You may have recently purchased your first home in Southern California, or you may be considering doing so. By this point, you may have lost count of the number of times someone has told you that purchasing a home is the single finest long-term investment you can make. However, they didn’t provide instructions on how to care for your new home properly!
As a SoCal Plumbing expert that conducts home inspections on hundreds of properties each year, we possess a unique perspective on the plumbing system that challenges new homeowners once they have taken ownership of their house.
Have you ever heard that your plumbing system accounts for approximately 15% of the total value of your home? If not, you should. That is a considerable sum of cash right there!
Likely, your plumbing is not something that occupies much of your mind. You might be familiar with it, and you are confident that it can perform well while requiring minimal maintenance. Unfortunately, the two most common plumbing difficulties are clogged drains and leaking pipes. Keep reading to learn about the five plumbing tasks that fall on your shoulders as new homeowners.
Spot If There Are Water Leaks
New homeowners should also take prompt action to spot water leaks. Not addressing water leaks could cause your home to flood, ruining your valuables. The first visible indicators of a water leak are often wet stains on the ceiling, walls, or flooring. And what if there aren’t any blatant indications? Before giving up and calling Southern California Plumbing Experts to fix the problem, you should give these options a shot to check water leaks in your new house.
Various things can cause water to escape from its intended location. To find a water leak, you first need to understand what makes water leaks happen in the first place.
Pipe and drain systems can become compromised due to blockages, which can lead to leaks. The roots of trees and debris from severe storms can clog gutters and sewage lines, which can cause various plumbing issues across your property.
In addition to creating corrosion, clogs distort the pipes in your plumbing system. Pipes that have been corroded lose their durability and strength, which makes it more likely that they may leak.
Pipe joints are the regions of the plumbing system that are the most vulnerable since they are where two pipes connect. Leaks develop when the pipe joints become brittle or deteriorate over time.
Even though a scalding hot shower with a constant stream of water feels impressive, having too much water pressure in your pipes might cause them to burst. Most plumbing fixtures, including pipes and faucets, are not designed to sustain high pressure, making them susceptible to leaks.
Houses can also develop water leaks as a result of broken seals. The seals are positioned around the water connectors on the appliances during the installation process. However, as time passes, the seals on the devices become worn. Seals that have become worn out can cause water to leak into other parts of your home.
- A water meter test might help locate any concealed water leaks. To examine the water meter, turn off all the water sources in the house. Your home has a water leak if the meter continues to spin after the water supply has been turned off. The water meter reading may wait to change, but you should recheck it in a couple of hours to see if it has changed. Assuming the water meter has moved, a slow leak may be occurring.
- Checking the water pressure in your home is another method for locating concealed leaks. The water pressure can be measured by turning off all the faucets. A water leak could be the cause of noticeably reduced pressure.
- The sound of rushing water can detect a water leak, even if there are no visual indicators. Sometimes you can hear water dripping through the walls or the floor.
- There may not be a leak, as determined by the water meter test, but one could spring up at any time. Therefore, it is prudent to watch for wall discoloration, damp spots on the floor, cracks in the wall covering or paint, and a musty and old smell.
A leak is an emergency that typically signals a more severe issue. A plumbing repair is required when a leak is visible. Call our Southern California Plumbing if you are unsure of the source of the leak before you begin fixing it. They are expert who offers water leak detection services. If you require emergency service and repair for your plumbing in the Southern California area, don’t hesitate to contact our team.
Replace Your Fixtures
Before there is a problem, plumbing fittings that have become worn out should be inspected and either repaired or replaced. Pipes that have become brittle with age and use are more likely to burst, which results in expensive water damage. Seals and valves that have worn out can cause water pressure to decline and leaks in the system.
Faucets and shower heads are simple fixtures to replace. Homeowners sometimes need to pay more attention to how simple it is to replace old faucets and handles with newer, more aesthetically pleasing models.
Replacing other fixtures will definitely improve the functionality of your house. Find out what modifications will make it easier for everyone in your household to perform routine duties in the bathroom, such as dressing and using the toilet, and implement them to improve the bathroom’s safety and functionality.
Shower/bathtub combos can make bath time much more manageable for families with young children. Comfort-height toilets and additional handrails can increase bathroom safety for those of a certain age. For those with mobility issues or the elderly, a roll-in shower is a welcome addition to any home.
Changing old worn fixtures before they fail can save money that would have been spent on water damage and unexpected repairs. You can call our Southern California Plumber to check your issues immediately.
Check Your Water Heater’s Age
Even if you aren’t planning to replace the water heater in your home, knowing how old it is is still vital. Knowing how long your present water heater will survive is essential, as they typically only last between 8 and 12 years. If your water heater is older than eight years, you should get a new one to avoid expensive and inconvenient repairs in the future.
Disaster Safety says that at year 5, there is a sharp increase in the failure rate that results in an insurance claim. Seventy-five percent of water heaters break down by the time a child reaches the age of 12. Although these figures may thrill the insurance claims department, we advise you to consider the age of your water heater before making a final decision.
Regardless of the manufacturer, a rating plate must be present on all water heaters. This plate provides essential information about the water heater, including the model and serial numbers, the name of the manufacturer, the warranty period, and more. Some heaters have the month and year encoded into the first four digits of the serial number, making it easy to identify how long you’ve had it. Many other manufacturers have you look up their date-decoding system on the web.
Once you’ve solved the mystery of when your heater was made, you may determine whether or not to get a new one or have it serviced. If it’s more than five years old, switch to tankless or keep it in good working order. However, our Southern California Plumbers cannot reverse the passage of time, but we can determine the most prudent course of action for your water heater.
Recognize Your Drain Clogs
In most cases, clogged drains start as a relatively minor problem, but they can quickly become a major inconvenience. Householders should take care of this right away to prevent costly pipe damage or flooding. There are warning signs that can alert homeowners to a clogged drain, allowing them to take action before costly damage is done.
There is no need to call a plumber right away if you’re having problems with a partial clog, but these problems might sneak up on you. Partial clogs should be avoided for the obvious reason that they might slow down the draining process and cause water to pool in the sink. Clogs in the drain can cause odors, attract insects, and ultimately lead to a full shutdown of the drain system.
Washing soda and hot water thrown down the drain may help break up the grease buildup. However, the success of this solution is highly conditional on the magnitude of the drain blockage. A degreaser may only remove the top layer of grease from a huge buildup, but it will surely leave the underlying grease intact.
Avoid Future Problems By Seeking a Professional Southern California Plumber
As new homeowners in Southern California, you owe it to yourself to take precautions to protect your property; this includes taking care of the plumbing system, which is necessary for carrying out various day-to-day duties all across the house.
When a drain or other plumbing fixture in a home stops working properly, as a new homeowner in Southern California, you should fix the issue as soon as possible. Take note that if you try to fix a blocked drain with subpar tools, you might end up making things worse. Instead, get in touch with our professional plumber if you want the problem fixed quickly and efficiently.
After trying a few different solutions without success or after monitoring the issue in your plumbing system for a few weeks and seeing that it is clearly growing worse, it is time to call in a plumber. Here at Western Rooter, our team of expert plumbers has the experience, the skills, and the right tools to get your drainage system working smoothly again. We are here to answer all your questions and provide you with a reliable plumbing service that will be sure to last for years!
