Toilet Plumbing - Solve Your Problems Without Any Hassle

Toilet Plumbing - Solve Your Problems without any Hassle

When it comes to maintenance and repair works in a home; toilets are one of the most ignored part. A dirty toilet can spoil your entire day and a fresh one is better any time. There are various problems with the toilets, but the major and most common issue is the plumbing failure or anything related to it. Knowing small tips about toilet plumbing at home would help you avoid the heavy bills of the plumbers.  

Know the system and parts?

So, before we get into knowing how a toilet works and how to solve minor issues related to the same; we would know the system and parts so that we don’t get mixed up the next time we go to solve the toilet plumbing problem.

Your toilet, rather, any toilet comprises of three major plumbing lines that are meant for three different uses and serve different purposes.

1. The very first and the most important line is the water supply connection pipe. This pipe is the most important and the simplest of mechanisms that is involved. This pipe is generally made up of copper and the thickness is nearly about ½ inches. This pipe terminates at the shut-off valve under the tank.  Sometimes, this pipe undergoes a problem of being a leaking pipe, which can be mended by applying any sealing agent.

2. The next most important part is the waste pipe. This generally carries the entire waste and is of PVC pipe, the width of the pipe is around 3-4 inches. To identify this pipe we can look for the connecting points. This type of pipes generally terminates in the sewerage line and connects to the toilet by means of the closet flange. Any problem with this line can require a professional as this area is sensitive and cannot be repaired without expert help.

3. If you are planning to undertake the entire toilet plumbing at home one of the other most important part is the termination of waste into the outside waste pipe. This line is to be vented with the end of the waste pipe and terminated outside, this is a short pipeline and sometimes people even fail to identify it as a distinct part.

Finding solutions to some common problems

Toilet plumbing can be really messy at times. To avoid and recover this let’s find some solutions to some common and recurring problems.

1. Have you ever dropped something in the toilet? If you have, you know the pain of how to take it out. So the next time you get stuck trying to recover something, just take a vacuum cleaner to solve the problem. Suck the water into it and then you can easily pull out the things by venting into the drain as deep as possible. It the object is small and delicate you can use a better attachment.

2. If the faucet is dripping and it annoys you one thing you can do is, tie a string around the dripping faucet long enough to reach the drain and tie it there. This can solve the problem temporarily.

3. Apart from toilet plumbing in totality, there is a small tip which you can always follow that can help you to reduce water consumption and in turn save your money. Place a bottle in the corner of the toilet tank and this would solve the problem.

These are some of the toilet plumbing solutions which can help you solve majority of the problems. These will help you solve the problems without any hassle or extra headache.

Guest Contributor, Emma Smith

Home Plumbing System: Maintenance Considerations

Home Plumbing System: Maintenance Considerations

Plumbing can be seen as the cardio-vascular system of your household. As long as it is properly maintained, everything should run smoothly, but a single problem, no matter how small, can lead to a cascade of disasters that will sabotage your home. When compared to all the bad scenarios (and there are plenty), maintenance sessions take only little time and they have an enormous impact on the state of your home. When it comes to your home plumbing system, here are some important maintenance considerations for your peace of mind.

Bathroom and Toilet

When it comes to home-plumbing systems, there are two zones in the household that are particularly sensitive to malfunctions – the kitchen and the bathroom and/or toilet. Faucet and shower leaks can appear to be minor issues at first – a few drops here and there – but they usually grow to present truly debilitating problems that lead to costly replacements. Be on the lookout for these seemingly innocuous first symptoms and act immediately.

There is a high chance a lot of your bathroom problems are caused by limescale, so either make your own DIY limescale removal solution or purchase a more potent one if the problem is drastic. Debris cleaning is something you can largely tackle yourself, but if clogs are persistent even though you’ve cleaned up what’s visible, it is high-time to call a professional to the rescue!

