You may already understand that your heating and air conditioning equipment needs annual HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) maintenance, but were you aware that you also require annual plumbing maintenance by an expert? All American Air Service Experts offers the Plumbing PLUS™ Maintenance Agreement for Daytona Beach homeowners to help them discover issues before they result in big problems. While we recommend calling immediately for plumbing problems and schedule your plumbing maintenance annually, here are a few ways for you to get your home in tip-top plumbing shape for spring.
Look at your home’s faucets and toilets for any leaks. When you turn off your faucets check around the connections for water dripping out; if there is, installing new fixtures or repairing the leak could help better the faucet’s function and may even save you money on your water bill.
Once you’ve checked the faucets, scan all exposed pipes for signs of leaks. You can usually access visible pipes below sinks and down in the basement. 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.
- Give your drains some long overdue attention
Examine your toilet for any cracks or leaks in the bowl and the tank. If it seems to be in good shape, go ahead and pour about six drops of food color into the tank. Wait 30 minutes and then check the bowl. If the bowl water is clear, you’re fine. If the color appears in the bowl, you may have a leak and will want to call a plumbing expert.
- Don’t forget your water heater maintenance
If a stench seems to be getting in from any of the drains in your home, it may be a sign that plumbing maintenance is required. A properly running drain shouldn’t release a stench into the air. Confirm there are strains placed in all your drains to stop hair and other waste from spoiling in the pipes and resulting in a clog. Following treatment with a common drain cleaner, pour eight pints of water into drains that are not used regularly. This will fill the trap and help to stop odors from coming in and smelling up your home.
Your water heater takes excellent care of you so be sure you’re returning the kindness. Keep in mind that newer water heaters have more energy efficiency, so if yours is older than 15 years, it may be about time to purchase a new one to help make sure you don’t have that sudden burst of cold water for multiple days. Despite whether or not you plan on purchasing an upgraded water heater, there are some things you can do to help keep it operating properly.
Make sure the temperature setting on the equipment is not set higher than 120°F. This will help reduce your energy consumption (and help lower your bills) while also preventing scalding. For safety sake, you will want to move away anything from around the water heater. Your 12 month Plumbing PLUS Maintenance agreement includes a water heater maintenance; and it could even help your water heater be more efficient and avoid plumbing problems in the future.
These are just a few ways of how you can help get your plumbing ready for spring, but if you are not confident completing any of these tasks, always feel free to call All American Air Service Experts and we can come out and perform your seasonal plumbing maintenance and repair (or help stop) any plumbing problems.