Dealing with a leak inside your home is one thing. Dealing with a toilet that refuses to work is another. The last thing you want to deal with, just as the seasons start to turn, is a toilet that, for some reason, won’t flush or function as it should.
If your bathroom appliances abruptly stop working, you’re going to need to reach out to the professionals. A professional inspector and repair contractor will be able to tour your home and identify signs of damage that the winter or summer months have done to your plumbing. With that inspection out of the way, you’ll be able to request repairs as you need them.
What gives these problems away, though, and what kind of repair work should you be prepared for?
When Do Your Sewers, Drains, and Toilets Need Repairs?
It’s often harder than you think to determine whether or not a pipe needs repaired in your home. Naturally, sometimes the pipe will give itself away – your toilet won’t flush properly, there will be a leak in your basement, and so on.
However, it’s often best to reach out to a professional if you think something may be wrong in your home. Professional contractors will be able to identify the damage signs you might otherwise miss and respond to them accordingly.
That said, there are some signs that make it obvious that you need to call in the professionals. The signs of a sewer, drain or toilet problem that you need to keep an eye out for include:
- Dampness in your basement or bathroom
- Pooling water in your lawn
- A cracked pipe
- A toilet that doesn’t flush
- A toilet that’s obviously cracked
- Cracked or leaking bathroom joints
- Standing water in your basement
Common Sewer, Drain and Toilet Problems
Unfortunately, the aforementioned signs will only let you know something’s gone wrong with your pipes. It’ll take a little more investigative work to determine what, precisely, has been damaged.
That said, professional contractors are familiar with some of the most common piping problems to plague Virginia Beach, VA, homes. More often than not, you’ll find yourself dealing with:
- Line breaks
- Invasive roots
- Rusted or out-of-code piping
- Clogs
- Infestations
- Erosion or damage caused by excessive hydrostatic pressure
What To Expect From Inspections
Whether you’re going on a gut feeling or have been dealing with standing water for a long while, you’ll want to ready yourself for a contractor’s home inspection. These inspections are never especially long, but they are comprehensive – especially when a contractor has to take the yards and yards of pipes running beneath your home.
In general, the inspection process will involve the following:
- Turning off the water in your home to better preserve your belongings
- Checking for obvious signs of a leak or cracks around the support structures of the bathroom and sewer
- Checking the pipes for cracks or other damage
- Testing the toilet
- Heading outside to look over the perimeter
- Assessing the status of a buried sump pump and/or sewer
While many professionals will be able to inspect the pipes visible inside of your home, these pipes won’t always let them know what’s gone wrong. This is where video inspecting technology comes into play.
The contractors working in the Virginia Beach, VA, area will be able to snake your pipes with a small camera. This camera will then reveal whether the pipes inside your home have broken, clogged or otherwise damaged.
The Repair Process
The process of repairing the damage done to your toilet, pipes or sewer will differ based on the specific type of problem you’re dealing with. You’ll want to take advantage of the free quotes that contractors in the Virginia Beach area are able to offer their clients to learn more about what’s going on inside your home.
That said, one thing remains consistent, regardless of what problem a professional may discover inside your home. Contractors are going to have to turn your water off for the duration of the repair process so as to spare the rest of your home. As such, it’s always important to have bottled water and other resources on hand to get you through while the work’s being done.
Some of the most common repairs include:
- Pipe replacement or extension
- Pipe snaking
- Toilet replacement
- Sewer cleaning
- Drain cleaning
- The installation of interior waterproofing solutions
Don’t let faulty plumbing take your home away from you. If you suspect something’s wrong with your toilet, pipes or sewer, reach out to the professionals working in the Virginia Beach, VA, area. With years of experience under their belts, they’ll be able to restore your home to you in little to no time at all.
