Plumb the Depths: When to Call an Expert

Times are tight for many households — but unfortunately, simple failures in our plumbing are one cost we can't always predict or avoid.  Even the most well-maintained equipment may encounter problems sometimes.  Since it's such a vital part of the home, it's necessary to get these problems fixed as soon as possible.  If your budget is tight, however, it may be tempting to attempt to do so yourself and skip out on the fee.  Though it's good to be proactive, this isn't always wise. So here are three examples of problems that you shouldn't attempt to solve yourself, and should instead book an appointment for right away.

Persistent Clogging/Flooding in Bathroom

It's not a pleasant problem, and it's certainly the sort of thing that you'll want to be solved post-haste, but don't be tempted to try this one yourself.  If your toilet clogs once, then it's reasonably easy to remove the blockage and fix the problem.  If it's persistent, however, then it's likely to be much more complicated than one simple item in the way, and if that's the case, then it won't be possible to clear the pipe without specialist equipment.  Equally, it's important to know what you're doing when dealing with waste water.  Plumbers are trained in this so there are no safety or hygiene concerns; for that reason, it's best to leave them to it.

Low Water Pressure

If the strength of the flow in your taps or your shower has significantly lowered, that's a serious problem, but it could be occurring anywhere in your system.  As an untrained professional, it's hard to know how to gain access to the entire system, let alone where to begin looking, or how to solve the problem if you should locate it.  Save yourself the stress and the time, and allow the expert to come in and diagnose it straight away.

Leaks

While leaks may feel like a fairly simple problem with an equally simple solution — locate the source of the leak and patch it up — it isn't always so obvious.  First of all, the leak may be symptomatic of a larger problem, which only an expert could spot.  It may also be a more major problem than you initially thought.  Second, actually finding the leak isn't always easy, and it may take a plumber's expert knowledge of water movement and spread to work it out quickly.  Most importantly, leaks can become very serious very quickly, especially if they've been going for a while before you notice them.  Getting an expert in swiftly will help to prevent the water's spread and the potential structural damage it could do to your home.

Realistically, you should aim to call in an expert for any plumbing problem you have; they have years of training in various aspects of their job, which simply cannot be learned from an online tutorial overnight.  However, if budgets are tight, then it's understandable to want to try yourself.  Just be aware of these more major problems, and don't take any chances with them.  Pass them directly to the professionals.