As a homeowner, it may seem like various problems around the house don’t always pop up at the most opportune times. Whether that be issues with the air conditioning, heating, technology or even plumbing, the best piece of advice is typically to avoid procrastinating on any repairs. With some of these (especially plumbing), the longer you let them sit, the worse they can get. If you’re lucky enough to notice something isn’t right in the early stages, you can get it repaired before it becomes a major headache.
That leads us into the topic of this week’s blog. Your plumbing system is composed of many different components. You obviously have all of the drain lines and water lines that run throughout the house, but there are also plenty of individual fixtures and appliances to be mindful of as well. Faucets, water heaters, toilets, garbage disposals, the list goes on. And while there’s always going to be the possibility of a major issue occurring, there are also quite a few smaller plumbing problems that many homeowners face on a consistent basis. This week, we are going to run through some of these common plumbing problems and provide you with several tips on troubleshooting them. As always, if you would prefer to have a licensed plumber take care of the repair, many of these issues can be fixed relatively quickly and shouldn’t leave you with a significant bill.
#1: Leaky Faucet
Chances are most of us have dealt with a dripping faucet at one point or another. It obviously isn’t something anyone would consider an emergency, but also not necessarily something you want to let sit for months on end. Believe it or not, even just a slowly dripping faucet can waste a lot more water than you might think. Check out this information from the EPA’s website to truly see just how much water is wasted. Nonetheless, when troubleshooting a leaky faucet, there are a number of potential culprits and there is a solid chance you may be able to get by with repairs, as opposed to a complete replacement. Some of these problem areas include an issue with the cartridge, O-Ring, corrosion, incorrect original installation and so on.
As a side note, prior to calling your local plumber to come out and repair the faucet, take note of how long you’ve had this particular faucet. Just like any other plumbing fixture, they aren’t built to last forever. If your existing faucet is close to 15 years old or if you find the faucet to be experiencing constant issues, then it may make most sense to just replace it altogether. With the growth of the faucet industry, you’ll have no trouble finding trendy options at a wide range of price points.
#2: Water Pressure
Speaking of plumbing problems that are instantly noticeable, it’s safe to say low water pressure is one that most homeowners would spot right away. Whether that be in the shower or kitchen sink, low water pressure can quickly become an annoyance. The best way to begin an investigation into where the problem resides is to determine whether the issue occurs throughout the entire house or with just one fixture. If it happens to just occur with one individual fixture, then that should make things easier. A great place to start would be the aerator. For those unfamiliar with the terminology, aerators are installed to decrease the actual volume of water that’s emitted from the faucet, while still ensuring the pressure is at an adequate level. Over time though, these aerators can suffer from sediment build-up, which will negatively impact the water pressure when the faucet is turned on. Luckily, they’re fairly easy to remove and clean out to resolve this issue. If this doesn’t solve the problem though, you may have a clog on the pipes feeding that faucet or it could even simply be due to an old faucet.
Now, what if the water pressure issue is something affecting your entire home? In this case, you have a handful of areas to consider in terms of determining what’s causing the problem. First, if this seems to be an issue throughout your neighborhood, it could be a problem with your local water company. In these instances, to confirm this is the issue, try giving them a call to find out. If this isn’t the case, then there are plenty of other areas to consider. Perhaps, the main water shut-off value is partially closed. You could have a blockage or even a leak somewhere in your plumbing lines. To sum it up, water pressure issues can sometimes be easy to diagnose and repair, while other times they can require the help of an experienced plumber. In any case, the best starting point will always be to determine if the issue occurs in just one specific fixture or if it’s something affecting the entire house.
#3: Sump Pump Failure
Particularly in geographic areas that experience heavy rainfall, your sump pump is something you want ready to go at all times. After all, if it doesn’t work the one time you actually need it, you could be faced with some hefty repair bills. Unfortunately, there are a handful of rather common problems that we see homeowners run into in regards to their sump pumps.
First off, as is the case with any plumbing fixture or appliance, make sure to keep tabs on how old the unit is. Generally speaking, you can expect to get around 10 years out of a sump pump. Keep in mind though, the actual usage levels and how frequently it’s turning on will impact the overall lifespan. Secondly, be mindful of how important the discharge pipe is. The discharge pipe is responsible for removing the water from the pit to the outdoors, away from your home’s foundation. However, if the pipe happened to get clogged in any way, this could clearly cause some issues. Next on our list of common sump pump problems is not having a back-up plan in-place. Would you agree that power outages occasionally will accompany strong storms? Well, if this were to happen to you, I’m going to guess that you don’t want to lose your sump pump too! The only way to ensure that you’ll be protected if the power goes out is to have a battery back-up installed as well. This way, if you lose power during a strong storm (that probably includes heavy rain), your sump pump will still be able to perform its normal functions.
Interested in learning more about maintaining your sump pump? Check out one of our previous blog posts HERE. It walks you through the importance of not only regular maintenance, but also why it’s so critical to test the sump pump from time-to-time too!
Residential and Commercial Plumbing Services in Kansas City
While we covered a handful of routine plumbing problems throughout this blog post, there’s no denying that the complete list is much longer than this! From water heater troubles to running toilets and so on, there are plenty of items to consider. Even though many of these can be turned into DIY projects, that isn’t true about all of them. On certain ones, it’s probably going to be in your best interest to just call in a professional plumber to ensure it gets completed correctly the first time.
Need plumbing help in the Kansas City area? Our team at Stine-Nichols Plumbing offers residential and commercial plumbing services throughout Kansas City and many of the surrounding cities. Faucet installation, water softeners, drain cleaning, you name it! To request a free quote on a potential project, don’t hesitate to give us a call at (816) 348-3481.