AFFORDABLE PLUMBING SERVICE IN Palm Bay, FL

What Are the Most Common Plumbing Issues in Palm Bay?

Clogs

Everyone who lives in Palm Bay knows about the climate extremes here year-round. Based on our hot, arid summers and occasional torrential rains, plumbing can easily go awry with any of these climate scenarios.

The issues aren’t always the result of climate, but they’re more commonly from the wrath of nature. The risk of flash flooding alone in Palm Bay is still very real, as is the threat of hurricanes.

All of this can clog drains in every major neighborhood, leading to an overwhelming problem for our plumbers to handle. Other times, it might be shower drain clogs from too much hair in the drain or soap scum buildup. Sink clogs can also be due to grease or soap scum buildup.

Limescale buildup in pipes due to hard water restricts proper flow and can even lead to greater problems like pipe bursts and flooding.

Leaks

Pipe leaks can be caused by poor installations, high water pressure, corrosion, and age, among others. As pipes age, they deteriorate. Coupled with the high chlorine content in Brevard County’s water, the process is hastened and may lead to pinhole leaks. Call us right away if you notice a spike in your water bill and you need help investigating the issue. Delaying this may worsen the situation, causing you to need water pipe replacement.

A water pipe replacement is the most complex plumbing issue of all and requires extra work. The first sign of this is always a small water leak, something residents should always check for in their homes. Just remember that Palm Bay’s local water utility (The City of Palm Bay Utilities) only repairs water pipe leaks on their side of the property line.

How Does the Water in Palm Bay Affect Your Plumbing?

All of Palm Bay’s water comes from groundwater obtained from 41 wells located throughout the city. The water here showed up to 16 possible contaminants in the latest water report, if all having low susceptibility levels to damaging anyone’s health.

This is good news, though contaminants can easily affect water quality, including how plumbing works. One of the biggest concerns is keeping water as soft as possible.

Dissolved materials create hard water, a problem that can easily lead to persistent drain clogs. Many of our plumbers encounter this in Palm Bay homes. It can even happen in a business bathroom or break room.

What causes it is the accumulation of calcium, magnesium, and iron, leading to a higher pH due to alkali being held in the water. Hard water can easily become worse for your pipes when it starts to interact with soap scum and other residential materials.

Hard water isn’t the only water issue our residents might experience. We know all too well about how hurricanes and flash foods can clog drains in mere hours, requiring extra work on the part of our plumbing team.

How Much Does Plumbing Usually Cost in Palm Bay?

Plumbing costs are based on more than a few factors. Every Palm Bay resident hopes they can get their plumbing fixed for as little as possible. Sometimes this can happen if the situation is simple enough. Other times, various complexities mean larger bills, but they’re always worth it when done as a preventative.

The average plumbing cost in Palm Bay is $337, with the lowest being only $82. On the high end, it could cost as much as $592, usually for pipe replacements or prolonged sewer line work.

However, plumbing installation costs average at $298, with $83 being the lowest and $604 being the highest.

These estimates include labor, material, equipment, and project costs plus cleanup fees.

Take a look at a few other things that could change the cost:

Extreme Weather

Many first-time residents of Palm Bay think living here means sunny and warm weather nearly 365 days a year. This isn’t always the case if you’ve paid attention to Florida weather. Hurricanes continue to hit this region every few years, with the most recent being Hurricane Dorian in 2019, when a state of emergency was called.

When hurricanes hit, our plumbing team goes into overdrive, fixing countless plumbing issues. Sewer clogs can go on for days, not including the potential for plumbing to stop working due to power outages.

Tornadoes are also just as prevalent as hurricanes. As catastrophic as hurricanes are, tornadoes can cause even more damage, leading to extra labor time to fix plumbing for residents.

Many of these scenarios are nightmares many of our plumbers never want to face. It’s inevitable once in a while, though, and usually inflates plumbing bills due to the time-consuming repair.

Broken Appliances or Fixtures

During inspections, our plumbing team can sometimes find additional issues that require more time to fix. This can also mean discovering another plumbing fixture needing repair or replacement.