Toilets are especially tricky since most people tend to avoid a “hands on” approach to fixing problems because they are repulsed by them. Still, toilets tend to go runny after a few years of use (if you are lucky) which means maintenance is inevitable at a certain point in time. Running water in the toilet actually wastes incredible amounts of clean water over the span of a single month, which means your bills will not only skyrocket, but your ecological footprint is also becoming quite destructive. If the toilet begins to run, fixing it should be your number one priority.

Kitchen

Kitchen areas can be especially tricky for checkups as they are mostly over-cluttered zones where several aspects of a household’s infrastructure meet. In order to secure a thorough investigation of the kitchen, you need to find an experienced professional, like this plumber from Canberra, who can easily detect the hotspots and perform any required repairs. Just make sure you communicate everything you know about your plumbing system to your designated plumber so they can know how to engage.

For example, there are usually parts of the wall where piping diverges at a ninety-degree angle – this is an important thing to point out, especially if you know where these areas might be located. You should also do your own checkups from time-to-time. It doesn’t take too much skill to notice kitchen sink leaks or garbage disposal jams. If the problem is beyond something you can repair, you and the plumber will save precious time if you know exactly where the issue lies.

Homemade drain cleaners can stave off a lot of malfunctions and clogs, but they are not all-powerful. The elusive and dreaded “phantom leaks” can usually be noticed through inconsistent water pressure and the appearance of water in uncommon areas. This is a red flag that should prompt you to call the plumber immediately.

When it comes to home plumbing maintenance, you can easily compare what you need to do with visits to the doctor – in order to stay healthy, you need to pay your designated clinic a visit at regular intervals and stay consistent. The same goes for plumbing, only you have to find your “home doctor” in the form of a plumber who will maintain your system and do checkups at least twice a year. One of these sessions might actually reveal a problem that could have cost you quite a dime and a whole lot of nerves.

Guest Contributor, Lillian Connors

Home Maintenance List

Home Maintenance

Home ownership is one of the greatest feelings. Maintaining your home is another thing. You either like doing it or you don't. Only a handful of people genuinely enjoy it, the rest of the population looks at it as a chore. We understand why we need to maintain it. Your home is like a baby. If you take care of it and properly maintain it, it will grow up to make you proud. If you maintain your home things will last longer and when it’s time to sell it, you’ll hopefully get a good return on it. If you neglect it, everything starts falling a part and it will cost you more in the long run. Don't wait till the last minute to start taking care of things. Here’s a break down to make it easier on you:

Monthly

Replace HVAC filter

Flush toilets and run water in unused bathrooms

Clean garbage disposal

Clean kitchen drain

Quarterly

Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors- at the beginning of each season

Check your sump pump

Check your ejector pump

Semi Annual

Clean gutters 

Deep clean your house at least twice a year to get rid of things you don’t need

Annual

Schedule HVAC maintenance

Schedule Plumbing maintenance

Replace smoke detector and carbon monoxide batteries

Flush your water heater and remove sediment

This list should make it easier for you to maintain your home. Have your phone calendar remind you when to check certain things. Send yourself monthly notifications, this way you wont forget. If you have any questions regarding your home maintenance, don't hesitate to ask us. 

-Kevin Szabo Jr Plumbing

Yuck!!! What is that Smell?

Yuck!!! What is that Smell?

What are you putting down the drain?

My husband is a plumber, I know what I’m allowed to put down the drain and what doesn’t belong down the drain. Recently we redid our plumbing in our kitchen, so there is zero excuse for the sink to smell. I love to cook, with cooking comes a pile of dishes, pots and pans constantly getting washed in our kitchen sink. It doesn’t matter what you like to cook, everyone uses some sort of oil or butter for cooking. I personally love Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and I know for a fact that it needs to be disposed of properly (in a container or double bagged) and thrown in the garbage. But, there will always be residue left on plates, and on pots and pans. If you’re not putting oil down your sink drain, why does it still smell? Because of all the residue left on your plates, pots and pans, you are going to get a nasty smell coming from your sink drain.

