Your plumbing is one of the biggest and most essential systems in your home—but that also means it requires a lot of attention and TLC. One wrong food item down the drain could destroy your garbage disposal or lead to a blockage.
Seasonal Plumbing Tips
Every season brings new weather, holidays, and family gatherings and each season brings new challenges for your home to contend with.
Summer
- Check your sprinkler systems. Before turning on your sprinkler system every year, make sure you do a routine tune-up to check for any leaks. Even a leak only half an inch long can waste up to 16 gallons of water per minute.
- Shut off your water before going out of town. Summer vacations may have looked different this year, but any time you’re going out of town for an extended period of time, its a good idea to shut off your water. Locate your main water line (or call your local plumber to assist if you’re not sure what to look for) and turn it off to prevent any chance of coming home to a disastrous flood or water damage.
- Dispose of food waste properly. Summer BBQs are a great way to save energy by cooking outside, but make sure you know which foods can go in your disposal and which should go in the trash You could be saving yourself a lot of hassles and a potentially expensive plumbing repair.
Fall
- Clean the gutters. While the autumn colors are pretty to look at on the trees, the fallen leaves can lead to major issues for your plumbing and your roof. Leaves in your gutters can clump together after a rain—if left alone for too long, they’ll create clogs in your downspout, attract insects, and put unnecessary weight on your gutters and roof.
- Don’t put pumpkin guts down the sink. Carving jack-o-lanterns is a must-do Halloween activity, and is there even a Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie? Pumpkin may be the reigning squash over this season, but be cautious with your drains—the innards of pumpkins are sticky and stringy which could tangle up the impellers on your garbage disposal and create clogs.
- Fix all leaks. Leaking faucets, hoses, or pipes should be fixed before the temperatures drop too much. Once frozen, water expands which causes water pressure to build and can crack your plumbing.
Winter
- Prevent pipes from freezing. Turn off any exterior water valves and wrap any uninsulated pipes with foam or towels to help them stay warmer. At the peak of the cold, open the tap slightly on outdoor lines to allow water to flow through the pipe and help prevent freezes.
- Winterize your home if leaving for the season. Ther are many steps that go into winterizing your home if you’re going to be gone for months at a time, so make sure to reach out to a professional to make sure you’re ready to safely leave your home unattended.
- Place trash cans in bathrooms. Thanksgiving and Christmas are family holidays so if you’re hosting this year, make sure to put trash cans in every bathroom. This will help discourage anyone from disposing of non-flushable waste down your toilet.
When your home needs expert plumbing or leak detection services, you can trust the team at Indiana Leak Detection. We employ only the best technicians who will treat your home as if it’s their own, and offer fast response times with long term solutions for any plumbing issues you may run into.
Contact our team by phone at or online to schedule your service today!