What to Address Frequent Plumbing Challenges: An Expert Approach
What to Address Frequent Plumbing Challenges: An Expert Approach
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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.
5 Typical Household Plumbing Issues and also How You Can Fix Them
As a homeowner, you will encounter several plumbing troubles that occasionally make a nuisance. Some plumbing concerns are a lot more typical and can be conveniently fixed. Doing the repairs yourselves on these basic plumbing problems can save you tons of cash. Take a look at 5 of the most common ones listed below:
Slow Draining Sink
You can utilize a plumbing tool for angling out the debris. From there, you can utilize a store-bought drainpipe cleaner to clean the lines.
Sluggish Tub Drain
Just like the sink drain, hair, soap residue, dead skin cells, and also various other cruds pool in the drainpipe typically. After utilizing the claw, you can pour drain cleaner to revitalize the drainpipe lines.
Low Water Pressure
Is somebody from your household complaining that there's low tide pressure from the sink? Inspect if this issue affects both the cold and also warm water lines. If yes, then the trouble is the aerator within the sink which may have a lot of sedimentation resulting in low water stress. This is extremely easy to repair as you just need to take it out and scrub away the mineral deposits.
Running Toilet
You may have experienced a running bathroom, which can be quite annoying because the tank won't fill up. At the same time, leaving it alone relates to drainage and also increasing up your water expenses. For starters, identify what's causing it to run. You might require to change any of the adhering to bathroom devices:
Toilet fill shutoff
Dripping flush shutoff
Toilet flapper
Malfunctioning Garbage Disposal System
This aggravating trouble is likewise high on the checklist of usual plumbing problems. If you shed it, you will require an Allen wrench to deal with the trouble. You have to go under the sink and also look for the spot where you can place the key.
You might even end up saving money in the lengthy run due to the fact that you can relax guaranteed that your easy plumbing problem will not rise. Just make sure you call a trusted company with licenses and also qualifications since you will be welcoming strangers in your house.
As a homeowner, you will experience lots of various plumbing problems that occasionally make an annoyance. Some plumbing concerns are a lot more usual and can be quickly repaired. Doing the repair work yourselves on these easy plumbing problems can conserve you loads of money. You can use a plumbing device for angling out the debris. You might also end up saving cash in the lengthy run since you can rest assured that your simple plumbing trouble will not escalate.
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