A frozen pipe is more than just a nuisance. It can lead to severe damage to your plumbing system and even your home, especially if a pipe bursts inside or underneath the concrete foundation of your home. To avoid frozen pipes, disconnect garden hoses and any other outside connections, then drain and turn off water that flows to those outside faucets. If you have pipes in your garage (where it likely isn\u2019t heated), consider wrapping the pipes in insulation or a heating coil to keep them from getting too cold.<\/p>\n
Smelly drains are a common problem in houses that are frequently empty or that have extra bathrooms of kitchens that are not in use. If you notice a musty or sewage\u2013like smell coming from any of the drains in your home, the first step is to briefly run the faucet.<\/p>\n
Every drain has a trap in it that holds a small amount of water. This water blocks sewer gasses from rising back into the house. However, if the fixture isn\u2019t used for an extended period of time, the water in the trap evaporates which means there\u2019s no barrier to keep out the smell. If this happens, run the tap for a few minutes to clear the drain and refill the trap. If you know you\u2019ll be away from the property for some time, consider having the fixtures winterized or sealed up until you plan to use them again.<\/p>\n
This is a very common concern and is an early warning sign of a leak somewhere in the plumbing, but they\u2019re often in places that aren\u2019t easy to see. They are small and frequently between walls, underneath floor boards or even beneath your home. By the time you feel a drip from your ceiling or see water on the floor, quite a bit of damage has probably already occurred.<\/p>\n
If you see your water bill suddenly increase without explanation, call a professional to check your home for leaks. Most homes use a consistent amount of water each month, so increases are often signs that you may have a leak.<\/p>\n
Water may look clear, but it carries a number of other minerals and metals that are diluted in moving water, but stick to fixtures and pipes as they pass through. There are quite a few different minerals that might be in your water. White buildup is often a result of calcium and magnesium \u2013 resulting from hard water. Iron leaves behind a reddish tint and copper will leave a bluish green tint.<\/p>\n
Almost none of these residues signal a problem with your water that will be detrimental to your health, but it is still a good idea to have someone inspect the lines. Hard water in particular can cause damage to your fixtures and pipes and result in early replacement needs.<\/p>\n
The most common reason you lose hot water is because of a blown heating element in the hot water tank. This can be fixed by a professional in just a few minutes, but if it doesn\u2019t solve the problem, there are a number of other issues your technician will inspect for, such as a bad heat sensor, a fickle pilot light, or an old water heater that simply needs to be replaced. If you\u2019re not sure why your water heater suddenly stopped working properly, call a professional to take a closer look.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Plumbing Services Near You How Do I Avoid Freezing Pipes? A frozen pipe is more than just a nuisance. It can lead to severe damage to your plumbing system and even your home, especially if a pipe bursts inside or underneath the concrete foundation of your home. To avoid frozen pipes, disconnect garden hoses and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":91,"menu_order":170,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"side-navigation.php","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/58"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/58\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":839,"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/58\/revisions\/839"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/91"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.servicedoctors.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}