Home Plumbing Problems Solved

A plumbing system that was designed as well as installed properly should rarely cause a problem. However problems can crop up regardless of how superior the system is and how well it is taken care of. Pipes start to leak, or worse they burst because they are old, are under a great deal of pressure or because of cold winter temperatures. Another common problem with plumbing is drains that get clogged. Your shower drain maybe clogged with hair while your kitchen drain is clogged with cooking grease that you should not have poured down the sink.

Home plumbing issues may be a terrible pain and often occur at the worst possible times (such as on a holiday weekend!). Here are some things you can do if water troubles comes calling at your residence.

If water is dripping from a pipe or is pouring out of a corner of the room or from the wall then you should immediately turn off the water. When you buy a home always find out where the shut off valve for the water is. Turning off the water serves an important purpose- it prevents the likelihood that more serious damage will take place. The same step should be taken if your dishwasher, washing machine or toilet overflows. Stop any more water from flowing in.

The majority of water systems have more than one valve which can be used to shut off the water. For instance most sinks have a hot and cold shut off valve. The valves should be somewhere near the bottom of the fixtures. A toilet will have a valve near the bottom of. Look on both sides of the toilet and you should be able to find the valve.

The main shut off valve that is responsible for controlling all of the water that flows through the fixtures in your home is often to be found in the basement or in a crawl space of the house. Or it may be located outside near your water meter. Remember that once you turn the main valve off then it will cut off the total supply of water in your residence. That includes all sinks, the bath tub and your toilet(s). Grasp the main shut off valve firmly and turn it in a clockwise direction to disconnect the water.

A leaking pipe is not a cause for panic although it may strike fear in your heart initially. The most common reason that a pipe will leak is because it is frozen or because the joint is corroded. In some cases resoldering a joint that is soldered might eliminate the plumbing problem. In other cases tightening a threaded joint may be all that needs to be done. For those occasions when a plumber cannot arrive on your doorstep immediately you can try mending a pipe that has burst with a clamp-on pipe patch. You can also make your own emergency clamps out of rubber and a C-clamp.

Sometimes no matter how careful you are with your plumbing you will still suffer a drip, drain or leak at some point in time. Sometimes the problem will be something that you can cure yourself and other times you will need to call in a plumber. Here we have examined a few of the potential water problems that could occur in your home. The important thing is to know how to deal with emergencies before they happen!