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PLUMBING IN REHAB HOUSES
SO HOW'S THE PLUMBING?
So how’s the plumbing in the house you are looking at buying? What do you need
to look at? Why should you be at all interested in the plumbing in a house to
begin with? What should I replace? Lots of questions, especially if you have not
bought a house before, or if you are new to real estate investment. Relax, I
have all the information for you. We are about to go through all the investor
needs to know about residential plumbing, and how it fits into the rehab
equation.
We pipe potable (drinkable) water into the house for what is referred to as
domestic use. We also provide a system for the removal of wastewater used for
sanitation purposes, and also for washing clothes, dishes and ourselves. When
you stop to think about it, these two systems constitute a major time saver as
well as a wonderful convenience. Just ask anyone who has ever had to carry water
up the hill or had to go out back to the little house behind the house on a
blustery winter morning.
The way we provide these conveniences of water supply and removal is called
plumbing. Plumb is from the Latin word “plumbus”, which means lead, as in the
metal. Early water systems delivered the water into the houses by means of pipes
made of lead. Today we make water and waste pipes from a variety of materials
such as copper, iron and several types of plastic.
Plumb also means perfectly vertical. When I first started learning how to repair
and install plumbing, I had to fix a lot of leaks. My leaks. Leaks on the stuff
I had just replaced. Connections weren’t tight enough sometimes, and that caused
the fittings to leak. More often than not, the reason why they were not tight
and could not be tightened up enough to stop the leak is because the plumbing
was not plumb. I am not ashamed to tell you that once I learned that “plumb,”
meant straight up and down, I started putting my pipe in like that and the leaks
all but vanished from my repairs.
Well, enough background, what do you need to know as an investor when you are
looking at the plumbing in a house? First of all, does it work right? You find
that out by exercising the fixtures. Turn the water on in the sinks and let it
run for a few minutes. You are looking for a couple of things. Does the drain
under the sink stay dry when the water runs through it? Does the sink drain
quickly enough
to keep up with the flow of water? Does the water get hot within a reasonable
length of time?
Check out the faucets. Do they leak when they are turned on? Look around the
handles if there are two faucets, and around the base of the faucet if it is a
single lever faucet like you see in kitchens sometimes. Push the single lever
back away from the sink to see if it will leak then. If it does, chances are
that it needs a relatively inexpensive set of “O” rings on the cartridge inside
of the base. Check the vegetable sprayer at the kitchen sink, does it spray
clean and plenty, or does it have some of the little holes in the spray head
plugged up so there is no water coming from them? Does the vegetable sprayer
leak from the hose just below the handle? Most investors replace faucets to
update the look of the house, but if they are acceptable, modern, clean and also
functional, why spend the money if you don’t have to?
Showers and tubs are inspected the same way. Turn the faucets on and look for
leaks coming from the handles themselves or water coming from the stems behind
the handles. Turn the shower on and see if it leaks from the shower diverter
handle. If you can get behind the shower, usually in a closet in the adjacent
room, there is normally an inspection panel that you can remove and see the back
of the faucets and shower diverter assembly. Look for water dripping from the
pipes, handles and drains there. Look for water in a pool at the base of the tub
or shower that will tell you that the drain is leaking.
If the house has two stories, look at the ceiling under the showers and tubs on
the second floor to see if there are any tell tale signs of leakage such as wet
sheetrock or brown stains on the ceiling. Look at the walls in the next room
that back up against the shower or tub to see if there are any stains, mildew or
wet spots. These all indicate leaks, and they all mean money to fix the
problems.
In showers and tubs, look to see if the tile has separated or the corners have
started to break open. In showers especially, look around the base of the shower
to see if there are any cracks. If you can, pull the carpet up in the room(s) or
hall adjacent to the shower wall and look at the carpet tack strip. If the tack
strip is a blonde color, chances are that there have not been any leaks. If you
pull the carpet back and the tack strip looks black, brown, or there are brown
stains around the nail heads on the tack strip, it means that there is or has
been a leak in the shower. Shower leaks can get to be pretty expensive, even if
you only replace the pan and not the whole shower.
Flush the commodes, and flush them several times. Exercise this stuff, work it,
make it do its job. Stand over the commode and put a knee on either side of the
bowl and see if you can rock the bowl from side to side. If you can, the commode
has to be re-set. If the loose commode is on a wood floor as in pier and beam
houses, this loose connection usually means leaking water, and that means floor
repairs under the commode.
If you are looking at a pier and beam house, shine your flashlight up under the
house and look at the drains below the kitchen and the bathrooms to see if there
are any leaks. Notice if there are any foul odors that would indicate that the
sewer drains have come apart under the house, because that means sewage is
draining under the house. It not only smells bad, it is extremely unhealthy. If
you see these conditions, you are out looking at something that is beyond the
reach of the normal do it yourself rehabber. Time to call in the plumber.
Water heaters, water wells and septic systems are part of the plumbing too, but
there isn’t enough space here to talk about them this month. For plumbing repair
information you can talk to the folks at Home Depot, the hardware store or many
of the plumbing supply houses. Most of them are happy to explain how things work
and how to put them back together when they don’t. If you have questions or if
you get in over your head, call me, I’m always glad to help another investor.
Kevin Smith
Forward Assist Inspections
(713)858-1330
Texas Real Estate License #3234
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