9 Mistakes That Cause Drain Blockage in Construction - 2024

9 Common Mistakes During Construction That Cause Drain Blockage

A major home improvement problem when creating a new home is the blockage of drains. A lot of homeowners or builders ignore this element of building a house. This is why the blockage of drains is likely to develop within a couple of months of the installation.

Problems with plumbing or drainage are dangerous and can raise your monthly maintenance costs. Obstructed pipes also make routine household chores like washing or bathing, cleaning, etc., a nightmare.

If you're trying to avoid these issues in your house, check out this article. We'll share the top nine errors that can cause drain blockage when building.

Drain Blockage

After your home is completed, tackling the issue of drainage blockages will be more complex than at the beginning of construction. Drain blockages begin as slow drains. Therefore, the problem should be tackled early before it becomes more serious.

In the absence of resolving the blockage symptoms in the early stages or before the time your house is constructed, it will cost you far more than you expected. We'll discuss the top nine blunders you need to be aware of regarding the blockage of your drain:

1. Undersized Pipes

If you're planning to renovate a home, you're unlikely to focus on the plumbing. If you're building from the start, be aware that plumbing pipes that aren't properly sized are one of the most common causes of blockage in drains.

The most common dimension for pipes used in the home is 4 inches, and plumbers do not consider this when they work. They may use smaller pipes or those with less smooth surfaces that hinder drainage.

This is why you should always choose the standard-size plumbing pipes or purchase more than the standard size in the building of your new house.

2. Natural Clogs

It is important to be cautious when purchasing an older or renovated property, as it could contain blocked pipes. This may not seem like an issue at first, but in the future, it could lead to a variety of drain blockages.

Look around the backyard or front of the home and determine whether any older trees have sturdy roots. The trees usually form roots in the earth, eventually growing into the bathroom or sewer pipes.

In the end, you'll encounter slow drains or flushing risks.

3. Cheap Materials

Pipes for sewers or plumbing constructed of inferior materials may be damaged or clog quickly, which can lead to drain blockage. Make sure that the pipe materials are of the required quality and functioning properly prior to purchasing a home.

If you're building an addition to your house, purchase suitable pipes. When you build your new home, you should be aware of the importance of your drainage options and be able to buy the appropriate materials.

Generally speaking, copper pipes are superior to other pipes because they ensure durability and long-term endurance. Copper pipes are corrosion-free, allowing hot and cold water to flow easily. They aren't easily broken down and keep your home's water flowing and your disposal running smoothly for an extended period.

4. Improper Installation

Sometimes, even with the highest-quality pipes available on the market, your drain will block. The main reason for this is poor installation.

If the plumbing was done randomly and in a hurry, the pipes wouldn't be secured, and the drainage process would cease. This could let dust, dirt, and so on pass through the damaged pipes while preventing every kind of damage, small and large.

You'll also notice water clogging up your kitchen or bathroom sink tub, toilet pipe, and more. To avoid this issue, check with your mechanic or plumber to ensure they have installed the pipes using appropriate bolts and nuts and the correct torque.

5. Debris from the Construction Site

It is very likely that debris from the construction site will end up in your sewers and pipes, rendering them useless later. Bits of mortar, bricks, and pebbles can pass through the pipe during the installation.

This issue usually needs to be noticed by the mechanic and his colleagues. In a short period of time, this causes pipes to become blocked because of the flow of oil, grease, food substances, and so on.

6. Faucets Leaking Water

When you purchase a new house, the faucets are likely to malfunction and leak water immediately when you enter the home. Poor-quality faucet components could cause leaky issues, the expiration of a warranty, and so on.

If you want something other than your bill to increase in the next few months, you must take charge of your home's entire collection of faucets.

Start counting the faucets within your home, including the bathroom, kitchen and roof. If you own one, looking at the garden hose for leaks is also essential.

After identifying the faucets, replace them with new ones and fix the leaks before moving into the home. Even if you lease your house to someone who is not your family, it will put tenants at risk of various dangers to their utilities. Naturally, you'll need to take care of the cost incurred by these emergencies.

7. Problem with Water Heater

One of the plumbing or drainage issues you might encounter when moving to a new residence is the water heater issue. A water heater may be able to show indicators of a problem when it's an older machine or has experienced some issue because of external causes.

Causes.

One of the most common indicators of a water heater issue is the need to heat your running water to an increased temperature to meet your household's demands. This is not just a cost of more utility bills. However, too high a pressure in the heater will cause it to decrease in speed.

The heater's problems could be caused by dust or other debris entering from the outside, or there may be a malfunctioning internal thermostat.

Try relighting the pilot light to check whether the heater is fully operational. If it is not, contact a well-qualified plumber to have it repaired as soon as possible.

8. Wrong Slope Measurement

During construction, you must be cautious about aligning the slope to its correct dimension. A slope that isn't aligned properly could block the drain when you're putting together your home's water source in the future.

A proper slope lets the water flow smoothly without obstruction, reducing the chance of blocked plumbing and drains. The most common measure is 1/8 inch for each foot, but it could be higher depending on the design and surface of the home.

In particular, you should consider the requirements for roof drainage before creating drainage and roof gutter systems. This will prevent the roof from flooding.

The slope should be an ergonomic part of your building, making waste and water disposal effortless.

9. Not Hiring a Plumber

Many homeowners today are attempting to do their construction work, and plumbing is one of the most common. While cleaning a drain or garden hose on your own is okay, plumbing the new house is a complex job requiring long-term knowledge and talent.

If you attempt to do this task independently without the required knowledge, the process could go wrong, and then you will incur many dollars for fixing any flaws or obstructions in the drain pipes, sewer, and pipe.

Call an experienced, local, competent plumber who is trustworthy and satisfied to provide you with affordable plumbing installation and post-installation services.

Signs of Drain Blockage

In the beginning, detecting a blockage in the drain will help you avoid spending more money on repairs than you'll need to. Let's look for signs that your home is suffering from a blocked pipeline or drainage obstacle;

• You'll hear loud gurgling sounds in pipes when you're together with the kitchen faucet or toilet flushes, garden hoses, etc.

• Small pools of water may form in the bathtub, sink toilet, or gutter.

• Your water utility may not be working correctly, and there may be low pressure in the toilet flushes, faucets, etc.

• You'll get the smell of the drain, the gutter, or the drain, and the accumulation of wad inside the drains, sinks, or gutters.

• It is not possible to be allowed to utilize diverse outlets for water at the same time. The water pressure will be low at one outlet while another operates. There may be an accumulation of water inside the basement.

• The bubbles in the toilet could signal a problem in the sewer.

• There could be instances when you take a bath and end up standing in a watery pool because the water flowing through the shower isn't draining correctly.

• When you've seen the symptoms of water clogging or blockages to drains in your home, now is the time to take the necessary steps, such as cleaning or fixing the kitchen plumbing, having the plumbing examined and repaired by a plumbing professional or a technician, etc.

In addition, you should make sure you are not flushing any hard materials in the kitchen, bathroom sink, or toilet. Disposing celery bones, vegetable or fruit peels, or other food items into the drain or toilet will result in jammed drainage or plumbing systems.

Conclusion

Many homeowners find repairing or replacing water or sewer pipes challenging because the materials and services are expensive.

If you take your time, you could keep your home free of problems caused by blocked toilet pipes or a flooded basement.

Many construction errors can be easily rectified early to avoid drainage blockage if you know where to find them and how to deal with them.