Christmas And Holiday Plumbing Tips

With Christmas fast approaching it is timely to remind everyone of the measures related to plumbing - that can be taken to protect our biggest asset - our home. Especially while you may be away for an extended period on annual vacation.

With the given bushfire season - it would be timely for homes to have all the gutters and downpipes cleared of leaves and all combustible materials cleaned up around the yard. This will also help avoid blockages of stormwater drains in the event of heavy rain and prevent flooding.

Other things you can do is to turn off the isolation valves over your washing machine and dishwasher. As they are connected with flexible hose connections which can be prone to bursting, resulting in an unobserved leak running through the house causing major water damage to your floors and furniture etc.

Many people who holiday for an extended time turn the water off to their hot water systems. This is ok to do so as long as you also isolate the power to prevent damage to the hot water heater.

The temperature and pressure relief valve is near the top of the heater and is essential to the safe working of the hot water system. Water is released when the water in the tank is either too hot or there is a build up of pressure due to the water expanding by hot. Failure of this valve can result in damage to the hot water cylinder or a loss of water from a faulty valve causing an excess water account.

The temperature and relief valve of your hot water system should be checked for performance every six months and replaced every five years as per the manufacturers specifications.