What Causes Plumbing Leaks?

When plumbing leaks occur, trouble is sure to follow. However, why do pipelines leak in the first place? Oxidation, cracking, and broken pipes only lead to significant water damage. The issue is a majority of your home’s pipes are hidden from view.

So, how can you tell if you have plumbing leaks before you have a major mold problem? There are several typical reasons for plumbing leaks, but you wouldn’t know what to check for if you didn’t know what to look out for.

We have your back. There are different types of plumbing leaks. The most common causes of pipe leaks are listed below. Your plumber is usually the best person to start with if you want to find out what causes pipes to leak.

Plumbing Leaks Caused by Broken Water Seals

There are seals around the water connections on every home device linked to the plumbing system. It prevents you from having your indoor pool and keeps the flow of water where you want it.

You may have a damaged water seal if you see a lot of “condensation” (or just literal pools of water) surrounding your dishwasher or refrigerator. This might be why plumbing leaks have happened in your house in this scenario.

High Water Pressure Leading to Pipe Leaks

You want lots of water pressure in your shower, but your pipes can only take so much. A home’s typical pipes can withstand maximum water pressure of 60 psi. Your psi should be between 40-45 psi.

Having high water pressure in the shower might be great, but not at the cost of causing plumbing leaks.

Plumbing Leaks Caused by Pipe Corrosion

Water pipes rust. It’s unavoidable. We tend to disregard “little” problems in our boiler room plumbing, but those “minor” problems quickly become major ones. If you detect any discoloration, leakage, or warping in your copper pipes, it’s time to call a plumber.

Before the minor cause that makes the pipes leak makes everything worse, have a plumber analyze the issue as soon as possible. The water quality is impacted by rusting pipes, which eventually affects your health.

There are methods on how you can avoid home plumbing pipe corrosion.

Plumbing Leaks and Broken Pipe Joints

Pipe joints are necessary to connect pipes from one end of your residential plumbing system to the other. Pipe joints are the most susceptible components of your piping systems. Like your copper pipes, your joints will rust and corrode over time.

It occurs considerably faster since the joints have a significantly smaller surface area. When investigating what causes plumbing leaks, it’s usually a good idea to examine your pipe joints. The only issue is that most of the pipe connections in your home’s plumbing systems are hidden.

Using your ears is the easiest method to check for damaged pipe joints causing plumbing leaks. You may hear a lot of clinking and clanging when you turn on the hot water. This might be due to faulty pipe fittings.

Clogged Water Lines Cause Plumbing Leaks

Clogged drains are annoying and can cause disaster, especially in commercial plumbing systems. Still, they are easily remedied using drain cleaning. Clogged or blocked water lines are responsible for plumbing leaks, water damage, and damaged pipes.

Water constantly backs up when your water pipes are clogged. This significantly increases the water pressure in your plumbing system, which can easily lead to leaks.

Sneaky Tree Roots Can Cause Plumbing Leaks

Other threats to your pipes lie outside of your home. Growing root systems in your yard can strain your pipes, especially in compacted soils. Excessive pressure may easily cause pipes to break and leak.

If you find unusual pools of water on your lawn, you may be dealing with a busted pipe or some plumbing leaks.

Rapid Temperature Change

This is especially problematic during the winter. Rapid temperature variations in the water (or outside temperature) cause your pipes to expand and shrink. This will cause your pipes to break over time as the walls of the pipes become thinner and thinner.

This happens naturally when your pipes age, but significant temperature swings can worsen it. In most plumbing systems, protective layers are put on pipes, especially in industrial plumbing systems, which can help delay this type of damage to the pipes.

Knowing the Causes, the Signs, and the Solution for the plumbing leaks

So you now understand what causes plumbing leaks and the fundamental symptoms. One of the options is trying to do your plumbing repairs by yourself.

Since there are different types of plumbing leaks, there is no need to take any risks. When you need your pipes fixed or changed, always call a professional. Still, it’s a good idea to learn about quick plumbing fixes everyone should know.