What to do When Your Water Pressure is Low

Ever step into your shower and feel that the water pressure isn’t the same as it was the day before? If so, you probably weren’t just imagining it – your water pressure can change, and for a number of reasons.

Possible Reasons Why You Have Low Water Pressure

  1. Your pipes are old. If your home still has the original piping from when it was first built, they may be rusty and corroded, which can result in a blockage that impacts water pressure.

  2. Your pipes aren’t the right size. If, in fact, your pipes are on the older side, they could be larger than the more modern piping that would be installed today. That said, their size could be impacting how little or how much water you’re getting when you turn it on.

  3. There are localized clogs. Even if your pipes aren’t old, you could still have a clog that is preventing the water from flowing as per usual – especially in sink and shower faucets.

When you experience low water pressure in your home, your first step should be to determine where you’re having a problem – is the water pressure only low in one bathroom? Is it just the faucets? Or, is it your entire house that’s struggling? Once you’ve pinpointed the exact area(s) that’s causing trouble, step two would be to figure out what time of day this is happening. For example, if it’s early morning or late evening (two of the more popular times that people in your home are using water), it could simply be a result of overuse.

A few other things to check out are:

  1. Your shut-off valve’s position – you may see a reduction in water pressure if it isn’t fully opened.

  2. Your pressure reducing valve – you may find that by adjusting this, your home’s water pressure changes.

Even if you’re able to solve your water pressure problem on your own, don’t forget how valuable it can be to have a professional plumber give your system one final look. For those of you in Orange County, California, give us a call at 714.630.8766 – we can make sure your water pressure problem has been taken care of the right way and complete any other necessary steps to fix it!