Why New Homeowners Need a Plumbing Inspection
Sometimes, I’m a procrastinator and tend to put things off when I should do them right away, and one of the worst things I did was to procrastinate about getting a plumbing inspection. I know I should have gotten the inspection before purchasing the house, but I was so anxious to move in, and the house looked nearly perfect. I was persuaded by my father to get a plumbing inspection, even though I was already living in the house when I chose to get a plumber to come out to do the inspection.
I couldn’t believe the problems that he found, and the house that I thought was a bargain now ended up being a liability and had plumbing problems that were going to cost me around $10,000 to fix.
The plumber mentioned several plumbing problems that I didn’t know about beforehand, and for them to fix the problems, they would have to dig up the yard and replace some pipes.
I was so furious about the whole thing, but I couldn’t blame anyone else but myself. I thought I would wait for a while before getting the work done, and unfortunately, the problem got worse to where it was going to cost me a few thousand dollars more than the original quote I got. I had to take the money I had saved up to pay for the plumbing repairs.
What I learned is that plumbing inspections are necessary, and I could have bought a brand-new car or even started a franchise business with the $13,000 I ended up paying for plumbing repairs. I would suggest that everyone get a plumbing inspection before they ever sign the paperwork to buy a house.
The Good And The Bad Of A Plumbing Inspection
A plumbing inspection is mostly a good thing because you’ll be informed about anything that is wrong with the plumbing, which then will allow you to fix the problems. The only bad about a plumbing inspection is that problems may be present, which means it may make you change your mind about the purchase of the home.
It’s also possible that a plumbing inspection can give you grounds to negotiate a lower price for the home, so choose to get a pipe inspection because you can learn a lot of things like:
- You'll know what plumbing problems exist.
- The cost of the plumbing fixes will be revealed to you.
- You can choose to keep or replace plumbing.
- Plumbing problems can be discovered in time before they get worse.
Existing Plumbing Problems- An inspector may check around the base of the toilet and find mold, and they may see that the wax ring on the toilet is loose as well as other problems, so you’ll be informed about plumbing issues. If there are plumbing difficulties with the dishwasher, the garbage disposal, and other pipes and drains in the home, you’ll know about them, which will allow you to make a decision that will help you to move forward with the purchase of the home or drop the purchase entirely.
Plumbing Costs- It can be annoying when you don’t know what something will cost to fix, and have a plumber inspecting the home will give you a perspective of the potential cost of the plumbing repairs as well as how long it will take to fix everything.
Keeping/Replacing Plumbing- If you know that the plumbing is wrong in the home you are having inspected, you’ll be given this information and will be able to determine if the pipe will need a full replacement or if fixing the plumbing is a better choice.
Early Detection- Having a plumbing inspection can detect problems early, which means you’ll know which questions will need immediate attention and which issues can wait, and this can save you money. If something can’t hold on, then get it fixed now, instead of waiting until the problem gets out of control and costs you a lot more money later.
Examining The Toilets
No one likes dealing with toilets, especially examining them, but it’s the job of a plumbing inspector to make sure that the toilets in a home are working as normal. Since there are a lot of problems that you may find with a toilet, allow the inspector to check the toilets thoroughly from top to bottom, especially around the base to make sure the toilet works and doesn’t need replacement.
Checking Out The Water Heater
You’ll be glad that you had the inspector look at the water heater, especially since only plumbers know how to repair and care for a water heater. Supposing the previous owners of the home didn’t choose to maintain their water heater, you may have a water heater that has some problems that can be detected by the plumber as well as remedied by the plumber.
The plumber will also let you know if a replacement of the water heater is necessary, which may be the case if the heater is cracked and leaking or rusted on the inside.
Making Sure There Is No Discolored Water
Who wouldn’t hate to turn on their faucet only to find discolored water or water with soil in? The problem of discolored water is in many homes, and having a plumber on site to tell you where the problem is coming from and how to fix it is the best for those who are trying to purchase a home.
If you know that fixing a discolored water problem is going to be costly, then you may have second thoughts about buying the home altogether. In most cases, resolving the problem with discolored water is pretty easy, so it’s not always the worst plumbing problem in any home.
Let the plumbers at C&D Plumbing, Inc help you in your time of need. Contact (954) 758-8169 in Fort Lauderdale, FL for home plumbing inspections.