Plumbing emergencies cannot be predicted most of the time. They are quite uncomfortable, and they can cause a wide array of different problems in your home. In the most severe cases, you can have quite an uncomfortable experience, which can damage a lot of different things in your home, including the foundation.
So, you can see just how damaging and dangerous they can be in those moments. The best thing you can do is prevent these from happening. Of course, this is not the easiest thing to do, especially when you lack experience in this field of work. On the other side, there are moments when you cannot prevent them, which can be quite problematic.
In a situation like this, you will need to reach out to a professional plumber. For instance, if you are in Newbury and you are looking for a reliable plumber, be sure to reach out to your-local-plumber.co.uk. You can find professionals to help you with all the plumbing and boiler repairs for the Newbury and surrounding area.
Now, we would like to talk about some issues you can handle common plumbing issues on your own.
Look for Joints and Fixtures
The first thing you should do is find the location of the leaks. Naturally, you will need to shut off the water at the main tap, to prevent any potential problems while you’re fixing the problem. Then you should proceed towards searching for the places where these leaks have occurred, which is not an easy task.
One of the biggest indicators that you have a problem with leaks is that your water bills have increased significantly. Even the smallest of leaks out there can increase it significantly. So, you should be on the lookout for even the smallest of them out there. You should inspect all the pipes inside your home carefully until you come across them.
As you can presume, the smallest leaks you can find are the toughest ones to spot. So, you will have a lot of problems, especially if you are inexperienced. When you come across them, the measures you will undertake will be determined by the scope of the damage the pipes have suffered.
Clogged Drains
Source: rd.com
The next thing we want to talk about is finding the clogged drains. They are so common to come across, and spotting them is not that hard. You will immediately see when something is wrong with the water pressure inside your home. Still, clogged drains are quite a complex thing to do, especially if the particles and parts are quite big.
Even when you don’t feel the drop in water pressure, you will sense the bad odor of the particles accumulated in one place, which is already wet. If you have a small camera you can use to record inside the pipes, you will be able to locate the particles in no time. Naturally, the chances of you having one of these are quite small, so you will need to think about it in advance.
To prevent this from happening, you should be extremely careful about the particles that go down the drain. Of course, this is not something you will be able to do every time. At least, you should be on the lookout for the big ones. Unclogging these is challenging, and you will need to invest a lot of effort.
Overflowing Toilet
An overflowing toilet is quite a common issue these days, and you will need to address it as soon as it occurs. Not only that it is quite uncomfortable, but it can also be quite problematic since it can cause quite a lot of damage to the wooden floor. First, you should turn off the main water tap.
When the water stops flowing in the toilet, the failure in the mechanism or clog can be addressed properly. Thankfully, unclogging the toilet is easy since you just need to apply enough pressure to it by using a plunger. Still, there are some severe cases when you will need to reach out to a professional to do it instead of you.
Shower Heads and Faucets
Source: hansgrohe.com
The leaks on shower heads and faucets are quite a common problem. While it may seem insignificant at first, it will have a negative influence on your water bill. Taking care of these problems is an easy thing thankfully. It doesn’t require too many skills to conduct since you just need to unscrew the shower head and faucets.
When you put them back together, you need to replace the parts with new ones. A good thing to know about these inner parts is that they are not expensive, and you can find them in practically every shop in your area. Doing so requires a little bit of skill, but you can find the instruction on how to do it online.
Have a Plumbing Kit
Last but not least, we would like to advise you to have a plumbing kit at your side at all times. Compiling a proper kit is challenging if you lack knowledge and experience in the field. The first thing you should include in your plumbing kit is a plumber’s tape. It is one of the essential things you should not overlook definitely.
Besides that, buy a proper plunger, which is quite an easy thing to come by these days. Another thing you should take a look at is the screwdriver. You cannot unscrew the pipes properly without having one of these, don’t you agree? Additionally, we want to point out the importance of hex keys. They are quite handy in situations when you want to tighten small bolts and nuts.
They come in a wide array of different shapes and sizes, and besides that, they are quite inexpensive. So, you will be able to find quite a lot of them pretty fast, and they can help with these situations as soon as possible you have them. Of course, we would require you to have some old towels to collect the water that leaked.
Summary
Conducting plumbing repairs on your own is not an easy thing to do. However, if you invest a little bit of effort, you will have a much easier time doing so, and it will be much cheaper for you in the end.
