Expert Guide to Spring Plumbing Maintenance

You may already understand that your heating and air conditioning equipment needs annual HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) maintenance, but did you know that you also should have an expert perform your annual plumbing maintenance? Matz-Rightway offers the Plumbing PLUS™ Maintenance Agreement for Long Island homeowners to help them uncover 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 to get your home in great plumbing shape for spring.

Inspect all 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 lower your water bill.

Once you’ve checked the faucets, inspect all exposed pipes for evidence of leaks. You can usually find visible pipes in basements and below sinks. Sometimes pipes can freeze and then crack so spring is the perfect time to make sure the winter weather didn’t cause any damage or plumbing problems.

Inspect your toilet for any fractures or leaks in both the bowl and tank. If it seems to be in good shape, go ahead and add about six drops of food color into the tank. Wait for about 35 minutes and then look at the bowl. If the water in the bowl is not colored with the dye, you’re in the clear. If the food coloring appears in the bowl, you possibly have a leak and will want to call a plumbing expert.

If a stench seems to be coming from any of the drains in your home, it may be an indication that plumbing maintenance is needed. A properly operating drain shouldn’t release odors into the air. Confirm there are strains installed in all your drains to avoid hair and other waste from spoiling in the pipes and causing them to clog. Once you’ve treated them with a common drain cleaner, pour four quarts of water down drains that are not used regularly. This will fill the trap and help to prevent odors from seeping in and stinking up your home.

Your water heater takes great care of you so ensure you’re returning the kindness. Don’t forget that newer water heaters are going to be more energy efficient, so if yours is older than 15 years, it is probably about time to invest in a new one to be sure you don’t have that unexpected burst of cold water for multiple days. Regardless if you plan on replacing your water heater, there are a few things you can do to help keep it working properly.

Check the temperature setting on the water heater and make sure it’s not higher than 120°F. This will help reduce your energy usage (and help decrease your bills) while also evading scalding. As a safety precaution, you will want to move away anything from around the water heater. Your annual Plumbing PLUS Maintenance program includes a water heater maintenance; and it could even help your water heater be more efficient and avoid plumbing problems from happening.

These are just a few ways of how you could help get your plumbing ready for the season, but if you are not comfortable completing any of these tasks, please call Matz-Rightway and we can come out and complete your seasonal plumbing maintenance and fix (or help prevent) any plumbing problems.