Emergencies
A burst pipe or a flooding basement. The first five minutes decide how bad it gets.
Plumbing tips for Wyckoff, NJ homes
Wyckoff's colonials, ranches and splits sit on large lots in rolling country, with a few houses still on their own wells. Here is what plumbing looks like here, and how to find a licensed plumber.
Wyckoff is a township in the hills of northwest Bergen, built out from farmland mostly between the 1950s and the 1980s, with large colonials on the later streets, ranches and splits on the earlier ones, and older farmhouses and a small village center from before. Lots are large by county standards, the ground rolls, and the plumbing is a mix of suburban standard and country holdovers.
What the houses have
- Copper supply pipe almost everywhere, in good condition, with pinholes where the water is aggressive or the original joints were poorly made.
- Cast iron drains in the 1950s and 1960s houses, at the age of failure along the horizontal runs, and plastic in the later ones.
- Softeners. The water is hard enough across much of the township that softeners are common, and each needs salt and an annual look.
- Long supply runs in the big colonials, so the far bathroom waits a minute for hot water. A recirculation loop or a small point-of-use heater fixes it.
- Several heating zones, hot water baseboard or radiant, that fail one at a time. Air in the loop is the usual cause of a cold zone.
- Wells and septic on a minority of houses, mostly the older ones on the larger lots. Test the well yearly and pump the tank every two to three years.
The ground
Rolling land drains well on the slopes and poorly in the hollows. Houses in the low spots have wet basements in the spring and rely on sump pumps; the discharge should run well away from the house and never into the septic system. Rock close to the surface on some lots means laterals laid in cut trenches, which settle and offset.
Winter
Wyckoff is high enough to be colder than the towns along the river, and the big houses have pipe in garages, crawl spaces and above unheated porches. Insulate those runs and drain the hose bibs.
Water and sewer
Most of the township has public water, hard, from a regional supplier with its own wells, and public sewer. Outside the served areas, wells and septic.
When you need a professional
Plumbers in Wyckoff work under a New Jersey master plumber license, which is verifiable online. The Find a plumber page opens a search near Wyckoff and explains the check. For well and septic work, ask whether the plumber does it directly.
Plumbing topics for Wyckoff
Clogs and drains
Kitchen sinks, tubs, toilets and the old sewer lines under many Bergen County streets.
Hot water
Looking after a water heater, and knowing when it has reached the end.
Steam and hot water heat
Older Bergen County houses often have radiators. They are simple systems once you understand them.
Kitchen and bath fixes
The small repairs that save a service call, with honest notes on how hard each one is.
Upkeep and hiring
Seasonal checks, and how to hire a plumber in New Jersey without regretting it.
Common questions
My Wyckoff house has a water softener. Does it need anything from me?
Salt, and an occasional check. Keep the brine tank about half full, break up any crust that forms, and clean the tank once a year. If the water turns hard again with salt in the tank, the softener is not regenerating and needs service. A softener should not be plumbed to the outside hose bibs or, ideally, to the kitchen cold tap.
There is a smell of sewage in the yard after a heavy rain. What is it?
If the house is on septic, the leach field is saturated and the tank is surcharging; that is a field problem and needs a septic contractor. If the house is on sewer, the smell is more likely from a lateral that is cracked and admitting ground water, which pushes sewage out somewhere else. A camera inspection tells the difference.
Need a professional?
When it is more than a quick fix, search for plumbers near your town and verify the New Jersey license in a minute.