A leak in your home is not at all good as it imposes a financial burden on you in addition to all the other troubles it causes. Whether a leak is small or big, it will cause damage, hassles, and a high water bill if not attended to on time.
But according to slab leak repair in Orange County professionals, some leaks create much more havoc than others. One such leak is a slab leak which is relatively more hazardous than leaking faucets or showerheads.
Do you know why a slab leak could be dangerous?
The reason is it cannot be immediately detected. Slab leaks are noticed only when water damage has occurred, and there are signs of water damage on your floors or walls. Such leaks can only be properly located through slab leak detection services.
In other words, until you notice some of the signs of a slab leak, it has already caused a level of damage to your home. That’s why it is recommended to go for a professional check-up of your plumbing system from time to time to prevent such issues.
What are slab leaks?
A slab leak in the home occurs when the pipes or plumbing system of the house, which is below the foundation, start leaking due to various reasons. This is the reason it is quite difficult to detect and diagnose.
What causes a slab leak?
There are many reasons that leaks occur in the plumbing under a slab leak. What causes a slab leak depends on many factors. Once you know the root cause, you can answer this question that must have come to your mind: “how can you tell where a water leak is coming from?”
Due to thermal expansion
This is one of the significant causes of slab leaks in most homes. However, this problem mainly occurs in copper pipes beneath the home’s foundation. Thermal expansion occurs when there is frequent heating and cooling of water, especially in hot water pipes or due to the frequent use of hot water heaters. As a result, the copper pipes frequently rub against the concrete surface, creating a pinhole leak in the pipe.
High water pressure
When the water pressure of your home is quite high, it will also cause slab leaks and various other leaks in the house. So, in order to prevent slab leak issues, check the water pressure of your home. Install a water pressure regulator if there is a frequent change in the water pressure inside your home.
Signs of slab leaks
Your next question would be, “how do you fix plumbing under a slab?” The first step is to detect or identify a leak. So, to protect your home and family, look at the signs of a slab leak.
- The smell of mold and mildew
- Warped floors
- Water bill skyrockets
- The home floor begins to swell
- Water spots will develop on the floor
- Foundation damage
- Sound of running water
If you notice the above signs in your home, call the slab leak detection or slab leak repair in Orange County professional as soon as possible.
Effects of slab leaks
Slab leaks, unfortunately, bring many issues with them. Read on, and you will also find out the answer to the question: “how long does it take to fix a slab leak?”
Debt burden
Well, this is one of the side effects of a slab leak. All slab leak repair measures are not covered in your home’s insurance policy. This means you have to spend money from your pocket to fix the slab leak unless it can be simply fixed through spot repair that is covered in your insurance.
If you don’t have enough savings, you might have to go for financing, and that creates a debt burden.
Delivers negative impact on health
As human beings, our health is of utmost importance. You take all measures to protect the health of your family. Here if you talk about slab leak, it will indeed offer a negative effect on your overall health due to the presence of mold and mildew.
That means when there is a slab leak in your home due to excess water and moisture, and mold will also develop. Mold spores can cause issues in the respiratory system.
So, if you find mold and mildew under your carpets, call the plumber as soon as possible, as there are chances of a slab leak.
You cannot always see the presence of mold, but you can smell mold and mildew odor. Inhaling mold spores cause wheezing and coughing.
Impact on the foundation of the home
The problem of a slab leak can easily damage your home foundation. When there is a leak under the foundation of the home, the penetrating water will put pressure inside the walls and also on the flooring resulting in cracks and faults. Frequent slab leaks, in addition to other factors, can cause fissures in the concrete foundation.
How does a slab leak affect the plumbing system of your home?
Cracks and faults
The leakage in your home will indeed offer cracks and faults in the house, which in turn welcomes water to seep inside the walls and flooring. If water enters the walls, it will surely damage the floor structure and also the walls making them weak to break down.
Short circuit
In case of a slab leak, when the water goes inside the walls, floors, ceilings, etc., it also affects the home’s foundation. However, you know that plumbing pipes and wires of the electricity run inside the walls and floors.
A slab leak creates leakage in pipes and affects the plumbing system, which in turn also damages the electric system as water will go through them and can offer a short circuit.
Bursts
In many cases, a slab leak can also trigger pipe bursting. This problem can occur due to increased leaks around the water pipes. The reason is that water puts excess pressure on the wall of the pipe, and it causes the pipe to burst.
How do you fix a leak under a slab?
In the case of a slab leak, if you try to fix this issue yourself by watching DIY videos, you might not be getting a long-term solution.
Often, people do the digging on their own but fail to locate the leak source in a couple of attempts. The reason is there are many pipes beneath the foundation of the house, and finding the right one is a difficult job.
But if you hire a slab leak detection plumber to fix the slab leak, he or she will have the latest advanced equipment and tools to find the leak under the slab. Slab leak repair in Orange County professionals will offer you the correct and durable solutions.
The bottom line
You are now aware of the effects of a slab leak. If you want to prevent slab leaks and water damage, ensure to go for a regular inspection of your plumbing system. You can get slab leak detection done once or twice a year.
So, if you are living in Temecula Valley and greater Riverside County, then calling L&S Turnkey Plumbing and Restoration will be the best choice. The reason is they have been serving people for the last 20 years and very well know the issues faced by homeowners in regards to plumbing. Not only this, they have highly skilled, experienced, and qualified professional Plumber in Orange County with them who do work with full satisfaction. In short, L&S Turnkey Plumbing and Restoration is a one-stop shop for all your plumbing needs.
