It seems that plumbing problems often occur right after a new house is purchased. You’ll find them in the bathroom, kitchen, or basement, but hopefully not in the walls! At some time, everyone who owns a home will have some type of problem with the plumbing. The following advice will assist you, should this situation arise.
To prevent your frozen pipes from bursting, leave the nearest faucet on to give the water a way to escape. Doing so provides pressure relief, and might spare you the damage of a burst pipe.
Knowing what tools are what and the proper way to use them will make you much better at plumbing. Read every manual, and use the Internet and library to research the projects that you plan on doing. Make sure you plan before you try any kind of repair, as it can be costly to fix a mistake.
Don’t use harsh chemicals such as toilet tablets in your toilet. These things may help improve smells, but they can damage the rubber components of a toiler, which can cause it to function improperly or even worse, completely break down.
If your garbage disposal is giving you problems, never stick your hand in it to fix it yourself. Even when in the off position, garbage disposals are dangerous. Go online and search for sketch of your disposal, or a troubleshooter.
If your home uses well water and orange or pink stains become noticeable in your bathtub or in other fixtures, this occurs when the water has too much iron. Water softener can help this problem, and you can buy that at a store. Alternatively, you can hire someone to handle it.
Garbage Disposal
To make sure your garbage disposal last a long time, clean it regularly. By regularly “cleaning” the disposal with lemon rinds, cherry pits and dish soap, you can make sure that your garbage disposal is running well and smelling so clean it could be new.
Whenever you have plumbing work that needs to be done, you should schedule all problems at one time. It might be tempting to call up a plumber every time you have a small problem, but if you will save all the plumbing issues for one time, it can be helpful. It will allow you save the money for the repairs. Most plumbers charge an hourly fee that can be minimized if there is only one visit to your home.
Use cold water when using your garbage disposal. Using cold water not only preserves the sharpness of the blades, but also makes the disposal process itself smoother. Hot water can clog your drain by allowing liquid grease to build up in it.
While you may not always have your choice of plumbers, you can use the Internet to research and review plumbers in your area. You can use customer feedback to prepare for the plumber that the insurance company has assigned you.
If you start to have sewage backup inside your toilet, it is because of blockage that is inside the branch line which connects the sewage line and the main line. When your personal efforts can’t deal with such a clog, your only option is to have the line snaked out by a professional plumber.
The Department of Consumer Affairs is a great place to check if you need a plumbing contractor. These departments offer current information on licensing status and open complaints cases. If they don’t have a current license, you don’t want them working for you.
Drain Cleaner
Read the labels and choose a chemical drain cleaner with care. Sometimes they have very harsh chemical agents that damage your pipes. Choose a drain cleaner that is well-known and whose label says it will not harm pipes. Some chemicals will kill the bacteria your plumbing system needs to function properly and could even be harmful to humans.
If you are putting in a water heater make sure that the pipe that is connected to the drainage pipe is reconnected. Pipes towards the bottom of the water heater are generally re-circulation pipes, which assist in keeping your water hot efficiently, with minimal waste.
Bananas, chicken skin and other food particles can become trapped in the blades of the disposal and block the drain. Dispose of these items in the trash before you put foods in the garbage disposal.
To save both time and money, group all your plumbing fixes to be done at one time. Before you schedule an appointment with a plumber, go through your system and write down everything that needs work. This way, there’s only one charge for the service, instead of the plumber needing to make multiple trips.
Flood Alarms
Some property owners are electing to install flood alarms as a part of their home plumbing system. A flood alarm will protect your property from water damage, much like a smoke detector will protect your house from fire. They operate on batteries, and when water touches the devices, it will sound an alarm. Flood alarms can protect your home from potential flooding or damage caused by water leaks.
Every person in your family should know exactly where your main water shut off valve is and how to turn it off. That will ensure that any time an emergency occurs it can be stopped in short order before real damage is done. Everyone will then know what to do in case of a plumbing emergency.
When you have a problem with the plumbing, the worst thing to do is not be prepared. Always keep some basic tools on hand, and try to have some idea of how your plumbing works, as well as what to do in the event of an emergency. The tips you learned here will assist you in dealing with whatever plumbing problems you encounter in the future.