Suspect a hidden leak driving up your bill? Here’s how to find a water leak before it causes damage.
Is only the shower weak? See low water pressure in the shower only.
Already have a good head and still want more? Removing the flow restrictor is the other lever.
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Quick answer: If water pressure is low, first test it with a gauge (aim for 45–60 psi). Common fixes: clean clogged aerators and shower heads, fully open the main shut-off, or adjust/replace the pressure-reducing valve (our PRV replacement by brand guide covers Watts, Zurn Wilkins and Cash Acme). For water quality, a filter solves taste, chlorine, and sediment.
Complete guide to home water pressure and quality, by a licensed plumber.
Step 1: Measure Your Pressure
Screw a water pressure gauge onto an outside spigot. Below ~40 psi is low; above ~70 is high and damages fixtures.
Step 2: Easy Fixes for Low Pressure
Most “low pressure” is a clogged aerator or shower head — clean or replace it. Check that the main shut-off and meter valve are fully open.
Step 3: Pressure-Reducing Valve
If the whole house is off, the PRV where the main enters may need adjusting or replacing. High pressure stresses every joint and appliance. On a private well, the pressure switch sets the house pressure; our 30/50 vs 40/60 pressure switch guide covers what the switch setting changes, our well tank size chart covers how much water each tank delivers, and our well pressure gauge picks cover the tank gauge that shows where the pump cuts in and out.
Step 4: Improve Water Quality
Add an under-sink filter for drinking water or a shower head filter for chlorine.
Step 5: Protect Against Leaks
A water leak detector near the heater, washer, and sinks catches leaks before they flood.
A normal daytime reading does not clear your pressure. Recording the overnight peak is how you find a spike that only happens when the water heater fires.
Related Water Guides
- Best High-Pressure Shower Heads in 2026 (Boost Weak Water Pressure)
- Best Under-Sink Water Filters in 2026 (Clean Drinking Water Without the Bottles)
- Best Water Leak Detectors for Homeowners in 2026 (Prevent Flood Damage)
- Best Shower Head Filters in 2026 (Remove Chlorine and Hard Water)
- Best Water Pressure Gauges for Homeowners in 2026
FAQ
What is normal home water pressure?
About 45–60 psi is ideal. Below 40 is low; above 70–80 psi should be reduced.
Why is my water pressure suddenly low?
Usually a clogged aerator or shower head, a partly-closed shut-off, or a failing pressure-reducing valve. Test with a gauge.
How can I increase my shower pressure?
Clean or replace the shower head (mineral buildup is the usual cause) and remove any flow restrictor if pressure is low.
Pressure and Flow Are Not the Same Thing
Worth getting straight before you start changing parts, because it decides what you should even be measuring. Pressure is push — psi, what your gauge reads with everything shut off. Flow is volume — gallons per minute, how much actually arrives. A house can have perfectly normal pressure at the hose bibb and still have a miserable shower, because the pressure is fine and something between the main and the shower head is choking the flow.
If the gauge reads in range and things still feel weak, you have a flow problem, and no amount of adjusting the pressure-reducing valve will fix it. For a Schedule 40 PVC line, such as an irrigation run, PVC pipe friction loss gives Charlotte Pipe’s chart figures for pressure lost per 100 feet at 5, 10 and 20 gpm; that chart is for Schedule 40 plastic pipe, not PEX or copper tubing.
Narrow It Down in Two Minutes
Three questions get you most of the way to the cause. Ask them before you buy anything:
| What you observe | Where to look first |
|---|---|
| One fixture only | That fixture: aerator, shower head, its cartridge, or its own shut-off valve under the sink. If it’s a kitchen faucet where the spout is weak but the sprayer runs strong, that’s a diverter, not pressure. |
| Whole house, came on suddenly | Main shut-off not fully open, a failing pressure-reducing valve, the meter or curb stop — or utility work in the street |
| Whole house, crept up over years | Corrosion or scale narrowing the pipe itself. Common in galvanized steel, and the reason a repipe sometimes beats more repairs |
| Hot water only | The water heater: sediment in the tank, a partly closed isolation valve on it, or scale in the outlet nipple |
That hot-only case catches people out, because the instinct is to blame the house. If the cold side is strong at the same fixture, the problem is downstream of the heater inlet and the rest of the plumbing is innocent.
When It Isn’t Your Plumbing at All
Before you spend money, ask a neighbor on the same street whether theirs changed too. If it did, it is the utility’s side and the fix is a phone call, not a plumber. Sudden neighborhood-wide changes usually mean main work, a hydrant being exercised, or a pressure-zone adjustment. It costs you one conversation to rule out the most expensive wrong turn on this list.
Related: how to clean a faucet aerator.
If the easy fixes did not help and the whole house is weak, the next step is a regulator, booster pump, or well-tank fix, see how to increase whole-house water pressure. Pump options are compared in our booster pump guide.
More Plumbing Repair Guides
- Fixing a Running Toilet
- Unclogging Any Drain
- Fixing a Dripping Faucet
- Emergency Pipe Repair
- Essential Plumbing Tools
Recommended Tools & Parts
Everything you need, on Amazon: water pressure gauge · Watts LF25AUB-Z3 pressure-reducing valve, 3/4 in. NPT (match your line size) · high-pressure shower head.