Without indoor plumbing, our lives would be a lot less pleasant. But when that plumbing springs a leak, it can result in creating issues that are even less enjoyable.
Every homeowner should know how to look for plumbing leaks as part of maintaining the home. The Roanoke plumbing experts at Southern Trust Home Services offer the following tips for detecting leaks in your system:
- Monitor utility bills. While your electric bills will vary based on the season, your water bill should be predictable except for some minor usage increases in the summer. If the water bill is unusually large and you haven’t been filling a pool or watering plants, you may have a leak.
- Check your fixtures and pipes. Checking for faucet drips and leaks under the sinks can help you locate a small leak before it becomes larger. Larger leaks not only increase water consumption, but can also cause damage to your cabinetry, walls and flooring.
- Purchase a water leak detection system. A water leak detection system can be purchased inexpensively and can be placed near areas where water leaks are more frequent, such as near older water heaters or faucets. These detect moisture and will issue an alarm when water is detected.
- Perform a toilet dye test. The rubber flapper and other pieces of the toilet flushing mechanism can wear or become brittle, causing water to leak from the tank into the bowl. Drop some food coloring into the tank and wait a few minutes to see if it leaks into the bowl. If it does, you probably need to replace the flapper or other rubber parts. Be sure and flush the food coloring down so it doesn’t stain the bowl.
- Stay alert to other clues there is a leak. Do you notice a plot of grass in the yard that is greener than the rest? This could be an underground pipe that is leaking. Do you have a wall that is becoming discolored or wallpaper that is bubbling up? These are signs of leaky pipes in the walls. Musty smells and the sounds of dripping might be common for a haunted house, but both signal a leak in your home.
Once you find the leak, you should repair it as soon as possible to prevent the leak from getting larger or doing further water damage to your home’s interior. If you do not know how to repair it, please call Southern Trust Home Services at (540) 343-4348 to schedule a service visit. Our professional plumbers will come to your home and work with you to solve your plumbing problems.
