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Leak Repair in Vancouver & the Surrounding Area
A leak from your ceiling, under your sink, or water on the floor can be one of the more distressing plumbing issues that you will encounter. At Jack, we’ve seen them all, and our skilled technicians are more than capable of sourcing and repairing any water leak.
Some leaks are very obvious and easy to find, such as a leaking toilet, leaking faucet, leaking p traps and more. Others can be quite tricky and may involve opening of ceilings or walls in order to track down where they are coming from. Some of the trickier leaks can often come from a leaking shower or leaking tub, leaking shower valves, or rain water getting in from outside. Wherever the source of water is coming from, our technicians are trained to find them and stop them.
Here is a list of common leaks that we encounter on a daily basis and what causes them:
Leaking Toilet
What causes a leaking toilet? On most toilets, the toilet tank is separate from the bowl. It’s important to understand that the toilet tank is always full of water, and when the toilet is flushed, the water in the tank is the water that washes down the debris inside the toilet bowl. Inside the toilet tank there are many moving parts. Some of these parts have seals such as toilet fill valves, and toilet flush valves. These seals can wear out and allow water to escape from the tank. Another place the toilet can leak from is from the base of the toilet. If you notice that the caulking around the base of your toilet is starting to become discoloured then this is a good indication that the toilet’s wax seal has started to leak. The wax seal is a part that forms a watertight seal between the toilet base and the toilet flange (which is an integral part of any plumbing drainage system).
A leaking wax seal is a somewhat easy leak to repair that involves removing your toilet and replacing the seal then reinstalling your toilet. Another common leak on a toilet is the seal that connects your toilet tank to your toilet bowl. Lastly, the water supply line that connects your toilet can wear out over time and begin to leak. It is wise to replace your toilet supply line every 5 years to avoid early failure and a potentially large flood. When replacing the toilet line, there is a water shut off that comes out of your wall or floor which controls the water supply feeding your toilet. There are times when this water shut off begins to leak. The water shut off is likely to leak if it hasn’t been touched in a long while and then is used to isolate the water to your toilet. The most common area it leaks from is the stem where the handle connects to the brass body of the shut off.
As you can tell, we know our stuff when it comes to toilet leaks and are fully capable of helping you no matter where the leak is coming from.
Leaking Faucet
There are a few different types of common faucets. These would be found in your bathroom and kitchen. Leaks on faucets are generally easy to locate, and most of the time easy to repair. The most common faucet leaks we find are from kitchen faucets that have a pull out spray handle. There is a flexible hose that connects the water from inside the faucet to the spray handle. This hose screws onto the bottom of the handle.
Overtime, the handle can become loose and eventually begin to leak. If you notice water underneath your kitchen sink, the first place to check would be to make sure your pull out handle is tight before you call us as this will save you the cost of a skilled technician. If the handle is not the source of the leak, the next common leak that we find will come from the kitchen faucet cartridge. The cartridge is what mixes the hot and cold water together so that you can control the temperature of the water coming out of the faucet. These cartridges have gaskets and many small integral parts that will fail overtime. Unfortunately, due to the significant amount of different styles and brands of faucets, our technicians cannot carry all of these in their vans. If we come out to fix your leaking kitchen faucet cartridge, it’s ideal if you can tell us the brand of faucet and the model style before we come.
That way we can try and find the replacement cartridge right away. One good thing is that most faucet manufacturers will send out free replacement cartridges if you can afford to wait. Leaking supply lines are another common leak that we run into. The supply lines connect the hot and cold water supply shut offs under the sink to your kitchen faucet. It’s recommended to replace these supply lines once every 5 years to avoid any large leaks. As mentioned earlier when we were talking about toilet leaks, the last very common leak comes from the water supply shut offs underneath the sink. These shut offs can leak when they are turned off and on. If the shut offs are original sometimes it’s best to ask your Jack tech to replace them at the same time as they are working on your faucet. In some cases the faucet cannot be repaired and it is best to install a new kitchen faucet.
Leaking Drains
Leaking drains can turn into a very costly restoration bill if they are not taken care of quickly and efficiently (especially if they are carrying sewage). There are a few things that can cause a drain to leak. First and most common are blockages. First and foremost the drain is an integral part of your plumbing system, it carries away all waste water from your toilets, faucets, and showers. Drains are larger in size and can accommodate solid materials such as human waste. A blockage in a drain is usually caused by things such as to much toilet paper, solids from leftovers on a dinner plate, or solid items being put down the drain that should not get flushed down a toilet or washed down your sink (egg shells, fruit peels, coffee grounds, etc). When a drain gets blocked, any water that goes down the drain will stop at the blockage and slowly the drain will fill with water.
Eventually the drain will back up and water will come out of the fixture you are using. When water builds up it creates pressure. Some fittings in your drainage system (especially when they are older) will leak when put under pressure. When fixing a leak caused by a blocked drain the Jack technician will need to clear the blockage first and then fix the leaking area of the drain afterwards. Sometimes drains will leak just when water is ran past them. Another very common drainage leak is a leaking p trap. A p trap is installed on your sinks, tub and shower drains, laundry drains, and any drain where the drain is exposed to open air. The p trap holds water in it continually to keep sewer smells from coming back up the drain and smelling up your home. Some p traps have a removable union that makes the p trap easier to work on. These union p traps can leak overtime. In some cases fixing the leak is as easy as tightening the p trap whereas in other situations the p traps need to be completely replaced. P traps are a common part and are carried in Jack tech vans.
