Being handy around the house is one of the best traits a homeowner can have. However, there are certain situations that require a professional plumber’s expertise, especially if you want to avoid enormous problems with sewage and water damage down the line.
If you’re experiencing any of the following issues with your home’s plumbing system, it’s time to contact a plumber for help.
1. Mold Growth
Have you noticed dark spots of mold growing on your ceiling, walls, or floor? This is a major warning sign of a hidden leak. Darkness and moisture can provide an ideal growing environment for many types of mold, so a leak behind a wall can result in extensive mold growth in your home. Don’t wait to contact a plumber to detect and repair the leak for you before the mold spreads!
2. Unusually High Water Bills
Do your water bills seem much higher than they should be based on your household’s water usage? This is another “red flag” indicating that there’s a hidden leak somewhere in your home. If you can’t spot the signs of the leak (such as mold growth are dark patches of paint in your walls or ceiling), a plumber with leak detection services can use specialized technology to pinpoint the leak’s location.
3. Pipes Are Making Banging Sounds
If your pipes keep making a loud banging noise, then there is most likely a water pressure or water flow issue inside of them. Normally, your pipes have air pockets in them to prevent water pressure issues that lead to “water hammer” (that banging sound), but sometimes those air pockets can fill up with water and stop working.
Before calling a plumber, you can try to solve the problem yourself by draining your home’s plumbing system and allowing the air chambers to fill up again:
- Shut off your home’s water at the main valve.
- Turn on the cold water on all the faucets in your home. Start at the top of your home and work your way down to the lowest floor.
- Flush all of your toilets.
- Wait about 20 minutes for all the water to drain and leave your home.
- Turn on your home’s water again at the main valve.
- Let your faucets keep running for another 5 to 10 minutes until their water flow is strong and back to normal.
- Start shutting your faucets off in reverse order, from the bottom floor of your home to the top.
- Once all the faucets are off and all your toilets have refilled on their own, test for water hammer by flushing a toilet.
If you still hear banging in your pipes, a plumber can help you install air chambers or water hammer arrestors in your pipes to prevent water hammer. In some cases, your home may have a faulty water pressure regulator, which a plumber can also help you replace.
4. Leaking Around the Base of Your Toilet
If there’s a leak around your toilet’s base, this usually means that the wax seal underneath the toilet has failed, allowing water to seep out. However, a leak might also be the result of a crack in the tank, a malfunctioning shutoff valve, a poorly connected supply tube, or excess humidity that’s making your toilet “sweat.”
A lot can go wrong with repairing or replacing a toilet that’s leaking on your bathroom floor. The worst-case scenario is that the toilet leaks through the floor and causes damage to the room underneath. For this reason, it’s best to involve a plumber to pinpoint the cause of the toilet leak and provide a quality solution.
5. Water Heater Tank Is Leaking
Water heater leaks can be sneaky because they can appear to come and go as the tank expands and contracts with temperature changes. However, if your water heater’s tank is leaking, there’s a good chance that the tank has some serious corrosion issues, and the small leak it has now could become a huge one very fast. Unfortunately, once the tank itself has rusted severely, it can’t be repaired, so you will need a plumber to replace your water heater.
Need help with a plumbing issue in your Columbus home? At The Rooter Works Plumbing and Drains, our friendly technicians provide outstanding diagnostics, troubleshooting, and customer service as we work to return your home back to normal: (614) 412-3324.
