You may already know that your heating and air conditioning equipment needs seasonal HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) maintenance, but did you realize that you also should have an expert perform your annual plumbing maintenance? Climate Control Service Experts offers the Plumbing PLUS™ Maintenance Agreement for Mobile homeowners to help them discover issues before they become big problems. While you should always call for plumbing problems and schedule your plumbing maintenance yearly, here are a couple ways for you to get your home in tip-top plumbing shape for spring.
- Verify any plumbing leaks
Inspect both your faucets and toilets for any leaks. Make sure there isn’t any water dripping out of or around the connections when you turn off your faucets. If there is, replacing the fixtures or repairing the leak could help boost the faucet’s operation and may even reduce your water bill.
In addition to faucets, inspect all exposed pipes for signs of leaks. You can typically see visible pipes in the basement and under sinks. In extreme weather pipes can freeze and crack, so springtime is great to make sure the winter weather didn’t damage anything that could cause plumbing problems.
- Give your drains some seriously overdue TLC
Check your toilet for any fractures or leaks in both the tank and the bowl. If it looks like it’s in good working order, go ahead and add about six drops of food color into the actual tank. Wait for about 35 minutes and then look at the bowl. If the water in the bowl is clear, you’re good to go. If the food coloring appears in the bowl, you possibly have a leak and need to call a plumbing expert.
- Don’t forget your water heater maintenance
If an unpleasant odor seems to be getting in from any of the drains in your home, it may be an indication that plumbing maintenance is needed. A properly working drain shouldn’t release smells into the air. Verify there are strains placed in all your drains to prevent hair and other waste from spoiling in the pipes and causing them to clog. Following treatment with a common drain cleaner, pour four quarts of water through drains that are not used frequently. This will fill the trap and help to stop odors from sneaking in and filling up your home.
Your water heater takes good care of you so ensure you’re returning the favor. Don’t forget that newer water heaters have a higher efficiency, so if yours is over 15 years old, it may be about time to purchase a new one in order to ensure you don’t have that sudden burst of cold water for multiple days. Whether or not you plan on purchasing an upgraded water heater, there are a few things you can do to help keep it operating properly.
Verify that the temperature is set no higher than 120°F. This will help reduce your energy usage (and help lower your bills) while also evading scalding. For the purpose of safety, you will want to move away any items from around the water heater. Your 12 month Plumbing PLUS Maintenance agreement includes a water heater maintenance; and it may even help your water heater perform more efficiently and avoid plumbing problems in the future.
These are just some ways of how you can help get your plumbing ready for the season, but if you are not confident completing any of these tasks, please call Climate Control Service Experts and we can come out and perform your annual plumbing maintenance and rectify (or help avoid) any plumbing problems.