Common Springtime Plumbing Problems

Some plumbing problems are often more noticeable during the spring season. These issues are sometimes caused by the harsh effects of winter and may not be discovered until the warmer months. If you experience any of these common springtime plumbing problems, we can send a plumber to your home in the Winston-Salem area to do all the essential repair work so that your plumbing system will function up to standard.

Leaking Pipes

Cracks in pipes that cause water to leak can form for a variety of reasons, but your pipes may be especially vulnerable to this type of damage during the spring season. If cold temperatures caused your pipes to contract or freeze entirely, they may have sustained damage when the warmer temperatures returned in the spring and the pipe material expanded. Some common signs of leaking pipes include standing water around your home, noticeable mold growth on your walls or ceiling, and an unusual musty smell inside your home. In addition to the pipes that run through the inside of your home, the pipes that are located outside your home may have also sustained damage because of the temperature changes.

Water and Sewage Backups

If you notice water or sewage backing up into your home, you should call a plumber on our team to come to your home quickly. Any backups could be the result of tree and plant roots interfering with your underground pipes. Excessive moisture in the soil from the thawing ice and snow along with the frequent spring rain showers can spawn a lot of vegetation growth that puts additional strain on your pipes. The weight of the wet soil can also cause your underground pipes to collapse inward, which may cause an obstruction that results in water and sewage backing up into your home. If any backups do occur inside your home, you should refrain from flushing anything down a drain until after one of our plumbers comes to investigate the problem.

A Drop in Water Pressure

An unexpected drop in your water pressure may be caused by leaks in your pipes that formed when the piped thawed with the warmer spring temperatures. Another cause could be the extra pressure that’s being applied to your underground pipes outdoors from the frequent spring rain showers that saturate the soil and increase its weight. The pressure regulator for your water may have also been damaged from temperature changes, which is another reason why you may notice lower water pressure when you’re bathing, washing dishes, or running appliances.

Indoor Flooding

Damaged pipes and backed-up drains are among the most common reasons for indoor flooding during the spring season, but there could also be a problem with your basement’s sump pump if you have one. Your sump pump may have stopped running because it wasn’t needed for draining water during a deep winter freeze. Problems with your sump pump might not be noticeable until your pump starts running again when the temperatures warm up and moisture gets into your basement from the thawing ground and spring rainfall. If you start experiencing problems with your sump pump in the spring, it’s important that you call us right away to fix the problem so that we can take measures to keep the inside of your home from flooding.

Hose Bib Leaks

Your hose bib, which is the outdoor connection point where you attach your hose, can become cracked when it freezes and thaws again in the springtime. You’ll notice that your hose bib leaks water when your hose is in use, and you may even see this leakage even after the shutoff valve for your hose’s water supply has been turned. Hose bib damage can be especially problematic if you forgot to disconnect your hose during the winter.

Clogged Gutters

Even though they aren’t always thought of as being part of a plumbing system, problems in several of your plumbing system’s components can develop because of clogs in your gutters. The water runoff from your clogged gutters could damage your foundation along with the pipes that run through it, and this may cause indoor flooding and other water damage that will be costly to fix. The overflow of water from your clogged gutters can also saturate the soil and increase its weight, which may put added pressure on underground pipes and lead to more plumbing problems.

Springtime plumbing woes can cause you a lot of stress, but you can relieve some of your worries by calling us to address the issues. We can diagnose and fix a variety of plumbing problems using advanced equipment that helps us do our job with the utmost accuracy. Our plumbers can handle both big and small plumbing problems with the same amount of care and attention to detail so that every customer receives the best service possible. Contact us today so that we can come to your home in the Winston-Salem area to address your plumbing needs.

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