Plumbing Issues to Look Out For When Buying a New Home

When you are in the market for a new house, one of the things you need to do before putting in an offer is have the house inspected. The inspection looks for any hidden things that might be wrong with the house, from faulty wiring to asbestos or lead paint. The inspection should also include looking at the plumbing system. Here are some plumbing issues that can raise red flags during the inspection.

Running Toilets

If you are looking around the house during a tour, you should be able to try the different toilets and faucets. Flush each toilet in the house to see how it works. If it flushes right away, that is a good sign, but also wait around to see how long the water runs for. When a toilet continues running, it might not be a severe problem, but there is definitely something going on with the plumbing system. This could potentially be a red flag that requires letting the house inspector know about.

Weird Odours in the Home

When you walk into one of the rooms with plumbing, it should not smell weird. This house was likely cleaned recently in order to show it to prospective buyers, so a bathroom or kitchen then has a bad smell is typically a plumbing red flag. No matter how much they clean the kitchen, if there is a major plumbing issue with the kitchen sink, that smell is hard to get rid of. The smell could be from mould or mildew due to a water leak under the sink or be from a major sewer backup.

There Are Signs of Leaks

When walking through the house, look closely around the base of the toilets, underneath the sinks, around the water heater, and in the basement. These locations will show you right away whether or not there is a leak. If you see any standing water, even drops of water, it is a cause for concern. Also look closely at the faucets and showerhead after you turn them on. If you see water that seems to be dripping consistently without slowing down, that is another potential sign of having a leak.

The Water Runs Slowly

There may not be a major plumbing clog that is causing standing water inside the sink or bathtub of the new home, but if water seems to run a little slow, there could be something wrong somewhere in the plumbing system. It is possible that this is from the main sewer line, which could be an even bigger problem.

Contact a plumber in your area for more information.

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