The last thing you want to do is return home to find your home soaked with water. Carpets ruined, walls wet, and expensive repairs needed. This is what can happen if you let your pipes get to a disastrous state.

Luckily, there are signs and symptoms you can look out for to determine if you might have broken pipes or pipes that are in need of maintenance. Not all busted pipes burst right away, and there may be time to fix the situation before matters get worse.

What signs should you look out for to see if your pipes are in trouble? Read on and we’ll walk you through what you need to know.

1. Your Water Bill is Very High

It’s already frustrating when you get a high water bill. But has the bill you’ve received recently been high out of proportion of what you’re used to? That might be a big indication that there is an issue with your home’s plumbing.

There are some other more practical reasons why a water bill might be high, but if your numbers are through the roof it’s definitely worth contacting a professional to check the situation out.

Failure to properly inspect your pipes will mean your bill will keep at these high numbers, and you might have a bigger problem on your hands soon.

2. Unpleasant Odors

The bathroom is never necessarily a place for great smells, but you should still be able to pick out nasty odors that seem out of the ordinary. If you smell sewage near your sinks and toilets, this is a huge telltale sign that you might have a problem with your piping.

If you’re smelling these bad smells on the lowest levels of your home, it’s all the more reason to suspect that something is amiss. What might be the cause?

Clogged or broken pipes underneath your home may be causing sewage to leak out. This build-up of sewage isn’t just a problem because of the bad smell: the backup it creates can very literally put enough pressure on your system to cause further leaks.

3. Damp Walls and Carpet

Have you noticed wet spots in locations around your home? It might be a puddle underneath your sink or in your basement, or it could wet spots on your ceilings or against the drywall. These wet spots are trying to tell you something. They likely you mean you have a pipe that is damaged and leaking.

This can be a serious problem because the leaks could be causing damage to other elements of your home. If you’ve noticed puddles or damp areas, it’s important to call a professional to resolve the issue as soon as humanly possible.

Doing so can minimize the amount of damage to carpets, walls, and other materials in your home and help save you money in the long run.

If you have damp sections of flooring or your floor feels warm in spots you may have a slab leak.

4. You Can Hear Water Moving

When there’s no running water in your home, you shouldn’t be hearing water. If that’s not the case at your home, you might have a problem on your hands. If you can hear hissing, gurgling, or rushing sounds in your walls, that might mean there’s an issue with the water pressure.

These kinds of problems often mean there’s a broken or leaky pipe somewhere in your system. See if you can isolate the source of the sound and get the problem repaired before the issue becomes worse.

In addition to the sound of rushing water, you might also hear frequent clanking, clanging, and grinding in your walls. This might be an indication that the pipes are loose, and are bumping into one another.

This kind of friction can easily create leaks or even cause a pipe to burst. Using your eyes and ears to catch a problem before it occurs can be essential to your financial well-being.

5. Lessened Water Pressure or Quality

Have you taken a shower recently and found that the water pressure in your home just doesn’t seem to be what it used to be? This can actually be a major cause for concern.

Often, what a shower head or faucet doesn’t produce water at the same rate, it means there’s some sort of leak or blockage somewhere in the piping. The moment you feel as if your water pressure has diminished, it’s worth getting someone on the phone who can look into the problem.

What if the pressure is fine, but the look of the water has changed? If the water from your shower or faucets has taken on a brown tint or become foggy? That’s a huge red flag. It likely means contaminants have entered the pipes.

In this situation, it isn’t only your pipes that are at risk, but the general health of the home’s residents as well.

6. Mold Is Growing

One of the more visually obvious signs of a broken pipe is the new presence of mold within your home. If you notice mold growing on ceilings, in your basement, or elsewhere around your home, your pipes might be to blame.

Mold requires a damp and moist environment to grow, so the mold may be a telltale sign that behind that area a pipe has been leaking. If you notice mold and that previously mentioned sewer odor together, it’s an indication that you have an issue.

Signs That You Have Broken Pipes at Home

If the above telltale signs have reared their head in your home or apartment, it might mean you have broken pipes on your hands. It’s important to seek help as soon as possible.

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