As the adage says, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” One especially true place is in the plumbing of your home. Your home plumbing system can amount to around 15% of the total value of your home. Keeping that investment operating smoothly will benefit you both in the near term and down the road.
But where should you start? Below is a checklist of maintenance tips for making sure your plumbing stays healthy. It will also help to raise awareness of potential problems early so that you can avoid the costly result of waiting too long to repair plumbing issues.
Daily tips are meant to prevent clogs. As readers of this blog know, clogs are one of the most common plumbing issues – and can cause any number of problems. A few simple tips and daily care can keep your home free of clogs.
- Never put grease or oil down your sink, including cooking oils and fats such as butter. They can congeal and block pipes.
- When running your garbage disposal, always turn on the water before adding any food.
- Allow cold water to run for several seconds after turning off the disposal to flush any remaining food down the mainline.
- Running your dishwasher overnight can help to maintain good water pressure in other areas of the house throughout the day.
- Install screens to protect drains from hair and other objects from causing clogs.
- Avoid corrosive chemical clog removal products that can damage your pipes.
- Do not flush anything other than human waste and toilet paper down your toilet.
- Wait between 10 and 15 minutes between showers to avoid unwanted stress on plumbing by maintaining proper water pressure.
- Look for evidence of pipe leaks and moisture- such as water stains, mold, or musty smells.
- Check for even drainage, bubbles, or other signs of problems with the mainline of the house.
- Make sure water faucets are not leaking out of the handles or under the sink.
- Regularly empty lint traps on washing machines.
If you have any questions regarding plumbing in your home, call Hope Plumbing (317) 641-4673 to have one of our professionals out to take a look.
