A safe and steady water supply is easily the most essential criterion for deciding if a house is suitable for use as a home: if it is habitable. Water is vital to human survival and comfort. Without access to potable water, none of the other features of a modern home would matter much. If you are having inconsistent water flow issues, some of the reasons are explained below.
But you will probably not understand just how reliant your family is on your water supply until something happens to terminate that supply. Even if this disruption occurs for a few short hours, the impact on your household’s physical and mental well-being can be significant.
When your water supply stops, every day activity you take for granted will come to a screeching halt. With each passing hour that the problem persists, more activities will be affected, including your ability to prepare meals, keep the home sanitary, or even maintain personal hygiene.
That is why you must deal with all water supply issues in your home quickly and definitively, suggests the team at Ratner Property Management. But to do that, you need to understand the factors—human and natural—that can negatively affect water flow into your home.
In this post, we will explain the most common causes of inconsistent water supply to your home.
8 common causes of inconsistent water supply to your home
A major leak in your water main
The water main is a large pipe that carries water from the city water supply into your home. This pipe is hidden in the ground between your home and the street. Because it is underground, issues with the water main are not always easy to detect. If the water supply to your home stops suddenly or there is a significant fall in water pressure, there is a huge chance that you have a major leak in your main water line.
Clogged or leaky pipes
The leak could be in a pipe that brings water to your plumbing fixtures. There is also a chance that the problem may be due to large clogs in your water pipes. Clogs usually cause a gradual reduction in water flow over some time. However, the impact of a large leak is often sudden and extreme in nature.
Closed valves
Valves that have been closed accidentally can also cause water supply problems in the home. The most common cause is closing a valve but failing to reopen it afterwards. If there are small children in the home, they may play with the valves and close them. If the water supply issue is limited to a section of the house, check all the shut-off valves in your home.
The water meter valve is closed
If you recently completed work on your home’s water lines, the water supply issue may be from your water meter. Perhaps the plumber failed to fully reopen the water meter valve after completing the work. If the water supply problem is present across the home, you may want a plumber to check your water meter valve.
Frozen pipes
Water supply issues in winter are mostly caused by frozen pipes. Frozen pipes will normally unfreeze after a few days when temperatures warm up. But there is also a significant risk that the issue could result in a ruptured water line. There are several DIY methods to unfreeze a frozen pipe. However, the safest option is to call a professional plumber.
Water heater problems
Water heater problems can affect the hot water supply to faucets and appliances. The most common causes of these kinds of issues are clogs and leakages. Leaks and clogs may happen in the hot water pipes or inside the hot water tank. If the water supply issue in your home affects only the hot water faucets, check your water heater.
Problems at the water company
Typically, these problems will not be limited to your home alone; they are usually city-wide or affect an entire section of the city. Water supply issues that originate from the water company will be announced on the company website or by local TV stations and newspapers. If your neighbors are dealing with the same water supply issues, it could be from the water company.
Emergencies that disrupt the distribution system
The most common is when firefighters hook up their equipment to nearby fire hydrants. The excessive demand for firefighting equipment diverts the water flow away from homes in the area. This problem is temporary, and the water supply to your home will return to normal as soon as the emergency is over.
What should you do if none of the above causes water supply issues in your home? The best step is to have a professional plumber do an in-depth inspection of your entire plumbing system to track down the root cause of the problem.