For many people, owning a home is the largest investment they will make in their lifetime. It is as important to protect your home investment as it is any other. While there are many things inside and outside that can affect the value of your home, here are just a few plumbing things to consider from the experts at FitzGerald and Sons Plumbing Company:
Avoid Developing an “Out of Sight – Out of Mind” Attitude
When it comes to plumbing and parts of your home you virtually never see, it can be easy to overlook issues. We recommend taking a walk around the exterior of your home on a regular basis, maybe once or twice a week, just to make sure you don’t have any of the following problems: hose bib leaking, or running; shingles loose, irrigation line leaking, gas leak, or a crawl space door open. These are the little things that often go undetected for days, weeks, and sometimes months. In our climate, most homes have interior shut off valves for their exterior hose bibs. If you develop a “fall checklist” and a “spring checklist”, you can remind yourself to check a few things like winterizing your hose bibs, shutting off and draining the irrigation system, and cleaning or having the gutters cleaned.
Check on Your Crawl Space
If you have a crawl space, chances are the only time you venture in there is if you suspect a problem. We have seen many times where a water or sewer line, a shower, a tub, or a toilet have been leaking for months, resulting in damage and potential health issues. Our climate is quite conducive to the growth of mold and many molds can have serious health consequences. Rotting wood flooring and structural members can lead to sagging and even collapsing sections of flooring have occurred because the damage wasn’t obvious from the living side of the crawl space. Take a half hour every couple of weeks and take a trip through your crawl space to make sure everything is intact, not leaking, and there are not any funny noises. If you are unsure about how much this matters, ask your insurance agent how much money they spend on water damage claims in a year. A few minutes every week could literally save you several thousand dollars.
Watch Out For Cabinet Leaks
The kitchen sink cabinet is often a deep, dark recess where that lost sponge lurks in the back corner but no one ever looks back there. Clean out your cabinets now and then. You might discover a leak, drip, or even something you’ve been looking for. Even a small, intermittent drip from a water or drain connection under a cabinet can do extensive damage over time to the base of the cabinet and beyond. It’s easy to push things in and out under the kitchen sink and without even realizing it, you could bump the drain line, water line or disposal, and start a drip.
FitzGerald & Sons Plumbing is available for any of your plumbing needs. If you suspect a leak or problem, give us a call and we can put your fears at ease.