How do we stop the sink drain from smelling? You should always run cold water down your drain. Every couple of weeks or once a month, depending on how much you use your sink, you need to clean your sink drain with baking soda and vinegar. Another reason your sink drain might smell could be caused by having incorrectly installed waste lines, causing your P-Trap to not hold water to prevent sewer gasses from exiting. Finally, it could be a clogged-up vent pipe. For your kitchen sink to work the way it should, you need your drains and vents to work correctly. If you have maintain your sink drain and it still has a bad smell, contact a plumber. They will check your waste lines and vent pipes.

If you keep your sink drain clean and clear, and properly maintained, there shouldn’t be any reason for your kitchen sink drain to smell bad. 

What Doesn’t Belong Down the Drain:

·       Oil

·       Butter

·       Bones

·       Peels

·       Vegetables

·       Fruits

·       Seeds

·       Plastic

·       Metal

·       Glass

What Belongs Down the Drain:

·       Water

·       Dirty Water

·       Dirty Soapy Water

·       …..that’s it!!!!

How to Maintain a Good Smelling Sink?

Vinegar, Baking Soda and Lemon Juice. ½ cup of vinegar, ½ a cup of baking soda. Pour it down the drain, let it sit for 30 minutes. After squeeze 1 lemon down the drain, let it sit there for another 30 minutes. Followed by cold running water to wash everything down. Your drain will smell great.

Garbage Disposal:

Vinegar & Baking Soda, ½ cup of vinegar and ½ cup of baking soda down garbage disposal. Let it sit there for 30 minutes, then flush out with cold water. Follow it with fresh squeezed lemon juice and ice, turn on garbage disposal.

Freeze lemon wedges in ice cube trays, place ice cubes down garbage disposal every couple of weeks if you regularly use garbage disposal.

Now you should have a GREAT smelling kitchen sink. If you need help or would love to have one of our plumbers check out your kitchen sink drain, give us a call. We are always happy to help you.

-Kevin Szabo Jr Plumbing Team

708-845-7922

Proper Ways To Maintain Your Sinks

Proper Ways to Maintain Your Sinks

All of us have experienced the inconvenience of having a blocked drain or sink and most of us have had to deal with flooded kitchens and/or bathrooms. Sometimes accidents happen even if you don’t do anything wrong, but in most cases, they can be prevented by proper maintenance.

If we know why and how our drains become blocked, we can adjust our actions to prevent that from happening in the first place. Not only will we be able to avoid damage, but we’ll also save the money we would otherwise have to spend on a plumber.

Common Causes

All the sticky substances that we use every day, such as toothpaste, shaving cream or gel, gradually block the drains in our bathrooms. A similar problem is also present in the kitchen, but the causes are grease and oil, which slowly solidify and build up, thus creating a big problem.

What Can You Do About It?

As a matter of fact, there’s quite a lot you can do to prevent such problems. For example, if you have to deal with slow and blocked bathroom drains and sinks, you might want to try pouring one tablespoon of kitchen salt into the drain, after which you need to pour a quarter of a cup of white vinegar. Wait for at least one hour before you use hot water to flush the loosened substances. If you believe you haven’t completely solved the problem, repeat the whole process.

Keep Your Sinks Well-Maintained

If you want your sinks to work flawlessly, make sure you pour a little bleach every now and then into the sink and wait for an hour or two before running water down the drain. This will clear the drains of any hardened substances that might have blocked your drains. However, if even after you’ve done everything you could, you still see that the water is draining very slowly or not at all, you should immediately contact professionals, such as these Sydney-based blocked sink specialists.

Grease In Your Kitchen Sink

When dealing with grease that remained in your sink drain, you should try using a regular liquid dish detergent and lots of boiling water. First, you pour detergent generously and then pour boiling water, but gradually. The detergent should melt the grease deposits and the water should help them be flushed away down the drain. It often takes more than one attempt before you achieve the result you desire.

