Your Home: Plumbing problems
Updated: 01/21/2012 12:40 PM
By: Ryan Peterson
Clogged drain, drippy faucet, toilet won't stop running? All are everyday plumbing nuisances that, if left alone, have the possibility of turning into a major headache.
"Once there's evidence of a leak, take care of it sooner rather than later. The more time that leak is there it becomes more difficult and more expensive to repair," said Alan Ayers a plumber.
Let's face it, plumbers can be expensive. But your plumbing is also something you don't want to mess with if you don't know what you're doing. So what's acceptable when it comes to do-it-yourself plumbing projects?
"Some of the work customers could perform themselves would be cleaning the aerator out on the faucet, tightening up nuts and bolts underneath. Just don't over tighten. Very snug is good. The toilet, if they're comfortable, they can pull the tank lid and take a look. Get a working understanding of what the system does, the flapper and the float valve. But to replace the whole ballcock assembly or all the internal components of the tank, that's probably something you want to leave to the professional," said Ayers.
Most of us may be worried most about things inside, kitchen sinks and toilets, but Ayers reminds us to regularly check outside faucets as well to make sure any undetected leaks aren't costing you money.
"We seldom walk around our home and look at the outside faucets unless we notice a large amount of water on the lawn. Take a walk around and look behind the bushes for your outside faucet and make sure there isn't anything running out there. You could lose hundreds of dollars in water bills through a leaky outside faucet you didn't know about," said Ayers.
Ayers went on to remind us about some simple rules. Mainly, don't put things down the drain or toilet that don't belong there. Especially children's toys and, when it comes to the kitchen sink, grease.
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