Plumbing Damage and Vandalism

Plumbing damage and vandalism

Plumbing damage or vandalism can be annoying and costly for homeowners. Here are some common causes of damage and vandalism to be aware of…..

I got a call late last night that prompted the topic for this month’s blog. A customer rang after getting home from a long day at work. They went to jump in the shower, only to find they had no hot water. The story goes that my client went outside to check the hot water system, hoping to find the pilot light had gone out.  Unfortunately it wasn’t a pilot light…. there was no hot water unit! Nothing! Empty wall! Gone! It had been stolen!

Now I must admit the first time a client rang saying there hot water unit had been stolen, I was completely shocked.  Who does that? But unfortunately, I am getting use to this, as it seems to happen semi-regularly.

So how do you avoid this happening to you? Admittedly, it is difficult. Try your best to make your home as thief-proof as possible.  For example,  invest in a good security system, secure your home so that access is not easy, make sure the house looks lived-in.

There is more than just stolen items…

In addition to stolen hot water units, another sinister cause of no hot water is: the gas meter being turned off! This is a really irritating one for homeowners. Especially if you call a plumber out, only to find that someone has turned off your gas meter. My advice… just check the meter before you call a plumber on this one.

Finally, the last item that I see damaged quite regularly is the front garden tap. I’ve lost count of the number of front stands and taps that I have replaced because it appears that someone has kicked and damaged them during the night.

Again a difficult one to prevent, but if it has happened a couple of times, I would normally suggesting moving the tap to somewhere closer to the house.  This might be alitle bit more expensive because you may need to move the waterline. However, if you live in an area where this is happening abit, it might be cheaper in the long run.

So there you have it! The unpopular and often frustrating plumbing vandalism.