Dripping Taps – Money Down the Drain

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“Drip…drip…drip”.

It was the middle of the night and I lay awake listening to one of the taps in our ensuite drip.    I resorted to putting a towel in the basin for the drips to land on silently. It made me think about the wasted water and the impact on our water heating bill – a tap dripping every minute, every hour, every day…

Fortunately I’m married to Craig, and he was able to fix the tap straight away and minimise the wastage. Being married to a plumber has ceertainly made me more water conscious.  Did you know that even a slow drip can waste approximately 5 litres of water a day?  And a fast dripping tap upto 70 litres?!  It’s hard to believe.

Causes of Dripping Taps & Mixers
  • a worn-out washer needs to be replaced
  • the tap needs to be re-seated (smoothed). If a new washer goes against a old rough seat (inside the tap) the new washer will wear out very quickly.
  • the headworks of the tap or the cartridge of a mixer needs replacing.  These are the parts that make the tap work.
  • debri has got into the water pipe and damaged the tap – having a filter valve installed prevents this.
  • water pressure is too high and has damaged the mixer.

When Craig is asked to fix a dripping tap, he begins by replacing the washer. He carries a range of washers in his van so he will most likely have the right one on-hand for a job.  If this doesn’t solve the problem, he investigates the other possible causes.

All taps and mixers are checked for drips as part of our plumbing warrant of fitness.  The warrant is a great way to check that your plumbing is water, energy and cost efficient.

Don’t put up with that dripping tap any longer!  Give Plumb a call.
Julie