Small businesses, charities impacted by pinhole pipe leaks in Thunder Bay, Ont.

Concerns over pinhole leaks in copper water lines in Thunder Bay, Ont., are impacting more than just homeowners - with charities and small business owners also sounding the alarm over the costly out of pocket repairs that are urgently required.

Many homeowners are concerned about pinhole leaks that seem to be springing up all over the city. The City of Thunder Bay will not disclose how many calls it has received regarding the leaks, or provide any additional comment. A Facebook group, where property owners are discussing leaky pipes, has over 1,200 members.

Many people with the pinhole leaks point to the city adding sodium hydroxide to the municipal water supply in 2018 to help reduce lead levels in homes with lead water lines. The practice was discontinued in early 2020. Some concerns with pinhole leaks were discovered during that time.

Bruce Carli, who owns eight rental properties near Lakehead University, said he keeps a repair kit in his truck at all times to fix pinhole leaks. He's had about 20 leaks spread over his properties.

Carli said while he has a repair kit on hand, there have been many trips to hardware stores where new water lines and connectors are sold out, because demand is so high.

While he was able to repair leaks he found this summer with no issue, if a supply line, running from the city water main to a home fails, those living in a home now might have to move out.

"If this was to happen in December, January, my students would be without a house, because you can't hook up to an outdoor [faucet] in the middle of January."

"The waiting list to have somebody actually to come and fix a supply line is a couple to several weeks," Carli said, noting he spent nearly $10,000 to fix the supply line to one of his properties.

"If it starts to affect 50 per cent of the properties, well then, I'm really going to be hurting for it."

Property management companies also told CBC News they are fixing hundreds of pinhole leaks at small and large apartment buildings across the city.

"You can see it's been rotted from the inside out," said Darin Huston, the general manager at H&H Auto on Red River Road.

Huston said his business had to be shuttered for a day, and work interrupted for another while the supply line to his business was fixed.

It's a $12,000 cost not covered by insurance, Huston said, that his small business will have to deal with after being hit with COVID-19 challenges.

The parking lot had to be ripped up, which can't now be fixed until the spring, Huston said. The cost to repair the parking lot is over and above the supply line cost.

"The copper water line just eroded away to the point where it was very, very thin and just started to develop a bunch of holes until it started to give away," he said.

Huston said it was suggested that if he can prove the city's water caused the line to rupture, he could be given a property tax credit for about $3,000. He said he is unsure of any way to prove the rupture is the city's fault.

Nonetheless, Huston said he will keep the copper pipe that was dug up as proof of what happened. He said green chunks can be seen on the inside of the pipe.

Non-profit organizations have also been hit with their own problems with pinhole leaks, including Grace Place on Simpson Street. The group serves those in need with a daily meal, and also administers the Out of the Cold program, which provides shelter.

"It's kind of worn us down," said Melody Macsemchuk, who is one of the pastors at Grace Place.

"The leaks would happen quite often, sometimes even weekly," she said, noting the south-side facility seems to be in a constant state of construction dealing with the leaks.

"It's been discouraging, and it's also been costly," she said, with Grace Place footing an $8,000 bill to fix one section of pipe. Another break, over a year ago, was covered by insurance, with that bill totalling $48,000.

The City of Thunder Bay told CBC News it will not make any public comments on pinhole leaks in water lines.