Taking the Mystery out of Pittsburgh Sink Leak Repair
Do it Yourself Temporary Sink Leak Repair Tips
It happens even in the best homes with the most expensive modern sinks. Sometimes it’s a leak where the water is making its way out underneath the sink into the cabinet. A small drip that nonetheless is creating a problem that, if it hasn’t already, that will lead to decayed wood.
But the water doesn’t even need to be there long enough to cause rot to become a problem because that level of dampness causes cabinet doors to come apart and even toxic mold to grow.
Water in the wrong place in a bathroom or kitchen cabinet will also cause hinges and other metal components to oxidize or rust. So in the meantime, there needs to be a temporary sink leak repair until a plumber who’s familiar with permanent Pittsburgh sink leak repair techniques can be brought in.
The primary reason that Pittsburgh sink leak repair differs from sink leak repair in other areas around the country is that the water that comes out of faucets in the Greater Pittsburgh area is exceptionally hard. The term hard water is used to describe water with high mineral content, with the primary one being calcium.
Perhaps you have already seen it on a glass coffee pot as a white residual crust built up inside along the bottom. It’s common calcium that has been left behind after all water has evaporated. So it’s this same foggy white calcium build-up that leads to faucets in bathrooms and kitchens starting to leak over time.
It’s this calcium gradually building up on the moving parts inside that stops it from sealing correctly when turned to the off position, and that in turn leads to a steady drip.
So Pittsburgh sink leak repair issues really are different because of this hard water. So your first big tip here is if a leak is coming from a faucet, you can stop it but simply reaching under the sink and turning off both knobs that you will find up against the back wall there.
One is for hot water, and one is for cold water. Then you can try turning them back on one at a time, checking to see which one sending water up might be the source of the leak. It might be both of them, but if it isn’t, you will at least have either hot or cold running water to hold you over until a local plumber can be brought in to do a permanent Pittsburgh sink leak repair.
However, if the leak in your kitchen or bathroom sink isn’t coming from a supply faucet or a sink faucet, it might be somewhere around the drain. So if you want to leave your faucets operational, here is one more temporary fix technique that will at least keep your cabinet dry.
Simply place a bucket directly underneath the drainpipe in the cabinet so that any water that finds its way out will drip into the bucket. If it’s a slow leak, you’re in luck because the bucket will fill up slowly, and that will give you plenty of time to empty it.
But if it’s a faster drip, you might be surprised by how quickly the bucket fills up, and you will want to empty it before it fills up to the top so none will spill over when you remove it to empty out.
Permanent Pittsburgh Sink Leak Repair
Then another common question homeowners with problems want an answer to is after a Pittsburgh sink leak repair job is done, how long does it last? The answer, it turns out, is really quite simple, and that is if it was done by a qualified professional plumber, you can expect it to last for several decades and even longer.
It’s important to remember that over-the-counter liquid or powder drain cleaners will eat away at metal pipes, so don’t use them if that’s what you have under your sink.
Still, another vital thing to keep in mind is not to pour grease down your drain and also be aware of what you’re shoving into your garbage disposal. Over-reliance on a garbage disposal can cause clogs that in turn lead to water backing up that will, in turn, cause a leak.
Still, one more commonly asked question is how much does a sink leak repair job typically cost in Pittsburgh? The answer is there really is no standard one size fits all answer to that question, but there are a few things that you can do to keep your cost down.
For example, as you’re asking yourself how much does a sink leak repair typically cost in Pittsburgh, take the time to have a good look at your sink faucets. Are they old and outdated? Contrary to popular belief, most sink faucets cannot be rebuilt.
They are manufactured as a singular unit, so there’s no way to unscrew them and take them apart. So once they start to leak, they really do need to be replaced, and that’s something that you can do. That alone can work to drive down the cost of a Pittsburgh sink leak repair.
Then another thing that you can do to provide your own answer to how much does a sink leak repair typically cost in Pittsburgh is to clear out your cabinets and countertops before the plumber arrives to do the work. Most of them charge by the hour even if they do the job by a bid.
They don’t just pull the bid figure randomly out of the air. Instead, as they’re deciding on a bid price, they’re taking a look to determine how much time the job is going to take.
So if your kitchen or bathroom countertops and cabinets and the general area are cluttered up, they’re going to factor in the time it takes to clear them out into the bid price. So make it easy on them by doing this type of work ahead of time, so when they walk in, they see a clear workspace they can get right to work.