Keeping your faucets in good condition is something that a lot of people simply neglect but it’s actually a very important component of keeping your home in good condition. Leaky faucets tend to cause a wide range of different plumbing problems and irritating issues such as unwanted noise that could keep you up at night and potentially raising your water bills significantly. In addition, a leaky faucet can often indicate a much more serious underlying plumbing problem that is best fixed as soon as possible so that it doesn’t cause long-term damage to your plumbing system. Leaky faucets may seem easy to fix but it’s smart to find the underlying problem and fix that first.
Common Reasons for Faucet Drips
In this article, we’re going to explain a couple of the most common reasons why your faucet is dripping so that you get a better idea of the issues that may affect your plumbing system. We always recommend that you contact a professional to help with a dripping faucet repair instead of trying to do it yourself.
Corrosion in the Faucet
Sediment in the water can often cause parts of the faucet to corrode which may cause leakages. For instance, the valve seat which connects the faucet with the compression mechanism can become corroded if neglected or if mineral deposits are allowed to build up. Keeping an eye out for mineral deposits and dealing with them as they appear is a great way to ensure your faucet doesn’t drip.
O Ring Issues
Most common taps have what’s known as an O ring that helps to create a seal around the internals of the faucet to ensure that it doesn’t leak. However, this O ring can be subject to general wear and tear and will eventually come loose or start to become damaged. This means that the faucet may start to leak around the handle and could even cause the faucets to continuously leak water until the O ring is replaced. Luckily, replacing the O ring isn’t difficult and could be done by yourself, but this will depend on the type of faucet you have and also doesn’t guarantee that the O ring is the only issue.
High Water Pressure
High water pressure is one of the common issues that could cause a dripping faucet. If you find that the dripping only occurs at certain times in the day then there could be a pressure-related issue that is difficult to both diagnose and fix. Water pressure prevents the water from flowing past a certain point which means that it could start to back up and leak out of your faucets. This type of leaking issue usually isn’t a serious issue but reducing the water pressure slightly will often solve this. However, you may need to contact a plumber to teach you how to adjust the pressure in the future because it can be a dangerous thing to try and fix.
Poorly-Installed Faucet
Another common issue is that you might have a poorly-installed faucet. If someone rather unqualified installed it or if you tried to do it yourself, then there could be a couple of missing or incorrectly-installed components that are affecting the overall system. Having your faucets checked is a great idea to see where you went wrong and also have it repaired quickly.
Hire a Professional Plumber
You may feel tempted to put some plumber’s tape over the faucet and call it a day. That’s a bandage fix and could lead to further damage and a more expensive repair further down the road. When your faucet is dripping, call a professional plumber. You’ll have a proper diagnosis and better solutions with a licensed plumber.