Home Plumbing Service

Most people may not know, but your home plumbing system is as important as any other system in the house. It makes up about 15% of the total value of your house. This is why you need to do everything you possibly can, to ensure it functions properly. A fully functional and effective plumbing system provides you with clean water. Other benefits of efficient plumbing service include;

It increases water efficiency and home energy through water saving devices
It provides access to good and clean water that is important for well being and good health
It adds convenience to modern standard living
It can also help communities during a shortage of water and drought
It is important for homeowners to pay attention to the running, maintenance and protection of your plumbing service. This is because they help you in your day to day tasks and household chores.

Why worry about plumbing maintenance

It is quite unfortunate that a lot of people do not worry about their house plumbing until there is a problem. At that point, the situation would probably have gotten out of hand. From time to time, one should take the time to check in on your house plumbing, so you can notice any problems before it becomes a major issue.

It is important to take care of your house plumbing, so that water flows freely without obstruction and also water from the toilet is flushed, and this helps yo avoid leaks from any of the pipes, not to mention conservation of water and energy bills.

Some people might not notice, but effective plumbing reduces expenses which can be caused by the waste of water from leaking pipes, or damage caused by water. For instance, a leaking pipe, it goes undetected, can lead to mould growth, rotting of wood and corrosion of pipes.

This adds up to a huge expense that would have been prevented if the leak was noticed earlier. We always encourage our clients to check on their pipes from time to time so that leaks will be noticed and we will be notified to fix them as quickly as possible. Leaks do not only affect the house by tampering with the air quality and properties, but it also affects the water pressure by reducing it.

Plumbing maintenance involves inspecting your pipes more often for leaks. It also entails seasonal maintenance and servicing of basic household appliances that use water like the dishwasher, water heater and the washing machine. Regular inspection of these appliances makes it easy for defects and faults to be noticed on time, and as a result, handled properly.

The best and possibly the only way to avoid plumbing problems is to inspect your plumbing regularly and fix any problem that comes up as quickly as possible. However, you can contact us at Mr Emergency Plumber to help in inspecting your pipes if you are too busy to do so yourself, or you do not know how to.

We have taken the time to provide you with tips on how to maintain and inspect your house plumbing on a daily, weekly and seasonal basis to conserve water and energy costs. You can always contact us whenever anything goes wrong, our team of highly skilled engineers will be there to help out.

Tips for Daily Maintenance

It is common knowledge that blockages are every homeowner's nightmare. It is because they reduce the durability of the pipes by placing them under pressure and stress. Every day, we receive calls from clients, complaining about a blocked drain either in the bathroom or in the kitchen.

Preventing blockage is one of the things you should do daily in your home because your pipes are used daily. Furthermore, blockages are disturbing and should be fixed as they slow down the daily running of the house. Even slow draining pipes are equally a problem because they develop into a full-blown problem if not fixed. Daily maintenance is paramount in two important places in the house; the bathroom and the kitchen. These two places are at a higher risk of developing plumbing problems because water runs through these pipes all the time.

In the bathroom

Blockages are most likely to form here. The blockages can be controlled by following the instructions below;

Do not flush wipes and female sanitary products down the toilet bowl. Only human waste and tissue paper should be flushed down to avoid blocked toilets.
Do not use chemicals to try to unblock pipes, as they can cause corrosion to the pipes.
Reduce the use of bath oils when showering and also use drain screens to prevent hair from going down the drain, so the drains flow freely
Maintain water pressure and prevent unwanted stress on the house plumbing.
Watch what goes down the drain by keeping track of the products you use. They can be oily and greasy and end up clinging to pipes and causing blocked pipes.

