Homes with leaks often waste 90 gallons of water annually. Aside from wasting water, leaks can also cause water damage on porous surfaces of your house. While it is easy to overlook home water leaks, they pose many unseen dangers as well—asidefrom losing and wasting water. Keeping an eye on water leaks can help improve not only the integrity of your home but also your health. Below are the best ways to detect home water leaks.
Check the Water Meter
The most important thing that you can do to determine whether your plumbing system is leaking is to check your water meter.
The first thing that you need to do is to turn off any tap or water supply in the house. Look for the silver or red triangle on your meter and check if it is spinning. If it is, then there is leaking in your house.
In most cases, slow leaks are very hard to notice so while you are still looking at the water meter, take note of the position of the meter’s hand for at least 15 minutes. If the meter hand has moved, then there is a small leak somewhere in your house. If there is a leak, shut off the main valve of your water supply and check the meter again. This is to make sure that you have a leak inside your plumbing system. Once you have isolated the problem, the next thing that you need to do is to locate the leak.
Tips on Detecting Leaks
Locating leaks can be a challenging task because you have to check many things inside your house. Below are the tips on how you can detect leaks in the different parts of your house.
Leaking faucets
Leaking faucets are considered relatively easy to detect. Faucets often leak because they have worn-out rubber washers that are located under the handle. If the washers are worn-out, the faucet handle will become loose and you will see obvious dripping from the valve. This type of leak is relatively easy to replace as long as you have the right tools and a new valve.
Toilets
Leaking toilets can waste a lot of gallons of water. There are many reasons why toilets leak and these include leaks in the flapper valve, flush handle, and overflow tubes. The flapper valve is the rubber valve in the bottom of the tank that lifts up when you flush the toilet. If this component is riddled with cracks or worn out It will not properly seal the tank when not in use.
The flush handle, on the other hand, is comprised of the chain and lever bar. It causes leaks if the nut that secures it to the toilet tank is loose. Lastly, the overflow tube is used to set the water level inside the tank stable. If the overflow tube leaks, it constantly spills water down the toilet bowl.
To determine if your toilet is leaking, remove the lid tank and add a few drops of food coloring at the back of the tank. Wait for 30 minutes to an hour without flushing the toilet. If the water is leaking, look at the toilet bowl and the water should have changed because of the food coloring dropped in the tank. If the water in the bowl remains clean, then it is not leaking.
Underground Leaks
Underground leak is usually difficult to see but you can identify if there are leaks by looking for puddles. If there are puddles outside the house that do not seem to clear up, then it is an indication that an underground pipe may be leaking. If you suspect an underground leak, call a plumber right away because this type of leak is difficult to address.
Other Home Water Leaks
There are other sources of water leaks. You have to remember that the water that you use in your house is delivered under pressure so leaks can be quite obvious. One of the most important water leaks that you need to identify is a waste water leak.
To look for other water leaks, look for warped or discoloration on your floors, walls, ceilings or furniture. Another type of leak that you need to look for are condensation. Although condensation is normal, it can cause damage on your porous fixtures.
Detecting water leak and fixing them can help prevent further damage so that you can protect the integrity of your house.
Trust the Professionals
Whether you are having a water leak emergency in the middle of the night, or need sewer cleaning or drain service while maintaining commercial property. We will dispatch a licensed plumber that same day to help you. Red Lilly plumbers provide a free and honest estimate for suggested services. We also service all of Los Angeles County. Call today to learn more about any one of our services.