This is the fourth in my "Water, water everywhere...." series. To read previous posts, simply click here and links will be shown in a new window.

San Diego County gets its drinking water from local reservoirs, which get their water from natural rainfall or water imported from the north -- Colorado River, snow melt in the Sierra Nevada mountains (think snow skiing at Lake Tahoe), and the San Francisco East Bay Delta.

Whenever we get water in our homes, we want to be able to control where it goes. Typically you don't want it dropping on your ceilings from roof leaks (or plumbing leaks if your water pipes are in the attic), or in your walls from leaks around the windows, or in your cabinets from leaks at the sinks, or on your floors from a leak at the water heater, washer, or dishwasher.

Following are some tips to help you control water coming into your home:

1. Whenever it rains, check the ceilings in all your rooms, especially around skylights, solar tubes, chimneys, and anything that goes up and through the roof, like the exhaust flues at your gas water heater and furnace. Water will show up on your ceilings as brownish, circular stains.
2. Due to the constant pressure in the water supply lines and the lack of daily use of shutoff valves at the toilets, sinks, water heater, washer, and dishwasher, the valves can fail at any time. Many sellers try to be helpful by turning off all the water shutoff valves at the toilets, sinks, and water heater as the last thing they do when they move out. That is exactly the wrong thing to do. In many cases the valves are very difficult to turn due to rust, corrosion, and/or mineral build-up from hard water, and when they are forced, they break and then leak when they are turned back on. I recommend that you have a licensed plumber inspect all the shutoff valves in your house once a year. Note that the plumber here in California is also responsible for gas lines and gas shutoff valves, so let him inspect those, too. I also recommend that Buyers specifically instruct Sellers to leave the water on when they move out.
3. Water supply lines and drain pipes should be checked regularly in your sink cabinets. Unfortunately, many people store cleaning products and supplies in the sink cabinets (see picture at right) which then corrode the bottom of the sink, the water pipes, and the sewer pipes. Here is a very simply way to check your sink cabinet pipes on a daily basis: Store dry materials (towels, bathroom tissue, boxes, etc.) in sink cabinets:
   
       
   
   If normally dry materials are wet when you remove them, you know you've got a leak, so check the water pipes and drain pipes, and check for deteriorated caulking/grouting around the sink and countertop.
4. Make sure your water pressure is no higher than 80 pounds per square inch (psi). A licensed plumber can check it easily and reduce it if necessary by installing or replacing the water pressure regulator. I keep my water pressure at 40 psi, and if I don't have good water flow at the shower heads or sinks, I know it's time to soak the shower head in some CLR and clean the dirt trap on the sink faucet.
5. Have a licensed plumber install braided connectors at all of your water connections at the sinks, water heater, dishwasher, and washer. Braided connectors are flexible, so when you shove all that stuff in your sink cabinets, you won't damage the flexible braided connectors. Braided connectors are also less susceptible to bursting from being under constant pressure. The picture at right shows a rubber hose at a washing machine that is ready to burst.
6. If your house has a raised foundation -- meaning that someone could crawl under your house if they wanted to -- you probably have water pipes running through that area. Have those pipes checked annually since you don't want a water leak to create a swamp under your home. Trust me, a swamp will not be able to support the foundation of your home. 

Readers who have any questions should feel free to contact me, and if you need a home inspection anywhere in Southern California's ten counties, please call.

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This week's posts

1. The most uniquest weirdest home ever - 8/19/09
2. Water, water everywhere.... - Landscaping - 8/18/09
3. How to start an ActiveRain group and then get people to join it - 8/18/09
4. San Diego home inspection FAQs: Will you come by to help me? - 8/17/09
5. More prizes announced for the Nature & Marketing contest - 8/16/09

Last week's posts

1. You just can't make this stuff up.... - 8/16/09
2. Don't be sleeping just yet.... - 8/16/09
3. Water, water everywhere.... - Falling from the sky - 8/15/09
4. I'm paying it forward.... Or am I? - 8/14/09
5. Nature & Marketing contest ends Sunday.... - 8/14/09
6. Water, water everywhere.... - Understanding your roof - 8/13/09
7. Nature & Marketing contest ends Sunday.... - 8/13/09
8. San Diego home inspections: Bob Bowen's Auto Service - 8/12/09
9. WWW (Wordless Wednesday with Words): Nice little kitty.... - 8/12/09
10. Christmas is just around the corner.... (San Diego Zoo slide show) - 8/11/09
11. Eunice Kennedy Shriver, 1921-2009: I'll miss you - 8/11/09
12. San Diego home inspections: Hunter's Nursery - 8/10/09
13. San Diego home inspections: And the answer is.... - 8/10/09

Previous week's posts

1. Ssssspeechlesssss Sssssunday at the Sssssan Diego Zoo - 8/9/09
2. Speechless Sunday with Spit - 8/9/09
3. Just 7 days left in the ActiveRain Nature & Marketing contest - 8/9/09
4. How to stay spider free - 8/8/09 - reblogged
5. Here's where we stand with the ActiveRain Nature & Marketing contest - 8/8/09
6. San Diego home inspections: Using flies to detect gas leaks - 8/7/09
7. San Diego home inspections: Are you still a property inspector? - 8/7/09
8. San Diego home inspections: Just because you CAN re-use something doesn't mean you should.... - 8/6/09
9. San Diego home inspections: Sometimes I have to laugh at disclosures.... - 8/6/09
10. San Diego home inspection FAQs: What if I have questions after the inspection? - 8/6/09
11. WWW (Wordless Wednesday with Words): Censored - 8/5/09
12. San Diego home inspections: Why get all worked up over a little crack.... - 8/4/09
13. Just 12 days left in the ActiveRain "Nature & Marketing" contest - 8/4/09
14. San Diego home inspection: Just because the sinks drain well.... - 8/3/09
15. I'm getting really lucky lately - 8/3/09

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