as a line item in a depreciation report or a letter from the strata's insurer.
Two models, and the difference is money:
Suite-by-suite. The strata approves a specification and owners replace individually over time. More flexible, full price per home, and it only produces a consistent building if the strata actually specifies the standard.
Coordinated complex-wide. Phased scheduling, staged shut-offs, one specification. Materially cheaper per home and considerably less disruptive than a decade of individual work — but it needs a council decision and a funding mechanism.
If your complex is weighing it, we'll attend a council meeting and explain the trade-offs without a quote attached. If it isn't discussing it and the depreciation report has flagged it, that's worth raising.
What replacement involves
Detached home $8,000–$18,000 · Townhouse $6,000–$14,000 · Condo suite $5,000–$12,000
⚠️ When comparing quotes, ask four things: is the permit included, is drywall repair included and to what standard, is disposal included, and is it PEX or copper. Those four omissions are how a cheaper quote becomes a more expensive job.
The insurance position
Many BC insurers now restrict coverage, raise premiums or decline new policies on homes with Poly-B. It varies by insurer and it changes.
In a townhouse complex there's a second layer: the strata's insurer may raise it too, and a building-wide water damage claim history affects everyone's premium and deductible. That's often what finally moves a council to act.
We provide a written completion report, photographs and the permit record for your broker.
A plumbing permit must be obtained before a plumbing system is constructed, extended, altered, renewed, repaired or maintained. Clearing plugged soil or waste pipes and repairing water pipe leaks do not require a plumbing permit. Plumbing that has been installed, repaired, renewed or altered may not be put into use until a City plumbing inspector has inspected it. City of Burnaby: Burnaby Plumbing Bylaw 2000, Consolidated Bylaw No. 11148C
Source: City of Burnaby: Burnaby Plumbing Bylaw 2000, Consolidated Bylaw No. 11148C — https://bylaws.burnaby.ca/media/Consolidated/11148CC.pdf · checked 2026-09-11
