How to Boost the Water Pressure in Your Home
Are you having low water pressure problems in your home? Have you tried everything to boost the water pressure? It is possible that there are a number of reasons why you are experiencing this problem, but here are two things that you may try to get the water pressure level in your home back to normal.
Pressure Testing
In many home plumbing systems, one of the most common cause of low water pressure is the pipes are clogged. If your pipes are fairly new, then go to the next possible cause, which would be your shutoff valves; make sure that they are completely in the open position. You wouldn’t want to pay a licensed plumber just to turn on your shutoff valve right?
As long as your problem is with low water pressure, then another obvious step is to check the water pressure coming into your home. Ideally, you would want it to be anywhere between 45 to 55 psi. You would need to get a water pressure gauge from your local home center. You have to hook this to a water spigot outside and turn the water on. This will give you an instant pressure reading.
If you get a low reading, meaning anything less than 40 psi, it would be highly unlikely that you can convince the city to increase the water pressure in your home. Take note as well if the water pressure is too high. Keep in mind that anything over 80 psi will have an effect of wearing out the washers of your plumbing fixtures. This also wastes water as well as energy because it would require more to heat the water. As a result, even water heaters, water softeners, and faucets may be damaged.
However, if the water pressure reading is within the ideal range, then the possibility is that the obstructions in your plumbing pipes are causing the low water pressure. The services of a licensed plumber will help you to verify the actual source of the low water pressure.
Pressure Booster
When the water pressure from the supply falls below what is adequate, one of the best solutions is to install a water pressure booster in your home plumbing system.
You need to have at least a ¾-inch plastic or copper pipe water main that comes into your home. What this does is it uses an electric pump and pressure tank to increase the pressure coming from the street. The pressure booster is equipped with a dial on top to adjust the pressure to the ideal setting.
The tank is used to hold a reserve of pressurized water to allow the pump to run only when it is necessary. This also boosts the flow when the water demand in your home is high like when there are multiple users simultaneously.
Pressure Reducing Valves
When the pressure test reading is lower than 40 psi you need to check if you have a pressure reducing valve installed on your water main. Try to adjust it by turning the screw on top to increase or decrease the pressure. The factory default setting is usually 50 psi.
These types of valves are designed to last anywhere from 10 to 20 years and can either increase or decrease the pressure. The older the valve is, the less efficient it is so you may need to replace it. You can do the installation yourself or have it professionally installed.
After checking all of these possibilities and you still fail to boost the water pressure in your home, then you would need to call Scott English Plumbing so they can inspect your home plumbing system for problems.