Clear access to plumbing areas, make a list of anything you have noticed, and locate your main shutoff if you can. Everything else is ours to handle — but those three things make the visit faster and more useful.
Clear Access To
- Under sinks — kitchen, bathrooms, and utility. These cabinets accumulate storage and it all has to come out.
- The water heater, including working clearance around it.
- The main shutoff valve and the water meter.
- Crawlspace or basement access, and the attic hatch if pipes run up there.
- Exterior hose bibs and the sewer cleanout if you know where it is.
- Floor drains in garages, laundry rooms, and utility spaces.
- Laundry connections behind the washer.
Make a List
This is genuinely useful. Note anything you have noticed even if it seems minor:
- Slow drains and which fixtures
- Unusual noises — banging, whistling, gurgling — and when they happen
- Low pressure at specific fixtures or throughout
- Water bill increases you cannot explain
- Damp spots, stains, or musty smells
- Toilets that run or need repeat plunging
- The age of the water heater and any past plumbing work
Intermittent problems are the hardest to diagnose on a scheduled visit, so your observations often matter more than what the technician can reproduce in an hour.
Two Optional Things Worth Doing
Run the meter test. Shut off every fixture, then watch the water meter’s low-flow indicator for fifteen minutes. Movement means a leak somewhere — useful information to hand a technician.
Find your main shutoff and confirm it turns. If it is seized, that is worth knowing and worth fixing regardless of what else the inspection finds.
Practical Notes
Secure pets, and plan for a technician moving between rooms and possibly the attic or crawlspace. Water will be shut off briefly at points during the visit.
Contact B. Carlson to schedule a plumbing inspection in Albuquerque.
