Fixing water leaks at home is possible as long as the fault is not too cumbersome. But to do it well, it is necessary to have the right materials. In addition, it is highly recommended to carry out a small preliminary step so that the repair is durable. At the end of the day, when you decide to fix water leaks by yourself it is usually not to incur extra expenses. That is why we will divide this article into two parts.
Previous steps before fixing water leaks
Water leaks are a very common problem, therefore, it can happen to any structure and person. It is important to detect it so that the cost of our household bill does not start to increase. For this reason, it is necessary to remedy it before it is too late. The main thing is to detect the problem, know where the leak comes from and what is its cause. If the problem is too serious, you should contact specialists like us.
We will assume that you know for sure where the leak has occurred. In fact, the three methods to fix water leaks that we will discuss below are only valid for visible leaks. If the pipe is inside a wall or under the floor, it is better to have professional help.
This is what you should do before starting the repair:
- Close the water stopcock. This will prevent accidents and major evils.
- Drain all the pipes. When you close it, it is passing, there is still water in the pipes. To fix water leaks the pipes must be dry. If not, the repair materials will not work properly. Draining water is simple. You just have to open all the taps in your house until not a drop of water comes out of any of them. It is not necessary to empty the toilet tank. That water is stagnant and outside the plumbing circuit. Just don’t do the tank in the middle of the repair. And less if the leak is in the bathroom.
- Dry the section of pipe you are going to repair on the outside. Do it with a clean dry cloth. Remember that this is the surface on which the repair materials will act. It must be clean for them to be effective. In addition, it should be sanded so that the area is perfect when applying the products. In this way, the adhesion will be better and, very likely, the product of better results.
- It is important to wear gloves. Fixing the water leak at home means that we take special care with our hands. These products contain different chemicals that allow you to solve the problem quickly. For this reason, it is convenient to wear gloves since we do not know how they can affect us.
3 Homemade Methods to fix water leaks
Actually, more than home methods to fix water leaks, these are three materials that you can use at home easily.
- Pipe repair putty: it is sold in small tubes and is used to fix small cracks or perforations that are not very large. Depending on the brand the instructions for use will vary slightly. The most important thing to know is that the repair putty must cover the entire length of the fissure. It is better to spread the putty well, wait for it to dry and give a second layer. Leave the drying time indicated by the box and a little more.
- Repair bandages. The name indicates what they are: bandages. They are placed just like a bandage on a human body. You should manipulate them with gloves, since the bandages are impregnated in a solution that, when it hardens, works as if you had applied a layer of steel cover to the pipe. They work in a wide variety of materials and can fix water leaks of considerable size.The application is quite simple. It consists of winding the bandage around the tube that contains the water leak. At the same time as it is rolled, it must be tensioned. You should keep in mind that they should be left 5 cm to the right and to the left of the vanishing point. We advise you to go quite fast because the product will harden in a short time.
- Repairers patches . They work just like bandages. Unlike those, they are not strips of hardenable fabric, but plates. That’s why they are used in smaller breaks. Both bandages and patches become hardened in about 25 or 30 minutes.
It is true that many times these products do not usually give the best guarantees. In case you want to save yourself repair the water leak by yourself you can count on us. At Abacas Solutions. We know how important it is to solve the problem in a short time so that the client avoids major concerns. For this reason, if you prefer not to get your hands dirty, call us. At Abacas Solutions we help you to fix water leaks in emergency plumbing situations.