Tips for Locating Leaks in Your Home
Water leaks can appear anywhere there’s a plumbing fixture, and locating leaks is the first step toward fixing them. Follow these tips to pinpoint where water leaks could be damaging your home and wasting money.
Tub and Shower
- Splash leaks – Slide the shower door closed and splash water at it from the inside. If water leaks out, it could seep under the tile floor and cause damage there.
- Drain leaks – Plug the drain with a test plug, fill the shower or tub a few inches and check the water level in an hour. If the water level drops, the seal around the drain is leaking.
- Tile leaks – Examine tile grout and press on all tiles in the shower or tub wall. Persistent mold, deteriorating grout and loose tiles are signs water is damaging the wall behind the tiles.
Toilet
- Flange leaks – Try gently rocking the toilet. If it moves, look for ceiling stains in the room below the bathroom. Remove the toilet and look for a cracked or loose flange. A leak here could cause the subfloor around the toilet to rot, eventually triggering the ceiling under the toilet to cave in.
- Toilet leaks – A leak between the tank and bowl can be identified by “phantom flushes” or a constantly running toilet. The flapper is likely cracked or not sitting properly on the hole. Sink
- Sink rim leaks – Trickle water around the sink rim and look for leaks from below with a flashlight. Sink rim leaks gradually destroy cabinets and countertops.
- Plumbing leaks – Turn on the faucet and look for wet spots by wiping under-sink plumbing connections with a tissue. Leaks here can damage the cabinet, flooring and even the ceiling of the room below. After locating leaks, the next step is to fix them.
For help from a professional plumber, please contact Sobieski Services, Inc. today.
Our goal is to help our customers in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey learn more about energy and home comfort issues – especially HVAC and plumbing issues – so that they can save money and live in healthier, more comfortable homes.
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