When home services specialists were surveyed, they found that property owners call a plumber for system issues once every 36 months on average. These calls are typically for problems that don’t have a quick DIY fix and need professional solutions. The most common plumbing issue is leaks of all sizes and severity. Plumbing issues can range from a minor faucet drip to a major ruptured pipe. A serious plumbing leak or rupture can lead to severe damage to your home or business. Many of the most common plumbing issues can be prevented through regular preventative maintenance.
Common & Avoidable Plumbing Failures
While you can’t stop normal wear and tear, you can minimize the likelihood of severe problems and costly emergency plumbing calls. Plumbers are called for a mixture of common and emergency system issues, and while most of these issues can be fixed quickly, some may require closer inspection.
The leading household plumbing issues are:
Dripping faucet: A dripping faucet is one of the most common plumbing problems, and so common, almost anyone who has a home has experienced a dripping faucet. The cause of this common plumbing annoyance is worn or faulty washers in the faucet system. As far as plumbing problems go, this is one of the easiest and cheapest to solve.
Slow Draining Systems: When your sink drains slowly, it can be an unsanitary nightmare. Whether it’s your kitchen or bathroom sink or your shower, the problem stems from the same issue – drain management. When foreign objects or restrictive materials make their way down your drain, they will always end with blockages. Kitchen sinks are plagued by meat fats and bathroom sinks are stymied by an endless barrage of soap scum. Showers have the ever-menacing hairballs clogging water flow. The good news is that you can sometimes clear these clogs without calling a plumber if you’ve caught the problem early.
Using a plunger, drain snake, and DIY drain cleaner, you can remove a clogged sink or drain. Before trying to unclog your sink or drain, make certain you wear protective clothing. It’s also important to use safe compounds like vinegar and baking soda to remove your blockage. Introducing caustic chemicals into your plumbing system can damage your pipes if you aren’t careful. They can also create poisonous gases if mixed with DIY drain clearing compounds. Preventative measures also a good choice. Once your blockage is removed, you should install drain traps to prevent clogging agents from invading your system.
Toilet Blockages: A blocked toilet can become very messy very fast, and it can also become a serious biohazard concern. When an excessive amount of paper and waste meet in a toilet drain, it’s likely to cause a blockage. A moderate clog can generally be fixed with a plunger, but more aggressive clogs may require plumbing tools like drain augers and snakes.
Running toilet: Another common plumbing issue that most homeowners have faced is the annoyance of the running toilet. Not only is this an annoying problem, but it can also quickly become costly. Over 200 gallons of water can be lost per day from a running toilet. The likely cause of a running toilet is faulty or worn parts, like the flapper valve, but the problem can also be from sediment and hard water issues.
Low water pressure: Poor water pressure can be extremely frustrating. There are few issues that could be the cause of your low pressure, and you may be able to discover the cause with just a little investigation. If you live in an older home with its original pipes, your water pressure may be caused by old leaky pipes. If your pipes are not old, the problem could be due to sediment and mineral buildup from hard water. You can descale your shower heads with vinegar to remove scale buildup, but to fix the problem long term, you’ll need to have your water treated.
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