Water leaks can be damaging. There are several ways that water leaks around your house can be detrimental to you and your property. This can range from hundreds of dollars lost in overcharged water bills to water damage that can cost you thousands of dollars. Therefore, it is essential that you keep a vigilant eye out for any leaks around the house and be proactive in detecting and recognizing them instead of waiting for them to affect you before you have the chance to prevent them.

Leak detection early on will save you from the costs mentioned above as well as from the hassle that it is to manage them once the situation has grown out of hand. Besides having regular maintenance visits from a professional plumber in Sugar Land, TX, the following tips will always come in handy when it comes to detecting leaks around your house.

Check the Toilets in Your Home

Even before you call in a professional plumber, a basic leak detection protocol would call for a thorough survey of your toilets – that’s where a majority of household leaks are anyway. The toilets consume a lot of water, but when there is a leak in your toilet, your water usage will naturally be extremely high.

To check your toilets for any leaks, the first thing that you need to do is check the toilet tank. Start by removing the lid of the toilet tank. Listen closely for something that sounds like hissing. If you can detect such a sound, you should call in your plumber to come and fix it for you.

If you do not detect any such noise that could indicate a leak, try adding food color to the toilet tank. This will expose even a sneaky leak to you as the leaking water will leave pink or orange marks in the toilet tank, depending on the food color you added. It will take a while before it shows any sign of colors in the tank, so come back after a few minutes to check.

Check the Tank That Stores Your Hot Water

Now that we’ve covered the toilet, let’s go over to the next most likely spot where a leak could have originated. You’ll have to perform a check on the pressure relief valve, which may be located inside or in the vicinity of a drain. If you feel you’re not up for the task, you can always call a good plumber to come and look at it for you. However, if you’ve decided to push ahead, you should now remove the drain pipe to listen for any hissing noises coming from inside. The presence of any such noise would indicate that there is a leak. This is it; once you head this noise, it’s time to call in a plumber to look into it and fix it for you.

Check the Meter Line

When trying to check a meter line for any leaks, you start off with locating the shutoff valve first. Temporarily shut off the valve and then proceed to remove the meter’s lid to observe the dial. The lid may not be visible at times. Brush off the debris and dirt that may have gathered over it; you’ll be able to observe if your meter is running still.

If you observe that the meter is running, the leak that you’re facing is most likely somewhere between your house and the meter. Walk along the path between the shutoff valve and the meter. If you happen to come across any soft or mushy grounds along your way, there is a leak somewhere under it. Pat yourself on the back, and call in a plumber who can take it from there and fix the issue for you.

Check the Hose Bibs That Are Outside the House

If none of the above has pointed out any leaks to you, it could be the hose bibs that are outside your house. Go on and check out the hose bibs that are located on your property. There is usually one located in front of your house, and the other is behind your house. However, do make sure that these two are the only ones that your house has. Now, the next step may sound like some fancy detective work, but you can always give it a try before calling in a professional plumber to perform the task.

You will need a screwdriver, the metal side of it that you will rest on the metal part of the hose bib. Now go on and rest the knuckle of your thumb on the other end of the screwdriver. Now you will be able to hear if there’s a leak inside the hose bib by simply resting your ear on your knuckle. Some mad scientist stuff, isn’t it?

However, that’s as far as the fun goes. If you happen to detect a leak here, you will have to call in a professional plumber right away to come and fix it for you.

Contact Benjamin Franklin Plumbing

If you keep in mind the above-mentioned tips, you will be able to detect a leak early on and will save yourself all the hassle and the costs of dealing with them later. You can quickly call in an experienced plumber in Sugar Land, TX to look into the matter and solve it for you at the earliest. Benjamin Franklin Plumbing is the best when it comes to providing plumbing related emergency services in Sugar Land, TX and the adjoining areas. Its long and growing list satisfied customers, and one of the best 24/7 emergency services speak for themselves.

Our professionals are highly trained to take up all sorts of complex plumbing tasks and resolve any of your plumbing related issues. We offer a wide variety of plumbing related services; from leak detection and drain cleaning to heater repair and more. Acquire our impeccable plumbing services for anything plumbing related in Sugar Land, TX, and you will not be disappointed.