Hot Water Helps

Even letting hot water run helps your sinks and drains remain clear and clean. Let some very hot water run at least once a week in the kitchen and bathroom. It will help melt and flush away grease deposits before they build up and solidify so much that you need to use more aggressive methods or call an expert.

Cold Water Helps, Too

If you have a garbage disposal, you should run cold water down the drain, rather than hot, since the former will help the deposits solidify, which, in turn, means they will be broken up more easily.

As you can see, there are quite a few things that you can do to maintain your sinks properly and avoid flooding or having to call a plumber. Also, these tips are quite cheap and don’t require any particular skills, which means everyone can use them.

On the other hand, if you have tried everything you know, but the problem is still present, you need to contact a professional and ask for help, since the problem can only escalate and create more damage.

Guest Contributor, Lillian Connors

What Are The Various Services Provided By Commercial Plumber?

What are the Various Services Provided by Commercial Plumber?

Be it a business owner, a restaurant manager, or commercial complex developer; a leaky tap or a clogged pipe can spell disaster and even force one to shut shop for several days, till the issue is resolved. Precaution is better than cure! Why not opt for Commercial Plumbing services that can help alleviate such worries.

What are Commercial Plumbing services?

They are companies either networked or have a dedicated team of specialist plumbers. They provide planning consultancies, installations, as well as maintenance and repairing of pipes and plumbing fixtures for residential as well as commercial offices/ complexes, etc.

Commercial Service Company vs. Local Plumber

There are a number of reasons why to opt for a Commercial service provider for your plumbing needs:

• They are fully equipped with the right tools. Some tools are expensive, but make the job easier.

• They have specialist plumbers, according to the nature of the requirement. Not everyone knows everything. Face it, sometimes even your handyman plumber for 15 years may not have the expertise to deal with new plumbing problem.

• They are more organized, as they provide fixed or contractual quotations. Local Plumbers may start the service with a quote depending on the nature of the requirement.

• They can help plan plumbing layouts or repairs efficiently, while maintaining municipal codes. Local plumbers may not be aware of many municipal codes and make violations or take risks cutting down the bill.

• They have a fast response system to attend to emergencies. Individual plumbers may have long waiting times.

How to choose the right Commercial Plumbing Service Provider?

It is not just about getting the work done, but getting it done well. When it comes to such basic services required to keep your business up and running.  Keep these pointers in mind when looking for a suitable service provider:

• Look for yellow-page listings and online/offline review

Check for approvals and proper licensing of the company you may be considering. Companies with proper listing are bound to be more trustworthy and will do a good job.

• Look for establishments that have been around for a while

The credibility and trust in a company depends on the years of experience behind it. The reputation they have gained through years of satisfactory services. However, there may be a few exceptions of technologically advanced newcomers.

• Look for the Big names in the business

Though, they may be slightly more expensive, they offer a wide range of services like: Installation of water savers, waterproofing, laying pipelines for the sewage/plumbing system, replacing toilets, Repair and fixing of fixtures like shower heads, screens, faucets, etc.

• Look for convenience

There are many service providers, who are now available 24 X 7 and have a response window as small as 60 minutes to deal with emergencies.

• Look for One Point Contact

Choose a company that deals with varied supporting services such as, gas fitting, air-conditioning, boilers, Heating systems, fire-sprinklers, etc. Getting most of your work done under one roof removes the need to chase five different people for different aspects of plumbing requirements.

• Look for Support

Service providers that offer regular plumbing checks and maintenance contracts are always a good option. They help minimize losses at the times of emergencies. Some companies also provide advice on the types and brands of plumbing equipment to invest in to give better performance.

This may sound like a little too much for something as small as a plumbing job, but getting right Commercial Plumbing services is apt with the saying ‘A stitch in time saves nine!’

Guest Contributor, Amelie Lawrence