Signs
Is your water pressure off?
Low and high pressure each leave marks you can see before you read a gauge.
- Low
A shower that thins when the washer starts
Two draws compete for a narrow supply: a low reading, a restricted line or a half-closed valve.
- Low
A toilet that takes minutes to refill
The fill valve is waiting on water: the main valve, a clogged strainer or a pipe narrowed by rust.
- Low
Sprinklers that barely reach
Irrigation shares the house line. A low quiet reading or an undersized line shows here first.
- High
Pipes that bang when a tap shuts
Water moving fast has to stop somewhere. High pressure makes the knock louder.
- High
A relief valve that drips
Heated water expands. With a closed system and high pressure, the valve is what is left to let it out.
- High
Hoses and cartridges that fail early
Washing-machine hoses and faucet cartridges are rated for the usual range. Above it they wear out sooner.
Do this first if a pipe is spraying
Shut the main valve before anything else. It is usually where the water line enters the house: a basement wall, a utility closet or a crawl space, often near the water heater.
- Turn the main valve clockwise until it stops.
- Open the lowest tap in the house to drain the line.
- If the water heater's relief valve is gushing hot water, keep clear of it and shut the cold supply to the heater.
- Photograph the damage, then call us when the office opens.
Read it yourself
Take your own reading in five steps
A gauge with a hose-bib thread is sold at hardware stores. Five minutes with it tells you more than a guess.
- 01
Step 1: Close everything
Shut every tap, stop the irrigation and the washer, and make sure no toilet is filling.
- 02
Step 2: Screw on the gauge
Thread it onto an outside hose bib and open the bib all the way.
- 03
Step 3: Read the quiet number
Wait for the needle to settle. This is the static pressure.
- 04
Step 4: Run a tap
Open a tap inside and read again. Note how far it falls.
- 05
Step 5: Read it late
Check once more late at night, when nobody has used water for hours. A number that has climbed means a failing valve.
Through the year
When pressure calls come in
Spring start-up
Irrigation comes on and hose bibs open after winter. Read the gauge before and after the first zone runs.
Mar-May
Peak demand
Street pressure dips on hot evenings when a whole neighborhood waters at once. Upper benches feel it most.
Jun-Aug
Heating season
Incoming water is colder and heaters work harder. Sediment and weak thermostats show up as lukewarm water.
Sep-Nov
Cold snaps
Heater failures peak and unheated crawl spaces freeze. Know where the main valve is before the first freeze.
Dec-Feb
Questions about pressure
Where is my main shutoff?
Usually where the water line enters the house: a basement wall, a utility closet or a crawl space, often near the water heater. In older houses it can also be in a box at the street.
Is a pressure-reducing valve the same as a regulator?
Yes. The names are used for the same valve, which sits on the main line and brings the street's pressure down to a set number.
Why does my relief valve drip after a new valve goes in?
A valve that holds pressure in can trap heated water with nowhere to go. An expansion tank gives it room, and we check one is there.
Is my house at risk for lead, galvanized or polybutylene pipe?
Houses built before 1986 may have lead solder at copper joints, and many from the 1940s to the 1960s have galvanized steel, which rusts shut from the inside. Polybutylene was used into the early 1990s. We say what we see at the visit; for lead, the EPA's guidance on testing your water is the place to start.
Take the guess out of it
We put a gauge on first and write the number on your work order.