Are you familiar with the term slab leak? If not, as a homeowner, it’s important to familiarize yourself with this common residential plumbing. Failure to recognize a slab leak in your home leads to expensive plumbing repairs, costly water damage restoration services, and serious damage to the structural integrity of your home. As dire as all this sounds, there is good news. That good news is that homeowners have the power to stop a slab leak before it gets out of hand.
What Is a Slab Leak?
All homes have a foundation. Some homes have basements and others are built on top of a single slab of concrete. Whether you have a basement foundation or slab foundation, you still have a risk of slab leak development. Plumbers call these hidden leaks slab leaks because they happen beneath the concrete slab that the home is built upon. The leaks develop in underground water pipes that run the length of the slab.
Why Are Slab Leaks So Ruinous?
These plumbing leaks have a reputation for being quite nasty because they often go unnoticed for a long time. If homeowners don’t recognize early signs of a slab leak, the leaky situation can potentially last for weeks or months before making itself know. When it does make itself known after that much time, homeowners experience flooding, water damage, and foundation problems. These situations not only leave the home a mess but are expensive to fix.
Get Ahead of Slab Leaks with These Tips
Hidden leaks might seem like a no-win situation. However, slab leaks aren’t as elusive as you might think. Homeowners who pay close attention to the following signs have a better shot at catching these leaks before major damage happens:
- Pay attention to your water bill: Have you noticed an increase in your water bill, but don’t have a reason for the spike? If you’re not watering your lawn more than usual or filling up a swimming pool, consider the possibility that you have a leaky pipe somewhere in the house. Call a plumber to come take a look.
- Listen for sounds of rushing water: When the water is turned off, you shouldn’t hear water moving through the house.
- Be aware of hot flooring: Often it’s hot water supply pipes that burst. If you notice any part of the flooring that feels warm for no apparent reason, there might be a leak beneath the foundation.
- Stay alert to signs of moisture: Whether it’s in the basement or the main area of your home that’s built over the slab foundation, if you notice signs of moisture this isn’t a sign of a leak. Signs of moisture could be something obvious like wet flooring, warped baseboards, or water damage on walls. However, it could also be something like mold growth in the corner of the room.
Developing a good defense against slab leaks is always the best way to stay ahead of damage. Do this by calling The Pink Plumber for annual slab leak detection services.
