Just as I encountered two of the most common leaky home repairs that you may encounter as a homeowner — in the attic and in the bathroom –I have had to deal with other leaks in and around my home.
In the Kitchen
Yet another hot spot for leaks is the kitchen. Under my kitchen sink, the previous tenants obviously did some damage. Somehow they installed the garbage disposal incorrectly, and every time that or the dishwasher was used the plumbing would leak.
I didn’t know about if for a while until the cabinet began to stink. After cleaning out the cleaning supplies and being totally grossed out at the slimy mold that was growing down there, I had to rip out that wood altogether.
While down there, I accidentally discovered the source of the leak. After uninstalling everything, replacing the pipes with the help of a plumber, and then re-installing everything, the leak was finally fixed. Of course, to get everything really fixed we had to cut off the pipe down to the wall and start from scratch. We also discovered that the amazing house builders had chosen to put the main drain for my home under my kitchen sink as well. That will be fun to deal with should anything ever come up.
In the Wall
Another incident that occurred was the fault of a storm. During a rain storm, a ladder was blown over on top of the back yard faucet. Nothing looked out of place, but the pipe inside had been twisted and developed a small but growing leak. We knew nothing about it until we noticed that a section of the interior wall and the carpet around it was damp.
We had to cut away part of the home’s siding to get to the pipes. After a plumber came, we had to cut off the broken pipe and attach a new one before we could stop the leak.
In the Yard
Last but not least, the most mysterious leak we ever had was in the yard. During a very bad dry season when the land was contracting at an alarming rate, I wondered why a section of the grass in my yard was greener than the rest. When the water bill came, I was shocked to see it had more than doubled. The water company agreed to recheck the meter. However, when the man opened the lid, it was full of water! It turns out that a part of the water pipes from the water main to my home had cracked underground. Of course this was not covered by the water company, so I had to pay the bill and pay to get the pipe fixed.
Our faithful plumber came out and thankfully only had to dig up a small section of the yard before finding the source of the leak. An underground leak is not easy to find!
As you can see, water leaks can cause many problems and be found in nearly any place in your home. The best thing to do is keep your eyes open for anything that signifies a leak. Wet spots, discoloration, or even green grass can mean there is a problem. Let TalkLocal connect you with a professional as soon as possible to avoid having to repair even more damage.
Author Bio: This is a guest post by Liz Nelson from WhiteFence.com. She is a freelance writer and blogger from Houston. Questions and comments can be sent to: liznelson17 @ gmail.com.