Some of the more tricky drainage leak repairs can be from your shower or toilet. Often a leak from a shower drain or toilet drain will show up first as a bubble in your ceiling drywall. These leaks won’t leak continuously and only leak when you run your shower or flush your toilet. A jack tech will always try and attempt to diagnose the cause of the leak from above before opening your drywall but oftentimes if a repair is needed we will need to open your drywall below to repair the issue. Unfortunately the drywall will need to be repaired. This is not a repair that is done by a plumber but a jack drywall technician would be happy to take care of this for you. Whatever the cause of the leak on your drain, Jack is a company that can repair drainage leaks fast and professionally.
Leaking Dishwasher
It’s not too often where we run into a dishwasher leak, however it does happen. When a dishwasher leaks, oftentimes it’s caused from an actual issue with the dishwasher. It’s important to understand that if you call a plumber for dishwasher leak repair, the plumber will be able to determine where the leak is coming from but may not be able to fix it if it’s an integral part of the dishwasher. As far as plumbing leaks are concerned when it comes to a dishwasher, these are the things that can go wrong.
Every dishwasher comes with a drain connection and a water supply connection. When your plumber connects your dishwasher, he/she will run the included flexible drain hose through the cabinet to underneath the kitchen sink. The dishwasher drain will then get tied into your kitchen sink drainage. Where the dishwasher drain connects to the sink drainage is a point where a leak can occur. The dishwasher pump pumps water from the dishwasher at a high rate and causes pressure on the drain line, if the drain line is not connected securely it can come loose over time and begin to leak. The water line that connects the dishwasher to your home’s water supply is another area that could cause a leak.
Typically, if the line does not leak shortly after its been installed then it is a fairly safe component long term. Most water connections are made with a steel braided line. This allows the dishwasher to be connected when it’s outside of the cabinet space and then slid in afterwards. It also makes it easier to work on the dishwasher without disconnecting the water. Sometimes different materials are used to connect the dishwasher water supply.
One of the most concerning connections that we see are when the dishwasher is connected with a grey polybutylene pipe (poly b). Poly b has been known to weaken over time and unexpectedly burst which can cause massive water damage. If you see your dishwasher water supply is run with grey plastic pipe you may want to consider upgrading to a steel braided hose. These are all things that a jack technician can take care of for you!
Leaking Fridge
A leaking fridge is similar to a leaking dishwasher whereas there is only one plumbing part that connects to the fridge. This is the water supply line. If the leak comes from the fridge itself, this would be a job for an appliance mechanic. The fridge water supply line is commonly a steel braided flexible line that connects to the water supply shut off behind your fridge. This water line feeds water into your fridge where the water is typically run through a water filter and then made to use ice cubes and also used for fresh drinking water. Our certified technicians are qualified to replace the water filters in your fridge if you have one on site for them. These lines can also come in copper, or plastic. As with other supply fixtures the water supply shut off can be an area that leaks over time. It is a good idea to replace your refrigerator water supply line once every 5 years.
Leaking Water Pipes
A leaking water pipe can be one of the more severe leaks you will experience with your plumbing system. Water pipes are under constant pressure so when a leak does occur, the water will not stop until it has been shut off. Whether your home has a water leak can depend greatly on what type of water supply pipe has been installed in your home. One of the most common types of water pipes to leak is Polybutylene.
Polybutylene (known as poly b) is a piping material that was popular and widely used back in the 1970’s-1990’s. If you know you have this material in your home, we recommend that customers replace all of it. Polybutylene is prone to bursting and the resulting damages can easily have a full repipe looking like the cheapest and best option. We always favour preventative solutions here at Jack. In some cases, a home insurance company won’t even insure a home fitted with poly-b piping.
Another common pipe material that comes up often is copper pipe. Copper pipe in itself is a very reliable and long lasting pipe for water distribution in homes and buildings. Unfortunately, because of its rising cost, copper is not used as often in today’s industry. The homes / buildings that do have copper supply pipes are often quite old. Even though copper can last 30-50 years inside a home without any issues, over time the walls of the copper become worn down, and eventually, the walls become so thin that leaks occur. When we repair a copper leak, we often will try and replace as much of the copper that we see at the time of the repair. Something you have to be careful with when repairing leaking copper pipe is when you shut the water off to the home or building.
When you drain the water down to perform your repair, sometimes the water will wash away sediment that was sitting inside the pipes. This sediment may have been preventing pre existing leaks and now that it has been washed down the pipe, the leak will turn up once you turn the water back on. At the end of the day, if the pipework in your home or building is very old, it is best to consider replacement. In the present time our skilled technicians are using a polyethylene based material called pex or wirsbo. Both of these piping types have been around since the early 1990s and have withheld the test of time for the last 40 years.
We Serve Vancouver & the Lower Mainland
Jack Same Day Plumbing
1503 W 66th Ave Vancouver, BC V6P 2R8
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