Useful Tips About Water Leak Detection

Useful Tips About Water Leak Detection

Your home is surrounded by piping and plumbing, both inside and out. It’s not uncommon for this piping to become damaged over time and to spring a leak.

When that does happen, it is important to act quickly. Leaving a leak to linger means that you run the risk of sustaining water damage in your home.

How do you know if you’ve got a water leak? And more troubling, where is that darn leak coming from?

To help you narrow down the causes and sort out a solution, we’ve compiled some handy tips for you.

Finding the Leak

Shut off the valves in your home. If the water meter continues to creep up, you’ve got a leak on your hands. But the real question is: where?

Plumbers use specialized equipment to find and fix leaks, but in many cases, you may be able to find the cause on your own.

It comes down to the process of elimination. Inspect the walls, floors, and ceiling in your home.ceiling-leak

Leaking pipes will produce moisture and dampness on the area walls, floor, or ceiling.

If you don’t discover anything there, move on to the valves in your home for evidence of moisture.

The valve on your toilet is known to leak. The seal separates over time.

To check if this is the case, use the low-tech trick of putting food coloring in the tank. Don’t flush. If you’ve got a leak, the color will move into the bowl after a few minutes.

Some leaks you might be able to fix on your own. For more pesky leaks, or if you suspect water damage, make sure to call in the professionals.

Avoid Leaks Before They Start

Like with many other components in your home, engaging in preventative maintenance can help you avoid leaks at all.

Getting your pipes cleaned of debris is a good idea; older homes will need repiping to more durable PVC piping at some point, so consider doing this before your pipes corrode.

Check outdoor faucets to make sure that they are turned off. Pull your appliances out from behind the wall to make sure that water isn’t pooling underneath.

A few times a year, drain your hot water tank until it is only about a third full to get rid of sediment that can interfere with its operation.

Know What Damage Can be Waiting

If you don’t take the time to address a water leak, the consequences can be devastating and expensive.

You are looking at potentially suffering structural damage to your home, which can be anywhere from inconvenient to severe, lowering the property value of your home.mold

Your precious belongings are at risk of getting damaged or destroyed.

You also could be putting your family’s health at risk.

A common by-product of water damage is mold growth, which is dangerous to inhale.

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