Statistics have shown that the average Fort McMurray household expends about $300 on leaky faucet repairs every year. Although this seems affordable to most, they can be deployed to other purposes other than repairs.
While there are certain instances of a leaky faucet that requires the skills and expertise of a professional plumber, you can also handle the problems yourself on some occasions. To help you with this, Stephen Heyes, the owner of Ice Age Mechanical has gathered a few helpful tips. Find them below:
Don’t Underestimate a Drip
Do not ignore a toilet that continues to run after flushing or a sink that drips after you you’ve turned it off. Although the waste seems negligible, their accumulation over the year can mean a waste of thousands of gallons of water. Also, ignoring them doesn’t mean they will go away on their own, rather fixing them makes them go away.
Attend to a “Running” Toilet Leak
Whether random, constant, large, or even silent, toilet leaks are not to be overlooked. The smallest leak can cost you over $70 yearly in sewer and water costs, while large leaks can cost more. Normally, a properly-functioning toilet should run such that no water moves from the tank to the bowl except when it is being flushed. Anything short of this indicates a leaking toilet, and the good news is that you can easily fix most toilet leaks.
To fix this particular leak, remove the tank lid, add some food colouring or a dye tablet to give the water a different colour. Put the lid back on, and wait for about 30 minutes. After this time, check the bowl, if the water inside is coloured, it means there is a leak. Conversely, clear water indicates that there is no leak from the tank to the bowl.
A leak there may be a result of different things, and to identify the exact cause, remove the lid and check again. After correcting the problem, repeat the leak test and see if whatever you did worked.
Some fixes like trying to adjust how the rubber flapper falls, or bending the float back to shape will only last for a short time. Your toilet will eventually go back to leaking. Usually, replacing the toilet flapper and/or the filling mechanism offers the best and permanent results.
Leaking Faucets
A bad rubber washer is the usual culprit of a leaking faucet. Most times, the sink’s washer is found under the handle, and it can be easily replaced. You can replace a washer easily, once you have the right tools, although you will need to block the water under the faucet and remove the handle.
If these seem too complicated for you, you may consider inviting a competent plumber. Note that bringing in a plumber to fix the leak may cost you money for now, but you are preventing more costly fixes in the future.
You can get these hardware and more at local hardware stores at affordable prices.