Areas we cover

A homeowner calling about low water pressure is describing one of at least four unrelated problems, and the region narrows it immediately. In a 1950s Arlington house it is almost certainly galvanised supply pipe that has closed up internally with rust. In a 1990s Loudoun subdivision it is much more likely a pressure reducing valve at end of life. On a Shenandoah Valley farm it is usually a waterlogged pressure tank on a private well. In coastal Chesapeake it might be a slab leak bleeding volume under the floor.

The same is true of nearly every other call. Recurring drain blockages mean root intrusion in clay laterals in pre-war Richmond, grease in a restaurant line anywhere, and a failing drain field on a rural septic property. Water on a floor means a burst supply line in the mountains in January and a high water table in Norfolk in October.

That is why these pages exist. Each region page sets out the housing stock, the water supply, the soil and the freeze exposure that actually drive plumbing failures there, and each community page narrows it further.