Is your home running on an old water system? Many of us don’t like the idea of having to upgrade our home’s plumbing – it’s a costly job that involves a lot of upheaval. That said, upgrading your home’s water system could be necessary in certain situations, helping you to save money in the long run or simply helping to prevent further damage. Here are three signs your water systems needs some updating.
Limited hot water
If you’re having trouble getting hot water, it could be due to a variety of reasons. Many homes only have a limited hot water supply before it starts coming through cold. This can be infuriated if you need a shower or need to wash up but there’s no hot water. This is most usually due to having a traditional water heating system with a tank. Upgrading to a tankless water heater could give you constant hot water by warming up water every time a faucet is in use. These systems can even save you money – water tanks require more energy to heat up than tankless systems.
Alternatively, if you find that you’re not getting any hot water at all to certain fixtures or water is coming through lukewarm, it could be due to a problem with your water supply’s hot water valve. This may need repairing and replacement from a plumber. Insulating your pipes could also help you to keep water hot, whilst buying certain devices like a thermostatic shower could help to regulate shower temperature.
Low water pressure
If your taps are only producing a dribble and your toilet cistern is taking ages to fill up, you’ve likely got a pressure problem. This may be a problem you’ve always had – your neighborhood may have low pressure due to the lie of the land. If this is the case, you may want to install a water pressure booster. This stores water in a tank and supplies it to your homes pipes with added pressure.
Meanwhile, if the problem has been gradually occurring, it could be the result of blocked pipes. Old metal pipes may be furred up on the inside and need cleaning out or replacing. Alternatively, your pressure gauge may be damaged.
Certain fixtures in your home can help to regulate pressure such as multi-flush toilets, modern lever taps and power showers. Upgrading these might be more worthwhile in some cases.
Constant leaks
Having to deal with constant pipe leaks can be irritating and could be causing water damage to your home. There are lots of reasons why pipes may be bursting on you. You may have old or cheap pipes in your home, which are unable to deal with modern water pressure. Old metal pipes may be prone to corroding or may have old seals which are rapidly deteriorating. Certain weak plastics such as polybutylene which have been banned due to unreliability may also be the cause. In both cases, you may need to replace your piping in order to prevent further leaks. This will be costly but could save you from future headaches.
Another reason for constantly leaky pipes could be too much water pressure. This can be fixed by adding a pressure regulator.
Alternatively, roots from neighboring trees could be damaging your homes piping. If this is the case, you may need to call an arborist to control these roots and prevent them causing further damage.
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