In the kitchen

We at Mr Emergency Plumber has discovered that the kitchen drain is one place that experiences higher blockages. Blockage in the kitchen drains is caused by food wastes and debris going down the drain. They are caused by two major factors. The first is caused by washing down grease or oil from food like fats, butter and cooking oil. When they cool down, they become hard and block the pipes

The second is caused when the garbage disposal is not properly used. Follow up the following tips to keep your kitchen drains free from blockage;

After using the waste disposal, allow the cold water to run for at least 10 -15 seconds. This pushes down any remaining food particle
The waste disposal should be turned on together with the water before food is added
Food with fibres and strings should not be added to the disposal. They can get tangled up and damage the disposal
The dishwasher can be allowed to run at night so that water pressure is maintained and hot water conserved.

Tips for Weekly Maintenance

Although daily maintenance is important, weekly checkup on your house pipe is equally important. This ensures that small problems are not aggravated. This is why we at Mr Emergency Plumber are always available to carry out weekly maintenance in your homes.

Weekly plumbing maintenance tips include;

The lint traps on the washing machine should be cleaned weekly
The drains in the shower and sink should be checked for slow drainage. A full swirl indicates complete drainage while bubbles appearing indicates a slow drain
Look out for leaks and water puddle in not so significant places like under the sink and also look out for mould growth, watermarks and stagnant water smells
Check that water isn't coming out of the handles when all the taps are turned on.
Leaks are commonly caused when there is loose-fitting of the pipes or holes in them. They are the major culprits of water waste. Sometimes leaks are easily noticed by people who would know the likely places for these leaks to occur in a plumbing system. These places are;

Showerheads
Valves of pipes
Faucets
Loose pipe fittings
Worn out flappers of toilets

Tips for Seasonal Maintenance

Certain steps for maintenance of pipes need to be taken at different times of the year. This is because different seasons affect plumbing differently. The measures you take during the summer for maintenance is different from the ones you take during the winter period. The same applies for the remaining seasons; spring and fall.

Plumbing maintenance during the Winter

Winter periods are synonymous with cold temperatures and freezing points. Pipes usually get frozen during the winter periods and is a huge concern for homeowners. When pipes freeze, they affect the water flow inside the pipes, putting the pipes under pressure and causing it to expand. The continuous expansion will make pipes to burst. Every house owner's concern during winter is to prevent pipes from freezing. We advise our clients to follow the tips below to prevent your pipes from freezing during the winter periods;

Let the water flow from each valve in the house at intervals. This prevents the pipes from freezing
Insulate all pipes, especially ones more prone to freezing due to their location, like basements and attics
Do not make room for drafts in areas like kitchen and bathroom cabinets
These tips apply to both outdoor and indoor pipes, but outdoor mostly. However, sometimes indoor pipes can freeze as well due to extremely cold temperatures. Take the following steps below to prevent the pipe indoors from freezing.

When the temperature is freezing, try to let the water trickle from the taps in the house. This prevents them from freezing
Open up cabinet doors in the kitchen to warm up the pipes by allowing warm air to come in
Make provisions for warm air to come in and circulate inside the house all the time, especially at night when the temperature is much lower.
Preventing your pipes from freezing during the winter periods is highly important. You can choose to do this by using a working heating system to keep the house warm. Make sure the heating system is in perfect condition to work even when you are not around. Maintaining the plumbing condition of your house is as important as maintaining the entire house. But, sometimes even with the most careful of acts, pipes can still freeze. What do you do when they freeze?

What happens when pipes freeze?

Pipes freezing does not necessarily mean it is damaged. The extent of the damage can be reduced and controlled. There are certain steps you can take when this occurs;

Refrain from using an open flame to attempt to thaw a frozen pipe
Slowly thaw frozen pipes by using a hairdryer on low heat or a heat gun
When pipes freeze, turn off the valve for incoming water. The water inlet valve should be shut off
The faucet should be left on for pressure to be relieved on the pipes as they thaw out.
Call a plumber immediately your frozen pipes burst.
Call us at Mr Emergency Plumber once you have frozen pipes and don't know what to do. You wouldn't want to complicate matters by taking a wrong step. It is important that everyone in your house knows how to shut off the water valve and where they are located. This is to save the house from flooding even when only one person is around.