Evaluating A Home - Water Pipes
By Raynor James, Fri Dec 9th
When evaluating a home you are considering buying, it is easy toget caught up in the visual aspects of the home. Water pipes arejust one unseen area you remember to inspect.
Water Pipes - Drip, Drip, Drip
Alright, I'll admit right away water pipes are not exactly themost glamorous aspect of a home. In fact, water piping in mosthomes is more than adequate to keep you in hot showers while youlive there and take care of all your water needs. If there is aproblem with the interior water pipes, however, you are in for avery costly
and disruptive experience.
The main issue with water pipes on the interior of a home istheir location. It is easy to forget about them because they areprimarily hidden behind the walls of the house. While this isgood from a visual perspective, it quickly becomes a negative ifa pipe starts leaking or, god forbid, actually bursts inside awall. Leaks lead to rot and mold problems that can effect thehealth of you family. A burst pipe leads to flooding, newcarpets, rebuilt walls and large bills.
When evaluating the water pipes in a home, keep in mind thefollowing issues.
1. Copper - The best piping material for water pipes is copper.It will last forever and is resistant to hard deposit build upswhich can impact the amount of water flowing through the pipes.Copper pipes are also the sign of a quality construction effortas they tend to be more expensive than alternatives.
2. PVC - If you see PVC water pipes anywhere other than on thesprinkler system or from the main street line to the house, redflags should wave before your eyes. The presence of PVC pipingis an indication of an owner doing the piping themselves, asmost construction companies will not use PVC. In a majority oflocations, such use of PVC is outright illegal. Do not buy ahome with PVC piping in the walls! Ever!
3. Iron Piping - For a long time, iron piping was pretty muchthe standard in home construction. There is nothing particularlywrong with using such piping with one exception. Iron piping issusceptible to water and will rust over time. If you find thisgrey, metal piping in the home, find out when it was put in andcheck for rust. Iron piping should last roughly 30 years withoutany major problems. If replacements must be made, go withcopper.
The pipes moving water around the interior of a home may seemuninteresting. Your attitude, however, will change if one ofthem bursts in the middle of the night.
About the author:Raynor James is with the FSBO site - http://www.fsboamerica.org- FSBO homes For Sale By Owner. Visit our home buying page -http://www.fsboamerica.org/buyer.cfm - to view and buy homes,houses, condos, land and real estate.
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