The average American will spend between $400-$1200 on plumbing issues per year. That is a lot of money to keep liquids flowing through the pipes. It doesn’t have to be this way however. Preventative maintenance can prevent about half of all plumbing disasters.
There are some plumbing emergencies which cannot be avoided. But many of them can. A regular inspection by a certified plumber can help detect which pipes need to be replaced or repaired before they fail completely and cause major damage.
Pipe bursts definitely cause the most damage to a home. The pipe itself can be a $400-$2000 repair. But the damage to walls, floors and valuable objects can be up to $20,000. A catastrophic plumbing failure is something you want to avoid at all costs.
Floods
We had a client leave their home for the movies and when they got back home their house was flooded with three inches of water all the way through. We are a plumbing company in Melbourne, Florida, so this client did not have a basement to absorb this water. It was all main floor flooding. As you can imagine, anything resting on the floor was damaged or destroyed. Video game consoles, furniture,floorboards, you name it.
The cause was simple. The lever on an old toilet got stuck in the down position. It allowed the water to keep filling the bowl and eventually that water came pouring out. Three hours later the entire home was flooded. 1400 square feet of flooding.
Conclusion
Pay attention to your plumbing. If you suspect there may be a problem call a plumber, If there is a leaky pipe, repair it or call a plumber. If you have old plumbing, it may be time for a re-pipe.