A slow draining sink with restricted water flow may be manageable with a plunger of a bottle of vinegar. You only have to do one little thing to get the job done, and for problems such as this a simple solution usually works. Unclogging a sink drain is hardly a job for a professional plumber. Yet, there are issues that should not be attempted by homeowner.
Take a look at plumbing issues requiring professional assessment and intervention.
Issues that are too complicated and may even be dangerous
Let’s start with a quick enumeration of plumbing necessities you may encounter at home that could put your or other household members at risk. Anything that requires a building permit must be set aside for a team of professionals. Similarly, installation of new pipelines, or perhaps a new tub, as well as any issue involving the water heater is not for an average American homeowner. If you want to keep living in a clean, comfortable and happy home you will also leave sewer line or septic tank breaks and leaks to experts.
If you are serious about doing it yourself, then make sure you have these in your toolkit.
What other plumbing concerns must you refrain from attempting?
Slab leaks (where is it coming from exactly?)
If you have no idea what a slab leak is then take a few hints from the phrase itself. “Slab” pertains to a concrete plate that could be serving as the foundation of your home. “Leak” is self-explanatory. You don’t want those to see those words together, but if there’s no helping it, then use common sense and call for professional services. Typically, it’s difficult to access the area where the pipes causing leakage lie. First of all, you must not decide to open up a certain section of the foundation just because you think all the water comes from there. Remember. The place where the water seems to leak from is not necessarily the location of the section of the pipe experiencing problems.
Impeding tree trunks (and whatever else is blocking the pipes)
Now, if you are sure the pipe has been blocked by a tree root, you have to keep yourself from getting a shovel and prospecting for the offending root. It’s not only that you might hit parts of the pipeline you didn’t know was underneath that part of the garden. You might have to deal with a problem that goes deeper than expected.
Pipe rerouting—it’s not as easy as you think
It makes sense to attempt a pipe re-routing. After all, all you need is a few extra feet of PVC and something to shove the dirt around. You can read an excellent plumbing manual and still find yourself lost in the maze. You may have the tools but without proper training a simple re-routing may be more complicated than you’ve bargained for.
Damage to water lines can escalate from a bad situation to something much worse in the blink of an eye. Do not add to the problem (and the expense) by attempting problems in the plumbing system that must only be executed by professionals.
