The weather can most definitely have an impact on the health of your property and its plumbing system. From excessive heat to sub-zero temperatures, the climate around your home is of great importance to the health of your property’s plumbing system and the structure as a whole. Here’s what you need to know about how the weather can impact your pipes and home.
The Trouble with Spring
Spring is actually the season where you are most likely to find damage within your home. This is partly because that’s when the problems caused during winter are most likely to come to fruition, but it can also bring on issues of its own. One of the biggest issues with springtime in and around Virginia Beach, VA, is the overwhelming dampness and humidity that it can bring.
This can damage your pipes in a number of ways. Firstly, excessive rain and poor foundation drainage options can lead to the earth under your property shifting or losing its ability to support your property. This can cause cracks in your main lines, as well as putting strain on pipes close to or connected to your foundation. It can also cause damage to your foundation, which is a much more widespread issue.
The Effects of Summer Heat
While the summers in Virginia can be mild and pleasant, it is not unknown for a heatwave to hit, bringing a serious drought with it. When this happens, it can cause huge amounts of damage to your yard and home, including your plumbing system and pipes.
The way expansive soils can shrink and move when dehydrated is a big part of this. That may cause a lot of damage to the structure of a property by undermining and moving the foundation. This can impact the pipes too. The heat may even cause exposed pipes to expand, widening cracks that were created by general use, corrosion, winter cold, or the spring thaw.
There is another factor to consider in summer, however. With the whole family at home more often and an increased need for things like yard sprinkler systems, summer can be a very tough time for any plumbing system. The increased strain and accelerated rate of wear and tear can definitely impact your plumbing system.
Falling Into Winter
Fall and winter are where most of the damage in a property takes root. While the extreme cold can be the cause of damage, it is far more common for damage to be the cause of repeated freezes and thaws (unless the winter is particularly harsh). When it comes to your pipes, the most common causes of damage are a lack of insulation or an unsecured external faucet.
These two issues in particular will cause the water in pipes to freeze, which will then cause it to expand and put pressure on the pipes in question. If the pipe is already damaged or the pressure is incredibly strong, it can crack. When the ice thaws, this will cause the pipe to burst and cause a plumbing flood.
Protect Your Home – Call in a Professional
One of the best things that you can do to prevent the weather from taking its toll on your home and impacting your pipes is to install high-quality insulation and disconnect any hose pipes or above ground sprinklers before the temperatures really start to drop. When a pipe freezes, it is most often caused by areas of exposure letting the cold in.
As well as insulating your pipes, you can protect them by keeping your heating on, even at a low level, throughout the night when the temperatures drop very low. You can also invest in perimeter drains to prevent excessive soil and foundation saturation. Ensuring you have proper and robust drainage in place will allow your home to resist the wet spells of fall and spring as well as the heat of summer.
If you have concerns about your home or you think there is already damage to your pipes, please do not hesitate to call A1 Sewer & Drain to arrange a consultation and assessment. Our team will provide you with an estimate for all costs associated with repairs and fortifying your property and plumbing system.
