‘Tis the Season for Plumbing Emergencies
How to Prevent Plumbing Emergencies
During the Christmas Season
Have you ever needed a plumber in Tallahassee during the Christmas weekend? Most of the plumbing emergencies, which occur during this season, have a close connection to leftover food. Yes, even though we are plumbers, we have been in your situation. A story that comes to mind was the Christmas of 1992 and we had our in-laws over. Back then we didn’t have a commercial trash disposal and, well, someone decided to pour some grease down the sink drain. Our grandfather thought it was wise to the put a hanger down the clogged pipe. All the rest is history and after a couple hours and a few arguments we managed to unclog the drain. A rule of thumb, never ever pour grease down the drain, your family with thank you!
Holidays are one of the busiest times of the year for the plumbing industry. Getting a hold of an emergency plumber during this time is not easy. Hopefully the following tips will help you prevent Christmas plumbing emergency from taking place. Keep our story in the back of your mind.
Meal Preparation
This is the first step to detouring Christmas plumbing issues. The preparation and cleanup after meal consumption plays a big part in causing clogs and frustrations. Make sure that your garbage disposal system is in good shape before you use it. If it is not, then refrain from putting it into use. Make sure that your disposal system does not have debris or food blockage. A drain catcher can help the wrong things from going down the pipe. See our Thanksgiving blog post for a list of food items not to put down your trash disposal.
Clear all this excess build up with the aid of one cup of rock salt and two cups of ice cubes and some cold-water flow. To freshen it, quarter a lemon down the disposal and run cold water while doing so. Lastly, refrain from pouring fat or oil-related substances down the drain and trash disposal.
Need be; replace your garbage disposal system before the holidays. This might seem like an expensive alternative, but it will be beneficial in the end. Replacing your garbage disposal system will help you prevent future sink clogs and plumbing problems.
Prepare The House For Guests
Hosting numerous house-guests is a joyful characteristic of the season. It brings everyone together in one center location with food, drinks, and community. Preparing your house for guests is in line for preventing the overworking of the plumbing system. Make sure that you perform routine maintenance before the holidays on hot water heaters, sinks, showers, and even toilets.
Increasing the number of people in your home will definitely increase the water usage. This means that the plumbing system that has an on-demand water heater it will be on overdrive if not catered for appropriately. Get tankless water heaters checked before people arrive to your home. Maintenance frequency entirely depends on location & whether the water heater has scale detection software for hard water. It occurs on a case-by-case basis, and there is preventative maintenance schedule. Perhaps setting a fifteen-minute wait rule between showers will help if you have a tank water heater and so all the family gets a hot shower.
These “little problems” are the main cause of plumbing issues during this fast paced season. It is wise to educate your guests on what to put down a commode. “Commodes” are what we plumbers call toilets. We find this quite funny though and sometimes children need a refresher course of what and what not to put into the toilet!
1st rule in using this toilet (fyi there is only one rule): don’t flush anything down the toilet besides #1 and #2 and toilet paper! New parents sometimes think it is ok to throw baby diapers right down the pipe. This is in fact the worst thing you can do. When in question - throw it into the trash.
Pipe Protection
People tend to overlook water pipes and concentrate only on the main plumbing products. Low temperatures and freezing cold weather come during the cooler months. This is harmful to the pipes and could be the main cause of a call to an emergency plumber during the season of peace and joy. Make sure that there is protection for your pipes, which they will thank you with providing running water. A super simple tip is to cover outside pipes and faucets with weather foam insulation. If you need help, call Capital Plumbing Contractors and we can direct you towards the best solution.
Final Thoughts
These are some of the most important methods in preventing Christmas plumbing emergencies. Trying to understand your plumbing is sometimes like a doctor understanding a sick patient. Capital Plumbing Contractors can be your plumbing doctor, 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. Customer service is our mission. This will save you the time and energy calling up a locally owned Tallahassee plumber in Tallahassee with the experience and passion to fix your plumbing problem. See what people are talking about. Call today at (850) 576-8420 for any questions, comments or concerns.
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