Roto-Rooter Blogosphere

The Pacific Northwest is known for its rain. They get a lot of it so it's extremely important that all drains function well and be clear of roots and debris in order to move that rain water away from structures as quickly as possible. Drain cleaning Seattle is a popular on-line search term along with drain cleaning Tacoma or clogged drain Seattle, kitchen plumbing Seattle and any manner of similar terms. A root-infested pipe like the one pictured can cause drains to back up into homes or businesses when heavy rainfall comes.

People in the Northwest have learned to live with the rainfall there and keeping on top of plumbing repair issues is very important in the region. Ignoring a slow drain or putting off a nagging plumbing repair can have serious consequences anyplace but in Seattle / Tacoma, the constant threat of rain can make putting off drain cleaning Seattle a particularly reckless idea.

Roto-Rooter of Seattle and Tacoma has a team of experts that can quickly solve any plumbing and drain issues in the area. They live in the area so they understand the importance of fixing things quickly.
 

We often blame weather for the floods that damage homes but only 8% of household flood damage is caused by weather. 30% is caused by appliance failure and 62% is caused by plumbing failure. There are proven ways to protect your property. First and foremost, change out your old rubber washing machine hoses and replace them with braided stainless steel hoses. Anyone who knows anything about residential plumbing will tell you that.

Second, do the same thing for your ice maker line running to your refrigerator. If either of these supply lines fail when you're not home, you'll return to find your house turned into an indoor swimming pool. Other kitchen plumbing jobs or inspections you can do yourself include checking up on your dishwasher supply and drain lines from time to time. Look for leaks and don't ignore them.

Third, check on your sump pump at least once a month. If the sump pump fails and the spring rains come - as they always do, you'll pay a hefty price to the 24 hour plumbing company of your choice. There are lot of other things you should know to help you avoid an accidental flood caused by appliance failure. This news release from Roto-Rooter tells the whole story.

Fix toilet Baltimore, that's the search term people in Baltimore would key in to find a bathroom plumbing solution on the Internet. Toilets seem simple enough...until something goes wrong. The most common problem is a leaky toilet, sometimes called a "running toilet." You've tried jiggling the handle but that's a temporary fix.

Let's face it, not all of us are all that handy around the house, especially when it comes to plumbing. After all, it makes sense to know one's limits. Personally, I draw the line at hooking electrical lines to a breaker box. Scares the heck out of me so I always call in the pros at that point.

I have a buddy in Maryland who hates plumbing. He says he'd rather just search out plumber DC or plumber Baltimore (a little closer) and find a licensed plumbing specialist to rebuild his leaky toilet than risk an accidental flood. That's a Perfectly acceptable position from a guy who is just being realistic and honest with himself. If you're in my buddy's area and need your toilet rebuilt or any other plumbing services, Roto-Rooter can handle it. Check out the Baltimore / DC branch's home page for more information.

Sometimes building contractors make mistakes. They built the walls in a friend's bathroom too close to the waste stack pipe in the floor. As a result, when the toilet was seated by the plumbing contractors, it turned out to be too close to one of the side walls. It was uncomfortably tight. They lived with it for years but now they're remodeling the bathroom and wonder if it would be a significant plumbing repair to fix the toilet.

I told them about the offset toilet flange, which can have the effect of correcting a builder's mistake by allowing the toilet to be moved over a few inches without having to move the waste stack pipe in his concrete foundation, which would be among the more expensive bathroom plumbing solutions.

The offset flange is a great invention. I've heard from a few plumbers who think the offset angle restricts water flow and results in a less powerful flush, but even if that were true, there are more powerful flush valves that will help overcome such concerns. I think the offset is a toilet fix breakthrough. I wish I'd thought of it.

When the rains come, the snow melts and water seems to be everywhere, do your part to make sure some of that water doesn't end up in your basement. Inspect your sump pump!

