Listen, we get it: everyone wants to save money when it comes to home maintenance. But for larger and dirtier jobs like plumbing, is that even possible?
It turns out, yes, it is. We asked some expert plumbing repair service people about some practical tips homeowners can do if they want to save a little dough on their plumbing needs. Here’s what they said:
Preventive Maintenance Always Cost Less
By and large, whether you live in a modest home or a huge mansion, preventive maintenance will always cost less than emergency repairs. That applies to other aspects of your home (i.e., roofs, sidings, etc.) as well. As much as possible, try to schedule preventive maintenance with your plumbers regularly, whether it’s once-a-month, every three months, or bi-annually. Whatever it is, make it regular and make it thorough.
Trust us, scheduling a regular maintenance visit during a weekend afternoon once a month is going to be much, much cheaper than calling your plumber at three in the morning because of a pipe that burst because the water pressure went up. It caused loose couplings in a joint to discombobulate, couplings that could have been tightened had you called for preventive maintenance.
Hey, it happens!
Keep the Original Blueprints Intact
For older houses, it might be tempting to re-align your pipes and change the layout of the plumbing footprint entirely for the sake of modernization. And if you know what you are doing and are working with expert plumbers, then, by all means, do so.
Just know, however, that it’s going to cost you big bucks.
If you’re on a tight budget, try to keep the original blueprints of your plumbing as intact as possible. Sure, upgrade rusty pipes and replace couplings and what-not when necessary, but if you’re not looking to shell out thousands of dollars, keep the layout the way you found it.
Do-It-Yourself is Cheaper, But Be Warned
Unless you know what you’re doing, you might do more harm than good. Yes, doing a bit of D.I.Y. is always a good thing: after all, there’s a sense of accomplishment and pride when you manage to fix a leaky faucet, but for bigger jobs, leave it to the experts.
If you are itching to D.I.Y. your plumbing, relegate it to the preventive maintenance we talked about earlier. That means learning how to inspect pipes and fixtures, necessary repairs, and learning how to diagnose a plumbing problem. But if it involves replacing pipes, accessing your sewage, or anything that requires a specific tool that’s not in your toolbox at the moment, call an expert.
Treat Your Plumber Right!
This idea is worth mentioning because there are quite a few people out there who don’t treat their plumbers right. Remember: these are the people who make sure your house doesn’t stink of sewer water and other unmentionables. Treat them right! Give them water if they need it, a snack would be appreciated, and hey, even a small tip goes a very long way to building a positive relationship with your plumber. After all, you’re going to want to be on the right side of the guy you’ll be calling at 3 AM when a pipe bursts!
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