One of the most common scenarios for homeowners is picking up the phone and calling the plumber for a plumbing emergency. Suppose, one day, you wake up in the morning and find out that your basement is flooded due to a pipe burst; this is called a plumbing emergency. In that case, how would you handle the situation? In this guide, we will discuss this fact and share how you can overcome this kind of situation by yourself. So, let’s get into the discussion.
Things To Do During a Plumbing Emergency
Broken Pipes
Generally, pipes can break, and it is difficult to isolate the pipe compared to fixtures. You can prevent the water flow by simply bending or crimping the pipe. As a homeowner, this is all you can do.
However, there are better ways to do the job properly—for instance, compression fittings and push-to-connect fittings. When the water is flowing, this lets the homeowner shut down the valve instantly.
Turn Off the Water Supply
When a serious leak occurs, homeowners usually panic, but the good news is that there is a simple solution: shut off the water valve. You can find the valve near the front house by the water meter. When you turn it off, the water in the home will stop flowing, and you can immediately control it.
Leaking Water HeatersÂ
There are several ways to control water when the water heater leaks. You can install a hose cap into the drain if the water is coming from the drain. Make sure you tighten the hose over the drain; this will stop water from leaking until your plumber hired from Team Emergency Plumber, reaches your house.
If the water heater leaks from another side, check out the cold water supply and shut off the valve. At the same time, shut off the electricity and gas supplies as well. Otherwise, this could lead to a severe accident.
Also, ensure you do not plug the relief plug since the valve can prevent over-pressurization. And if you plug it in, this could turn the water heater into a bomb, leading to severe damage.
Leaking Fixtures
If you find out your plumbing fixtures are leaking, for instance, the dishwasher or faucet, turn off the fixture’s water supply. When the valve is shut off, this will help prevent water from flowing through your house.
Maintenance of Minor Issues
Regular maintenance can help you avoid any plumbing emergencies; we suggest you take care of the minor issues. Then, check out your house’s whole plumbing system with an expert plumber’s help. This helps save you lots of bucks and any unwanted occurrence.
Knowledge About Your Plumbing System
If you do not know about the plumbing system, this could lead to any serious issues. So, make sure you know the plumbing system properly so that you can easily find out the main source of plumbing issues.
The most important thing you should know is the location of the valve. Knowing the valve location helps prevent any potential home floods.
Assemble an Emergency Kit
As a homeowner, to prevent any plumbing emergency, you should consider installing an emergency kit in your house during construction.
And putting together the emergency kit is very easy. However, the emergency kits are:
- Push-to-connect copper caps.
- Push-to-connect couplings.
- Threaded plugs.
- Push-to-connect valves.
- Hose caps.
Identify clogged drains
If you are facing any plumbing emergency at your home, identify the clogged drains. Blocked drains are another common cause of plumbing emergencies. There are several reasons for clogged drains, such as – fat, greases from flushing, etc.
You can try some DIY repair to recover the clogged pipe. For example, pouring baking soda and hot water solutions can help remove toxic chemicals into the pipe. And then, you can call the plumber if this does not solve the issue.
Insulate the Pipes From Cold
To avoid any plumbing emergency, you can insulate the water pipe. The insulation process is perfect for the cold weather. That’s because cold weather could harm the pipes during the winter seasons. As a result, this could be the reason for pipe burst due to freezing temperatures. Hence, ensure you insulate the pipes so that they work correctly.
Check Water Dials
Sometimes, you may not be aware of leakages in your home. Thus, make sure you constantly monitor the water meter dial. If you find out the dial is reading, but no one is using water at your home, water is leaking. Therefore, check out the leaks immediately before the situation gets worse.
Final Words
According to research, a household leaks around 10,000 gallons of water a year due to water leakage. However, water wastage can also damage your furniture in the house. Hence, make sure you take extra care of the whole plumbing system of your house to avoid any difficult situation.
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