Chances are, you probably don’t think about the drains and the pipes that run through your home all that often. That’s okay, we wouldn’t really expect you to.
But it’s important to be aware that if your drains aren’t kept in good shape, it can cause a number of problems for you in the long run. It’s important to know when to call a professional for drain cleaning services, to keep your drains as healthy as possible.
And before you ask, no, that bottle of chemical drain cleaner you got at the store is not a good solution. While it can dissolve some types of clogs, it doesn’t leave your system entirely, and can cause further clogs. Plus, the chemicals used in these “solutions” are caustic and can actually cause corrosion.
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When you imagine all the things that might go wrong with a plumbing system, hard water is probably not one o your concerns, right? After all, things like a clogged toilet, a leaky faucet, or a burst pipe—those things are emergencies… “hard water” doesn’t even make a “top 10” list of worst plumbing problems to have.
When homeowners are on the search for the best ways to care for their homes, they typically are on the lookout for DIY tips. This makes sense–oftentimes DIY solutions to just about any home improvement or home care project are going to be more affordable. But when you’re looking at “what’s most affordable” are you just considering the upfront costs, or are you considering the long-term costs?
At the end of a hot day or at the end of a heavy workout, a cool shower sounds great, right? What doesn’t sound so great is being surprised by cool or even icy water hitting you in the shower when you were trying to take a hot one! This is clearly a sign that something is amiss with your water heater, and while it may be a repairable problem, there’s also a chance, depending on other factors, that it might be time for a water heater upgrade.
If you’ve lived through even one St. Louis winter, then you know just how impossibly chilly it gets! With that decline in temperature comes an unfortunately popular problem–frozen pipes. And, frozen plumbing has the potential to lead to a lot of damage if not properly addressed. The problem isn’t so much the freezing itself, but the thawing. Thawing creates a negative pressure within the pipes, and this is what leads to your pipes bursting.
One of the most frequent calls that professional plumbers receive is in regards to their bathroom plumbing–maybe they have a clogged bathroom sink drain, or the showerhead won’t stop leaking, or the worst–their toilet has a problem. And usually, it all comes down to one main issue–their toilet won’t stop running. While this doesn’t sound like a major problem, it can actually lead to you wasting hundreds of gallons of water each year. That’s water you are otherwise paying for but not actually using.
If you’ve never heard the phrase hard water before, it can sound a little ominous. It can certainly create problems! The good news is, hard water is not harmful to ingest. It is, however, harmful to your plumbing system over time.
When most folks envision a water heater, they see a big tank, with pipes and water lines coming out of it. What if you take away the tank, though?
Do you know how to tell when it’s time for a drain cleaning? Better yet, do you know what to do when you need a drain cleaning?