Article writer-Edmondson Lang

Water is important to all life forms, but it can be the bane of the frustrated homeowner who has to deal with plumbing problems. There aren't many ways to destroy a house faster than to leave a major plumbing problem unfixed. Thankfully, owners of homes can take steps to avoid plumbing nightmares.

Find a plumber that you can trust. Make sure to get referrals from friends and family so that you can prevent getting ripped off, which happens often. Also make sure not to pay the plumber before the work is completed. If you do that, there will not be an incentive to get the job completed in a timely manner.

To avoid having your outdoor faucets freeze up in the winter, detach all hoses before the first freeze. Also, close the shutoff valve that leads to the outdoor faucets, then turn on the outdoor faucets to let any remaining water in the lines drain. Once temperatures warm up in the spring, you can reverse the process.

Treating your drains every month is a great way to avoid future clogs and other problems, and it's a very simple procedure. Just run one to two gallons of hot tap water down each drain in your house.





In order to avoid unsightly and unnecessary clogs in your shower, invest in a drain strainer. This cost-effective addition to your shower will gather your hair before it makes it to the drain, and limit the chances that you will find yourself showering while standing in a clogged up mess.

In the winter months, if you live somewhere where temperatures fall below freezing, leave your faucets on a little bit to let a thin stream of water through. This will help prevent the pipes from freezing, which could be a major problem for you and all the pipes in your home.

Make sure that any exposed pipes in your home are insulated, especially those found in crawl spaces on the outside walls of your home. This will help keep them from freezing and causing you tons of problems. Frozen pipes can often be devastating and leave you with problems that are expensive to fix and no water in the middle of winter.

Prevention will save you money in plumbing bills. The repairs that plumbers perform the most are for drains that are clogged. One major thing that causes clots is grease. It builds up over and time. You can help prevent grease build up by looking for a product on the market that will clean the grease out.

If your sewer is backed up, there are things you can do to troubleshoot and clean, including renting equipment like a main line cable. However, often times this does not fully take care of the problem. visit the following web site to assess the issue then, using a camera method, and thoroughly cleaning the main line.

When plunging http://business.thepilotnews.com/thepilotnews/news/read/40941064/Happy_Customer_Gives_Midwest_Plumbing_Indianapolis_A_Grateful_Five to attempt to remove a blockage, first make sure that the drain is completely covered in water. This helps to form a seal. Then, plunge at least fifteen to twenty times before stopping. Repeat the process two to three times. If this doesn't work, try a chemical drain cleaner.

Check to see if you have toilet leaks. Put food coloring in your toilet tank to test the toilet for leaks. Watch your toilet bowl closely, and if you notice colored water in a manner of seconds, you definitely have a leak that will need to be fixed.

When looking for a plumber, you have quite a few options. Ask friends for recommendations of who they use. Check online for plumbers with good reviews and references. Use your yellow pages and look under "Plumbing Contractors" or "Plumbing, Drain and Sewer Cleaning". Make sure that you contact more than one plumber before making a choice.

Check for leaks behind the wall tile in your bathroom, especially any tile surrounding your bathtub, by gently pressing each tile and feeling for some give. If you find any mushy or soft spots, you will need to find the source of the leak and repair it to prevent further damage.

Work with plumbers that offer flat rates. When a plumber is charging by the hour, they do not have an incentive to get the job done quickly. It is human nature to go just a little bit slower if it'll mean extra money in our pockets. If you cannot find someone who charges per project make sure that you are vigilant in watching the clock and their work.

You should be very careful when choosing drain cleaners. Some have chemicals that are harmful, and may damage your pipes. Choose a brand known for protecting pipes. Some chemicals will kill the bacteria your plumbing system needs to function properly and could even be harmful to humans.

The key to finding a great plumber for new construction is to look at their prior jobs. Good plumbers take pride in the work they do, so they will have photos and references from previous jobs. If the plumber you are considering hiring does not have references or photos of previous jobs, then stay away and find another.

Avoid flushing cotton balls, cotton swabs and any feminine sanitary products down the toilet. Even small panty liners can cause big problems because their adhesive backing can stick to pipes and cause stoppages. Keep a small, covered wastebasket next to the toilet to encourage guests to properly dispose of used sanitary articles.

Many people complain of low water pressure. While there are several things that can cause this, one must not be overlooked when starting your investigation. What kind of pipes do you have? If your piping is galvanized, you are better off just replacing your piping which will eliminate the issue.

While plumbing can be a very personal type of home improvement, it does share the main goal of needing to be functional in the home. As you have seen in these tips, there are various approaches, but they are all created around the idea of having a great plumbing system.