Simple and Effective Preventative Plumbing Maintenance Tips for Homeowners

If there are two things that many people take for granted inside of their homes, it would have to be electricity and plumbing. That is until something goes wrong and turning on a light is not as simple as flicking a switch or plumbing leaks make it hard to take a shower or wash clothes.

While both concerns are serious, over the course of the next few moments, you will learn some of the simple and effective ways to prevent plumbing issues from being a problem inside of your home. All you need to do is follow the following maintenance tips and you’ll be on your way to house with no plumbing issues in no time.

Conduct an energy audit. Being that water leaks are one of the biggest causes of plumbing problems, you want to make sure that you check for them on a pretty regular basis. One way that you can do that is by conducting an energy audit. It’s a process that will help you to see where you may have leaky pipes, if you have enough insulation in your attic and even if your appliances are working properly. One website that will show you how to do an audit yourself is The Daily Green. Go to the site and put “DIY energy audit” in the search field.

Learn how to fix minor leaks. So, what do you do if you happen to locate a leaky faucet or pipe? The good news is that thanks to websites like DIY Network, This Old House and even YouTube, you don’t always have to call a plumber; you can actually fix some of them yourself. Simply go to one of those sites and put “how to fix a leaky faucet” (or pipe) in the search field and you’ll be provided with step-by-step instructions.

Prevent flooding. If for some reason, your plumbing does end up failing you, there’s something that you should immediately do to prevent flooding inside of your house. You need to locate the main shut-off valve for the water inside of your home. Family Handyman is a website that will show you how to do that. Go to the site and put “locate water shutoff valve” in the search field.

Insulate your pipes. If you’re someone who happens to have particularly brutal winters and you were to call one of the plumbing services companies within your area for suggestions on how to protect your plumbing, something that they would probably tell you is that you should insulate your pipes. There are two kinds of materials that are highly-effective. One of them is fiberglass and the other is foam. DIY Network is one site that can show you how to insulate your pipes with them. Go to the site and put “insulate pipes” in the search field.

Winterize your plumbing. Speaking of gearing up for winter, you don’t want to forget about taking care of your outdoor plumbing. Make sure to disconnect your hoses, to cover up your faucets and if you have an underground sprinkler system, to turn it off as well. These things will help to keep you from having frozen pipes during the winter months. For other tips on how to winterize your outdoor plumbing, visit Angie’s List and put “winterize outdoor plumbing” in the search field.