Water heaters never last more than 10 years, so many of them often go out at a moment’s notice. Hauling that (and old water pipes) away can also mean more costs added to the bill, for the convenience of our plumbers taking the items to a recycling center.

Pipe Replacement

Residents here know when they need new water pipes based on the color of their water. It usually looks red when pipes are beyond their lifespan and completely rusted.

Despite this being one of the more costly plumbing repairs, it’s more than worth it when considering that newer copper piping can last 50 years. Other popular and quality types of piping include cheaper PVC or PEX pipes.

Can Better Plumbing Save You Money in Palm Bay?

Everyone should look at plumbing as a preventative form of repair, since anything replaced now may never need replacing again in a lifetime. Letting things go can easily bring the opposite scenario, where severe plumbing issues require lengthier and more expensive labor.

Taking time to invest in better plumbing now means never having to worry about disrupting the house while repairs are being done. No business owner wants that either, especially when it disrupts floor traffic or parking lots.

Yet, it’s still far too easy for many Palm Bay residents to ignore the most subtle plumbing problem. Even something like a small leak is sometimes ignored, later bringing disasters like house floods and dangerous mold or mildew.

We never want to see residents go through situations like this. It’s why we always promote the idea of plumbing prevention by doing inspections now to avoid costly repairs later.

Remember to always consider inspecting the plumbing if you live in an older home. With many old homes still in existence throughout Palm Bay, every resident wants to know whether their plumbing is properly upgraded.

When Should You Call the Water Utility Company in Palm Bay Vs Hire a Plumber?

Water utility pipelines can also easily leak, leading to occasional confusion on who should fix the issue. Our team often diagnoses these leaks for residents, but they’re sometimes found first by the homeowners. Many do this after discovering that the water pressure in their home is lower than normal.

A common test for this is to turn off the water in the house and check the water meter outside. If the water meter numbers keep turning after the water is off, it means a leak exists on the resident’s side of the property.

Should a resident call Palm Bay’s water utility when this happens? Utilities need to know when a leak is occurring, so they can take action. Regardless, they always say if a leak happens on the resident’s property, it’s the resident’s responsibility to pay for repair. Our expert plumbing team can get it done for residents without a long wait.

Palm Bay’s water utility uses smoke testing as a safer and more environmentally friendly test method to check for leaks in wastewater lines. Once they realize a resident is responsible for the leak on their property, it’s impossible to persuade the utility to pay the bill. Still, the utility might offer a bill credit to residents for taking the time to scope out the leak on their own.

When Do You Need Permits for Plumbing Service in Palm Bay?

One of the biggest questions our plumbing team gets is whether a resident needs a permit for us to work on plumbing in their home. In most places across the country, a permit is required to have any sort of plumbing work done in a residence or business.

Here, you’ll basically need a permit for any new construction and addition or alteration of existing plumbing.

The City of Palm Bay Building Department is the one-stop source for all permits related to plumbing. Palm Bay encourages residents to file for their plumbing permits electronically. Doing so is relatively simple, albeit having various requirements before a permit is granted.

Take a careful look at the requirements page on the building department’s website. One of the first things required for a permit is an Owner/Builder affidavit form if the contractor is the one filling out the form. Then a proof of ownership is required via a warranty deed or a county tax bill.

A drawing of the needed plumbing work is also required. When pipes are being replaced, the drawing has to show the type and size of the pipe being installed.

One copy of the recorded Notice of Commencement is also required if the project budget of the plumbing work exceeds $2,500. Keep in mind, additional documents may be needed by the building department.

To keep tabs on the status of a permit, the site makes it easy to check in periodically. Through this online portal, it’s also possible to schedule a plumbing inspection to save time from having to call by phone. Fees, of course, are also part of the permitting process. Some of them can become costly based on what’s being done, yet assures quality work.

A contractor can easily sign for it if the owner of the dwelling authorizes them to do so. Any permit applications for a business require the signature of the owner. And, remember, all signatures require a notary.

Each permit has to adhere to the Florida Plumbing Code, something to check carefully in case there are revisions.

Does this sound complicated? Give us a call so we can help you out with this.