If you are having trouble doing chores that need water at the same time, like watering your lawn and washing your dishes, it must be because the water pressure is too weak. If so, an investigation on your home’s water supply system may be necessary.
There are a couple of reasons why you have low water pressure at home. First of all, if your neighbours suffer from low water pressure as well, there is nothing much you can do about it except perhaps to communicate with your water supplier and let them know about your neighbourhood’s concern. It may be a great idea to gather a petition from your neighbours so you can submit that to your supplier.
However, if it is your home that is the only one getting problems with low pressure, or maybe if only some parts of your house have low pressure, it most probably is a constriction in your valves or pipes. If your home is around 20 years old or so, it is highly probable that you still have older steel pipes. There may be lime deposits clogging and strangling the water flow. That is the most common cause of low water pressure in old homes. What you need to solve this, is to redo the pipes in your home.
There a few things that could be done before going for complete re-piping. Here they are:
If the problem appears to be just with a single shower head or faucet, you can check for a flow restriction, a dislodged washer, a clogged aerator, or perhaps a partially closed supply stop valve. Now if your faucet has an aerator, then you have to check that first. You can try removing, cleaning, and replacing it.
If it’s a sink faucet, you can inspect the supply valves underneath. You would want to have them opened entirely so turn them counter-clockwise and as far as they can go. If they are, however, already open, you can close them first, then remove the supply tube, and see that a rubber that is inside the connection has not been dislodged. Replace the tube, turn the water on and check the pressure.
If it’s a shower head, it is possible that the pressure is caused by a restrictor that is inside it. See if there is one by removing the shower head. It could be a rubber or a brass disk that has become dislodged.
If the entire house is affected by low water pressure, go out and find your water meter first. You would find a shutoff valve next to the meter. Be sure that the valves are opened completely. If they’re partially closed, turning them counter-clockwise as far as they can go may solve the problem.
If none of these work for you, it would be better to call your trusted plumber to check the problem thoroughly. Hayes Plumbing can provide you with a seasoned plumber who can deliver high quality services.
