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We were told by a plumber that we had a leak in the laundry drain pipe that
Runs under the slab of our house. Our house is about 35 years old and he
Said that we could expect to have more leaks later on because of the age and
Type of pipe (galvanized I think he said). I am wondering what would be the wiser; to fix that pipe under the house or can it be cut off from use somehow and we have a plumber run a new drain line above or otherwise not under the slab; is this even something we could do? Also, is this type of work something that has to be done by a plumber or can a diy type attempt?

[speedball1]

We were told by a plumber that we had a leak in the laundry drain pipe that
runs under the slab of our house. Our house is about 35 years old and he
said that we could expect to have more leaks later on because of the age and
type of pipe (galvanized I think he said). I am wondering what would be the wiser; to fix that pipe under the house or can it be cut off from use somehow and we have a plumber run a new drain line above or otherwise not under the slab; is this even something we could do? Also, is this type of work something that has to be done by a plumber or can a diy type attempt?

It's impossible to answer your question without being there. When we run into a situation such as yours we take up the cement, replace the faulty pipe and patch the cement back. Unless you have plumbing skills this is a job for a plumber. Even if there were a way to replace the drain pipe above the pour you would still have to break up the cement to connect it back up. Good luck, Tom