Reliance Plumbing Sewer & Drainage, Inc. Blog: Archive for December, 2017

These Signs Indicate You Need Professional Water Heater Repairs

Tuesday, December 26th, 2017

Pipes of a heating systemNo matter what season we’re in, and no matter what the temperatures are outside, there’s one appliance within your home that you need on a daily basis—and that’s your water heater. It’s easy to take this system for granted, until something goes wrong with it and you aren’t able to get hot water from your taps.

When you think about the amount of stress that a water heater goes through, you’ll understand that you can’t expect it to work 100% effectively throughout its entire lifespan, especially without investing in important Glenview, IL water heater services, such as annual maintenance and timely repairs. But aside from being alerted to repair needs during your tune-up appointment, how can you tell when your water heater is in trouble?

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How Freezing Temps Lead to Pipe Bursting

Monday, December 25th, 2017

Icicles hanging from a brown pipe. Frozen water and metal surface, winter time concept. selective focus shallow depth of field photoIf you haven’t already taken steps to winterize your home, now is certainly the time to do it, before we’re under heavy amounts of snow. Winterizing your home includes fixing any drafts that can lower your HVAC efficiency, making sure your heating system is maintained, and ensuring your pipes are protected.

The latter is particularly important, as neglecting this winter task can leave you with frozen pipes, and eventual pipe ruptures. This is most likely to happen with the exposed pipes that lead outdoors as well as exposed pipes around your water heater, but it can essentially occur anywhere in the home where pipes face too much cold without appropriate insulation.

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Can You Detect a Leak on Your Own?

Monday, December 11th, 2017

faucet with slow dripLet’s say you’ve found yourself with unexplainable high water bills. Naturally, your water bills will change each month, depending on how much you use certain plumbing fixtures (for instance, you won’t be using your irrigation system in the dead of winter!) But when your utility bills spike for no reason, it’s time to take a close look at what’s going on with your plumbing.

But can you detect a leak on your own? Well, yes and no, which we’ll get to in a moment. First, it’s important that you understand why even the smallest leak is actually a pretty big deal. The US EPA states that a faucet leaking at just one drop per second wastes 3,000 gallons of water per year. And considering that a “small” leak can happen anywhere along your water lines—including underneath your slab or behind walls—this can be detrimental to your home and your water bills.

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