Does your toilet or washing machine take a long time to fill up? Does your shower head trickle instead of gushing water? This could be caused by low water pressure. What brings about low water pressure? You first need to check whether this problem is only affecting one fixture or the whole house. Here are several fixes for low water pressure:

Shower head

If your shower head has low water pressure but the tub has no problem, your shower head might be clogged with hard water deposits. You can fix this problem easily by cleaning or replacing your shower head. Start by unscrewing the shower head and turning on the valve to flash out debris. If the pressure goes back to normal when the shower head is off, then it needs to be replaced.

Bathroom faucet

If your bathroom faucet has low water pressure, you need to check the aerator. To solve the problem, remove your aerator and test the faucet. If the faucet works while the aerator is off, you need to either replace or clean it. However, if it still does not work after cleaning or replacing, the problem could be the faucet itself. To determine the true cause of low pressure, turn off the water at the angle stops and detach the flex lines. Point these parts into a bucket, then test the pressure.

Toilet

If your toilets are slow filling, the problem can be solved by replacing the fixed valve. To confirm whether this is the origin of the problem, turn off the angle stop. You should also disconnect the upper part of the flex line and turn it on. If the pressure goes back to normal, clean or replace the fill valve.

Washing machine

If your washing machine is filling very slowly, clean the hard water deposits off the water supply hoses and screens. Cleaning the screens will improve water pressure significantly.

If you are looking for Sonoma County plumbing companies, try Gifford Anderson Plumbing Inc. This family-owned and operated company has been serving residents of Sonoma County faithfully. You can contact them at 707-527-6007.