Accidents Happen: What Situations Can Create The Need For A Water Line Repair? | Atlanta, GA
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There are plenty of signs that you can watch for that indicate your water line has degraded over time and sprung a leak, or been damaged by anything from a tree root to an earthquake. Are there times, though, when you should check for a leak because you realize accidental damage may have occurred? For example, if you’ve got equipment digging in your yard, there are several reasons why you should be on the alert for water line accidents. At Peach Plumbing & Drain in Atlanta, GA, we can help you stay aware of risks, avoid potential trouble, and get quick, professional water line repair services when you need them. Since many water line leaks aren’t discovered for some time, wasting up to thousands of gallons of water and causing damage inside the house and sometimes to the foundation, being proactive and acting on any concerns, then getting water line repair promptly, can help save water and home restoration costs and related disruptions.
Increasing Water Line Repair Needs as Your Pipes Get Older
Perhaps the most important indicator that you may need water line repairs is actually what’s going on in your home’s plumbing. If your pipes are a few decades old, they may be wearing thin and starting to spring leaks, especially if there’s corrosion or older PVC-type piping that tends to degrade. Assuming they’re original and the same age as your water supply line, you might want to see if you need a water line repair as well. After all, minor leaks are hard to notice in your yard, it takes much more water loss, sometimes creating brighter landscaping or a stripe of greener grass, or just an ever-present puddle of water near your foundation before you notice. Our team doesn’t usually have to dig to make an initial check for trouble since we can use leak detection tools just as we do to find leaks in your home’s walls or under the foundation slab. If we detect a possible leak, then it’s time to take further action before it becomes worse.
Digging In Your Yard Can Damage Your Water Line
It’s more likely with power equipment than shovel digging, but to cover all possibilities, it’s important to know where your water line is before you dig to any considerable depth in your yard near where the pipe crosses. A single shovel hit on the pipe might be enough to do damage to older pipes, and these days utilities often run underground including electrical, cable TV, and phone, there are many service providers that could be digging nearby. Even setting up lawn equipment such as sports gear that involves driving a stake far into the ground could, in theory, hit the wrong spot.
Heavy Equipment or Even Your Vehicles Crossing Your Lawn
When landscapers or other professionals cross your yard with heavy trucks or other equipment, the weight of these devices could press down on your water supply line enough to cause it to crack and leak. This is of course even more likely if it’s an older and weaker pipe, more prone to damage. Many companies that operate heavy equipment or dig in your yard will know to have a utilities locator, plumber, or other specialist locate your water line before they start work so that they can avoid it and keep from risking damage.
Earth Shifting Events and Soil Movement
While we’ve only had one minor earth-shaking event in the last year, it seems like earth movement can occur anywhere, and if it does, that’s a reason to be concerned about your home’s water line. Other more local reasons such as mudslides and other wet soil movement are more likely to affect the pipe leading into your home. Depending on your home’s location, you should make sure that heavy rain and local floods aren’t affecting your land enough to cause pipe damage.
Deep Freezes
It’s not likely in our area, but worth mentioning for completeness, that when prolonged periods of cold weather occur your water line can be affected, especially if it was not buried so deep back in the day when winters were warmer. Rock formations underground can lead to shallow water lines as well, and in colder parts of the country, homeowners have to take steps to avoid water line repair such as letting the water flow just a bit to avoid freezing.
Don’t Forget Your Water Lines Inside Your Home
Once your water line gets inside, the pressurized water supply lines running throughout your home are also at risk from damage, including nails, saws, and other items driven or cutting through the wall. It’s easy enough to hang a picture and hear an ominous hissing sound from behind the wall, and need fast water line repair along with a quick trip to your home’s water shutoff. If you’re doing work in your home that involves penetrating the walls, you might have us come and locate nearby pipes in your walls before you proceed. A more long-term cause of water line problems in your home is wear from vibration, where pipes are run near each other or by metal brackets and other hardware. Water pipes tend to vibrate from valves being turned on and off, appliances operating, and other causes, and as they do, if they’re in contact with other objects, they could easily wear a hole over time. We can often catch these situations during plumbing inspections.
Your Water Line Repair Experts in Atlanta, GA
If you’re concerned about your water supply line, we can help locate any water line repair issues, often without digging, so it’s definitely worth giving our experts a call. We can help you understand the signs of a potential water line problem, and if you’ve experienced situations that might have caused damage, we can check it out. We’re Peach Plumbing & Drain, your friendly local plumber with Atlanta, GA roots. Give us a call.