It is time you know more knowledge on plumbing. You may have thought of doing it before now, but you just couldn’t find the time to do so. Read on into this article for sound advice that is worthy of your time should you have plumbing problems or projects in the future.
Septic Tank
You should have your septic tank pumped once every five years for best performance. This keeps the sediment from building in the tank, which can cause septic tank failure or backup into your house. Getting your septic tank drained occasionally may be expensive, but it’s dirt cheap compared to the cost of repairing a damaged septic system or the cleanup cost when raw sewage backs up into your home.
You should regularly check for water damage to your bathroom floor caused by your toilet in order to save money and further complications. Feel the floor around the toilet and check to see if the floor is soft, molded, chipping, etc. Straddle the toilet, so you can rock from one leg to another to determine whether there’s weakness in the floor. As with many problems, early detection can save you a lot of money.
To maintain your garbage disposal and avoid malfunction, you should regularly clean it. You can run lemon rinds and dish soap through your disposal to help keep it smelling fresh and operating in an efficient manner.
Overflow Holes
Ensure that the overflow holes in your sinks are not clogged. Overflow holes exist to act as a double check in case of an overfilling sink. That may seem unimportant – but it will become a problem if they are clogged. It’s easy to maintain your plumbing, in this regard. When you’re performing periodic checks, simply clear any overflow holes while checking for other potential problems.
When changing your shower head, replace it with one of good quality. There are some who think that low price is all that matters when buying fixtures for the bathroom. However, they are inexpensive for a reason, this being that they are cheaply made and tend to break a lot easier.
Make sure to clean your dryer’s lint trap. This not only prevents fires, but saves money. Be sure to check the trap for tears and rips, because this can cause bigger problems as it may mean that lint is escaping into your pipes.
Frozen pipes can cause some very expensive plumbing repair jobs. This problem is easily avoided. Pipes in crawlspaces or outside your home should be thoroughly insulated. When it gets colder, disconnect and drain the hoses and turn the outside faucet off. You can avoid future plumbing repairs by doing this, and therefore, saving you a lot of money.
Though you may have no option as to which plumber comes, you can research them at any rate. You can use customer feedback to prepare for the plumber that the insurance company has assigned you.
If you need to hire a plumber, make sure you check them out before you give them the job. Sometimes plumbers will not be very good at their job, and can even make problems worse than they are. Check out online reviews of various plumbing companies, or get recommendations from friends and family.
If your toilet has sewage back-up, then there is a block somewhere along the branch line that connects the sewage and main lines. If you have difficulty removing this blockage, call a company that has special equipment to clear the line, usually a plumber’s snake.
Be aware of the location of the main water shutoff valve on your property. The water meter should be located in its vicinity. Usually toilets, sinks and other fixtures have cut-off valves of their own. Show every family member where the valves are, and add markings showing how to turn them off in case of emergency.
Make sure that you check all of the connections after doing any work on a hot water heater, especially pipes that connect to the pipe used for drainage. The recirculation pipe helps hot water circulate through your plumbing system so that you won’t waste water while heating it.
Washing Machine
If your washing machine’s drain stack overflows, you should try to snake it with a typical pipe snake. Every now and then, lint and other tiny washing machine items can build within the pipe, which can cause it to back up or clog.
It is inadvisable to use drain openers containing harsh chemicals in order to open a clogged drain. Despite the effectiveness of these products in unclogging pipes, the ingredients within them are not friendly to skin contact. Wear a long-sleeved shirt and gloves if you have to use these chemicals.
If you start seeing wet spots or water drops on any walls, it is critical that you shut your main water supply down and get a plumber out as fast as possible. This is a sign there is something very wrong plumbing-wise. One result could be the growth of mildew and mold. A large leak could result in your house actually flooding.
If you have pipes made from copper, they can expand as hot water runs through them. When they do, they can rub against the pipe hangers, causing pipe damage. To keep this from happening, put some tape on the pipe before setting into the hanger.
Loose Tiles
Look at loose tiles to see if they’ve been damaged by water. These loose tiles might indicate that there is leaking somewhere in the pipes that should be addressed. Press lightly against the area where the loose tiles are and pay attention to any softness behind or underneath. Using your discernment when viewing the tiles, you can handle the problem more effectively.
Learning a bit about plumbing can be an invaluable tool to have in your possession. The knowledge you learn on it will make you an essential resource for your family and your friends, potentially saving you and them substantial amounts of money. Hopefully you have learned from these tips and will apply these the next time you need to.