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Avoid these DIY plumbing mistakes – call a domestic plumber!

DIY? More like “D-I-Why-Oh-Why”?!

As a domestic plumber in Melbourne, we deal with a lot of unexpected plumbing problems. 

And in many cases, we discover that the problem is a plumbing repair or installation that has been obviously DIY’d. 

We can’t stress enough how important it is to always call a professional for your plumbing. 

Let’s just way there’s a very good reason that we’ve talked about this very topic several times before!

You may think you can handle your plumbing all on your own with nothing more than a YouTube tutorial to guide you.

Don’t make that mistake – there’s a lot of theory that goes into even simple plumbing jobs (which is why plumber training is such a long process).

To demonstrate what we mean, today we’ll spotlight some of the more common DIY domestic plumbing issues our plumbers in Melbourne encounter in a typical day.

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The top 4 most common DIY mistakes our plumbers in Melbourne fix

1) Mismatched pipes

As a domestic plumber we often get called out to houses with complaints of leaks or faulty pipes.

Most of the time, it’s an old pipe or pipe fitting that is starting to wear out or give way.

However, it isn’t uncommon for our domestic plumbers to discover leaks resulting from DIY-ers using the wrong pipes and incorrect fittings. 

You can have a simple understanding of plumbing, a slew of YouTube tutorials and well-meaning advice from your local hardware store.

But at the end of the day that is no match for a licenced tradesperson.

Choosing the right pipes and fittings involves more than just ensuring that pipe diameter is equal.

To begin, let’s look at pipe materials. There are some different pipe materials that are simply incompatible, even if the dimensions fit.

For example, galvanised steel and copper don’t mix, as the zinc in the galvanised steel will start a chemical reaction when in direct contact with copper for extended periods. Over time, that will rapidly corrode the pipes at the connection.

And in the absolute worst cases a domestic plumber has ever seen, some actually try and connect pipes together with silicone or duct tape (a temporary fix at best!)

2) Connections that are too tight

Here’s a fun fact that you might not know: you don’t actually need to excessively tighten fittings or fixtures for them to be watertight.

Most of them are already watertight all on their own.

Plumbing parts – connections in particular – are made to be watertight, without being excessively tightened.

When you try to tighten an already tight fitting, you run the risk of breaking it.

Our domestic plumbers encounter many cases of damaged pipe threads and cracked plastic.

This, as you might have already guessed, stops them from being watertight.

The result? A persistent leak, no matter how often you readjust your pipes and fittings.

This is a problem that many DIY plumbers encounter. They assume that when it comes to their pipes and fittings, the tighter the better.

In many cases, they get too overzealous, tightening their pipes to the point where they cause unintended damage.

Not to mention, it can make further repairs and plumbing maintenance difficult too!

plumbers in Melbourne

3) Taking things apart and putting them back together wrong

We can’t even begin to tell you how many times we’ve got a message from a very distressed caller who says their plumbing has gone haywire.

In response, we dispatch one of our emergency plumbers.

They arrive at the caller’s house and perform an inspection, and find that there is a very good reason that their plumbing system is acting up: it’s been reassembled incorrectly.

Your plumbing isn’t like an IKEA table – there’s no instruction booklet to tell you who everything goes together. If you lose your train of thought or accidentally mix up a step or two, that can lead to your plumbing not looking quite “right”.

Trust us when we say we can tell if you’ve tried to DIY your plumbing. 

Very often people put things back together the wrong way. The result? You guessed it: their plumbing doesn’t work anymore.

For example, say you want to replace a connector between two pipes.

When it comes to plumbing connectors, there are both “male” and “female” connectors. Many plumbing fittings even have one male and one female connector on either end.

These types of connectors are completely incompatible with one another. If you dismantle part of your plumbing and accidentally connect the wrong end to the wrong pipe… well, let’s just say you’re going to have a hard time!

And if you apply too much pressure in an attempt to get it to fit, you may end up breaking your pipes (see point number 2).

If you want to play it safe (and you should when it’s something as important as your plumbing), the only person who should be doing that is a licenced, professional plumber.

4) Forgetting to turn off the water

You would be surprised how many times our domestic plumbers hear stories of people who tried to fix their own plumbing and forgot to turn off their water supply first.

Turning off the water supply and draining your pipes is step #1 in any plumbing callout, no matter how big or small.

When people go to fix their plumbing, they often forget and end up getting water everywhere. Sometimes they even flood their own homes.

We all know where that ends: with a much higher repair bill for the damages, and nobody wants that!

That’s why you should always turn off the water before you do anything with your plumbing whatsoever.

The process of turning off your water is pretty straightforward:

  1. Locate your water main (it’s usually located outside)
  2. Determine if it is a gate valve or ball valve
  3. Use this guide to turn your water supply off

Choose Watermaster’s domestic plumber in Melbourne for stress-free plumbing you can rely on!

These are just a couple of examples of the types of plumbing problems that can arise from trying your hand at DIY plumbing.

Luckily, you won’t have to worry about that with Watermaster Plumbing.

Our team of domestic plumbers are masters of their trade.

Some of the properties we’ve worked on include dental clinics, factories and high-rise buildings… with a pedigree like that, your home plumbing is almost a piece of cake by comparison!

It’s not just our Masterful plumbing work that sets us apart, however – we’re also committed to bringing a new level of customer service into the plumbing trade.

Not only will we arrive on time and get the job done, we will respect your home and your family as well. We clean up after ourselves and remove any rubbish.

If you’re looking for a domestic plumber, don’t DIY – instead, get in contact with our plumbers in Melbourne.

You can give our friendly team a call anytime on 1300 156 650

2022-01-25T02:46:59+00:00 September 3rd, 2019|Blog|