What are the most common plumbing problems?
Clogs
Clogs are arguably the most common type of plumbing problem that homeowners run into. Drains clog all the time. Most of these clogs are pretty minor—you clear out a sink clog by running the disposal, or a toilet clog using the plunger.
But, many other clogs are much tougher to clear out. Some can even be a sign of a sewer line blockage—something that should never be taken lightly!
How to deal with clogs
This is how most homeowners approach a clog. They’ll try to clear it themselves and—should that approach fail—they’ll bring in a plumber.
After all, plumbers have access to specialized clog-clearing tools that most homeowners don’t have under their kitchen or bathroom sink. This includes a variety of snake tools, specialized plungers, augers, and more.
Should you use drain cleaning products?
When confronted with a clog, most homeowners are tempted to run out to the grocery store and grab a drain cleaning product. After all, this is typically cheaper than bringing in a plumber.
However, these drain cleaning chemicals don’t always work as well as they should. In many cases, they only partially clear the clog, which means you’re going to be dealing with a clog again very soon.
Plus, these harsh chemicals can be tough on your pipes. Repeated use can actually weaken and damage them.
Frozen Pipes
Throughout much of the United States—including here in Chicagoland—frozen pipes are a major problem in the winter.
All it takes is a particularly cold night and your heater going down for several hours (which are often related) for your home’s pipes to freeze. If your home has an electric furnace, a power outage could also lead to this problem.
What happens when pipes freeze?
For obvious reasons, pipes in exterior walls are at the greatest immediate risk. As the pipes freeze, the water inside of them expands.
If you’ve ever left a can of soda pop in the freezer overnight, you know what comes next: the expansion of water into ice puts immense pressure on the pipe.
Luckily, your home’s copper or PVC pipes are hardier than an aluminum can, but there’s only so much of this sustained pressure they can take. Your pipes are at risk of bursting at any time.
How should you thaw out frozen pipes?
Thawing these pipes out is trickier than you might think. Most homeowners instinctively reach for the hair dryer, but that can actually bring on a pipe burst, since rapidly heating the pipe’s surface may weaken it.
You’ll really want to bring in a plumber. We have specialized thawing tools designed to safely raise the temperature of the water inside of the pipe, defrosting it without damaging the pipe itself.
Leaks
Water leaks are a big deal—and a common problem. Whether they’re caused by frozen—and then burst—pipes, or just by aging pipes, water leaks can cause thousands of dollars in water damage to your home, relatively quickly.
For this reason, every leak—no matter how small it starts—needs to be treated like a major threat to your home.
Do you need leak detection?
Not all leaks start in convenient, easy-to-access places, either. Some leaks start behind walls, in ceilings, or underneath floors. Finding and accessing the leak actually might be the toughest part of the job.
This is where a professional plumber can really save you a lot of time, money, and headache. Using professional leak detection equipment—such as acoustic leak detectors—the plumber will pinpoint the location of the leak.
From there, they can make precision cuts into your drywall or slab to access and repair it.
Leaks and water damage
If you’ve got a leak, you’ve probably also got water damage and, potentially, mold growth. Once your plumber has fixed the leak, you’ll want to speak to a restoration and mold remediation specialist to make sure there’s no long-term, lingering damage to your home.
Just How to Fix Common Household Plumbing Issues
Doing the fixings yourselves on these simple plumbing issues can save you heaps of money. As a home owner, you will certainly encounter lots of different plumbing issues that sometimes make a problem.
Low Water Pressure
Is a person from your house grumbling that there's low water stress from the sink? Inspect if this concern impacts both the hot as well as chilly water lines. If indeed, after that the trouble is the aerator within the sink which might have a great deal of sedimentation leading to low tide stress. This is extremely simple to take care of as you just require to take it out and also scrub away the natural resource.
Running Toilet
You might have experienced a running toilet, which can be rather annoying because the storage tank will not fill. At the same time, leaving it alone equates to wasting water and also surging up your water bills. For starters, figure out what's triggering it to run. You may require to replace any one of the complying with bathroom devices:
Bathroom fill valve
Dripping flush valve
Commode flapper
Malfunctioning Garbage Disposal System
This bothersome issue is also high on the checklist of typical plumbing issues. If you shed it, you will certainly need an Allen wrench to take care of the trouble. You have to go under the sink and look for the place where you can put the secret.
Slow Draining Sink
You can utilize a plumbing tool for fishing out the particles. From there, you can use a store-bought drainpipe cleaner to cleanse the lines.
Slow Tub Drain
This is one more pesky annoyance considering that the tub is one of the most pre-owned fixtures in your shower room. Similar to the sink drain, hair, soap residue, dead skin cells, as well as various other gunk swimming pool in the drain frequently. You must pop open the drain cover and also utilize a tub claw to remove the debris. Do this ASAP before the drain congests completely. After making use of the claw, you can pour drainpipe cleaner to revitalize the drain lines.
You can always call in a plumber to get professional aid if all of these sound tiresome for you. Looking for expert aid indicates saving effort and time. Due to the fact that you can relax guaranteed that your simple plumbing issue will not rise, you might even end up conserving cash in the long run. Because you will certainly be inviting strangers in your home, just make certain you call a trustworthy firm with qualifications and also licenses. Obviously, you have to make sure that you collaborate with somebody you can trust.
Some plumbing problems are a lot more common and can be conveniently taken care of. Doing the repair services yourselves on these straightforward plumbing problems can conserve you heaps of money. As a house owner, you will certainly run into numerous different plumbing issues that periodically make an annoyance. You can make use of a plumbing device for angling out the particles. You may also finish up saving cash in the lengthy run since you can relax assured that your easy plumbing trouble will not rise.
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