The pipes that supply the hundreds of millions of residences and businesses across the nation often go overlooked by a majority of Americans, yet our lives would be very different without them. Indoor plumbing has created a number of opportunities for the American citizen, allowing fresh, clean water and utilities to make our lives easier and more comfortable. There are approximately 386,900 plumbers across the nation devoted to keeping the water flowing; here are some reasons why you may want to schedule a pipe inspection today.
Fixing Easy Leaks to Save Money
The average household absolutely hemorrhages money in the form of easy to fix household leaks. It is estimated that the average household loses over 10,000 gallons of water every year thanks to such leaks. A showerhead that leaks at a rate of just 10 drops of water per minute has the potential to waste over 500 gallons of water per year that homeowners have to pay for. Nearly half of all residential toilets as well are believed to have some kind of leakage from improper installation or lose pipes. By fixing leaks such as these, homeowners have the potential to save around 10% on their monthly water bills, saving homeowners hundreds of dollars per year.
What is Growing in Your Sewer
Whenever a homeowner experiences backflow of some sort, their first reaction is typically to try drain cleaning products to dissolve the obstruction and clear the pipe, unfortunately these drain cleaning products do not always work. Tree roots are some of the most notorious causes for sewer backflow and mass water loss. Although many homeowners believe that their sewer lines are spared from these intruders, tree roots can penetrate deep into the soil and span out up to three times a greater area than the canopy of the tree can. Since most of the sewer pipes laid prior to the 1980s consist of clay, the pipes can easily be breached by trees searching for moisture, resulting in professional drain cleaning or replacement.
Sparing Your Yard from Destruction
Sewer repair and replacement typically meant the destruction of a significant portion of a homeowner’s yard in order to excavate the pipes to be replaced. Thankfully modern drain cleaning, repair, and replacement can be done using trenchless alternatives. Trenchless sewer repair includes methods like pipe lining: pipe lining takes an inflatable bladder that is fed into the existing sewer line through a small excavated access area, the bladder is coated in a resin that is activated when warm water or air passes through, creating a water-tight seal within the old pipe. Pipe bursting similarly enters through an access point where a boring head is fed through the existing pipe; a new pipe is affixed to the end of the boring head, simultaneously laying out a new pipe while destroying the existing pipe. Although trenchless replacement methods typically cost more than traditional plumbing excavation, many homeowners see the value in the fact that they do not have to pay for extensive landscaping repairs. Trenchless repair and replacement methods are typically designed for a 50 year service life with many plumbers offering limited warranties to help cover the new sewer line. For those with an outdated sewer pipe, consider contacting professional local plumbers to stop paying for unseen leaks.