Steering Column Repair: Steering Wheel Column, steering wheel, rack pinion

Question
My husband and I was picking our daughter up today and when I turned into the school the steering wheel was really tight and made a loud squeaking noise. He checked the fluid and seen that it was low, so we purchase more and he filled it up. On our way home it loosened up a little bit, but when we turned into our parking lot it tightened back up again and was making the noise. Could this possibly mean we need to get a new steering wheel column or unit?

Answer
Hi Rachel:
Sorry about your car.  No, it actually sounds like you have a power steering leak somewhere in the system.  that could be anything form a small rubber hose to a complete rack & pinion system, (but not a steering column).  The part(s) that are causing this problem are under the hood or under the car and you will need to have a mechanic check it to determine what has sprung a leak.  Once again, it may be as small as $25 or as large as $500, but no one can tell until they determine which part is leaking.
I hope this helps you
Doug