Your plumbing system is another kind of life partner – you interact with it on a daily basis, and you count on it to be there when you need it. When your plumbing system is not working right, it has a big impact on your day and your ability to get the tasks done that you need to.
For instance, getting ready for work in the morning suddenly becomes an even more stressful time when your hot water heater has failed and there is no hot water. Or, getting the dishes cleaned up after a dinner party when your dishwasher is clogged.
All of the ways that you count on your plumbing system in a given day are hard to imagine, because we do it without much thought. But, when there is a plumbing failure – it’s the ONLY thing you can thing about.
Proper maintenance is the best way to avoid a problem with your plumbing system. And, thankfully, plumbing maintenance is a fairly easy thing to do. Here are just a few maintenance steps that you can add to your plumbing maintenance plan:
- Teach all of the members in your family where the shut-off valves are for various appliances and water sources. This is for those members who are age-appropriate of course but, even a child in middle school who knows how to turn off the toilet water source when it is flooding can save your flooring from significant water damage.
- Add it to your to-do list one weekend per month to look under the cabinets in the bathroom and kitchen. These are areas where we rarely get down and take a good look at, unless water is suddenly pooling out of them. Take a small flashlight and look around at the fixtures and connections to make sure there aren’t any small leaks. A small leak in these areas will cause mold and mildew growth in the wood cabinets.
- Once every three months, check your showerheads for build-up. This is especially true if you have hard water in your home. Your showerheads will begin to leak around the place where they connect to the plumbing if there is a clog because the water will get pushed back up into the pipe.
Regular plumbing maintenance is an important part of keeping your plumbing in top working condition. Make sure that you follow these tips to keep your plumbing system well maintained, and avoid any failures or malfunctions.