It's one of the most common plumbing services during the spring, when rainfall and snow melt are at their peak. 24 Hour Plumbing companies like Roto-Rooter can get called out in the middle of the night when a sump pump fails and the homeowner is desperate for a quick resolution to this common residential plumbing job.

Pour a bucket of water into the sump pit. If your pump is operating properly, it will remove the water quickly then shut itself back off. You should hear the thump of the check valve when it has finished.

Nobody likes to get the bad news that their sewer line is broken and will need an expensive sewer repair. However, consider that when your sewer line is broken, it is probably leaking raw sewage into the ground and contaminating the water table. For that reason, we all lose.

Raw sewage is bad for the environment. Imagine that stuff getting into the fresh water supply. Plumbing services can be expensive when there is an excavation involved. Your sewer pipeline typically runs from your house, beneath the front yard into the city sewer main. The part of the pipe on your property is your responsibility, not the city's.

Local plumbing companies typically find the problem when cleaning a clogged drain. If the snake gets stuck in a pipe crack or pulls back with mud on it (indicating it exited the pipe and got into surrounding wet soil), technicians experienced in sewer cleaning know the signs. They'll do a video camera inspection to verify how extensive the breaks are, show you the video and present you with sewer repair options.

Scenario: You've returned home from a relaxing week of vacation. You begin carrying in your suitcases as the kids scramble out of the car and into the house. One of them yells, "there's water all over the floor!" You dash inside and begin looking around, a check of the basement shows that you now have an indoor swimming pool!"

Here's how to avoid that nightmare scenario. Look behind your washing machine. Notice the hoses connecting the appliance to the two faucets in the wall. The hoses are probably old and made of rubber. Almost nobody ever turns off those faucets so the hoses are always fully charged with maximum water pressure. Guess what? When one splits or bursts, it will flood your house.

Any company offering plumbing services will tell you that replacing old hoses (more than five years old) with new ones, preferably stronger, braided stainless steel hoses, will go a long way toward preventing a flood. You don't need licensed plumbing specialists to do the job. Anyone who has ever hooked up a garden hose can do it. It's a simple residential plumbing solution that will save you a fortune. Don't delay. Just do it.

You've noticed them but you probably don't pay them much attention. I'm talking about those chrome water shut-off valves under your sinks and behind your toilet. Here's a tip: Exercise them! Ask a plumber Boston or wherever you live. He will tell you that a simple twist back and forth a few times a year will keep them working properly. Remember "rightie tighty, lefty loosey."

When you have plumbing problems of the emergency variety, you'll want to be able to reach down and turn off that water quickly. The fact is that if left alone too long, the rubber or neoprene seals inside those valves will become coated with minerals in the water and won't turn. If the valves are difficult to turn, try working them back and forth a quarter inch at a time until they loosen and turn freely. Be careful, don't force them. Be patient but firm or you could break the valve, causing a spewing water leak... panic will set in until you find a 24 hour plumbing company to come to your rescue.

For the most part, sewer cleaning is a pretty standard process. But it is not without some risk. Occasionally, plumbing contractors break a pipe during cleaning, causing leaks and additional plumbing problems that may lead to an expensive plumbing repair. Often homeowners look at the plumber and say "you broke it, you're paying for this, not me." Guess again!

Here's why it's the home owner's responsibility and not the plumber's:
1. a pipe or sewer in decent condition and installed properly won't break during cleaning.
2. Old pipes or pipes installed without following plumbing codes can break when the snake passes through. If they break, they were pretty darn fragile in the first place.
3. What's to stop every homeowner with old or damaged pipes from inviting a drain cleaner to stop by for the sole purpose of getting a new drainage system installed for nothing?

As the homeowner, it is your responsibility to maintain your pipes, know when they're rusting out and not put harmful chemicals down there that will shorten their lifespan. If the pipes are in reasonable shape, they're in no danger during sewer cleaning service. If they break, they weren't going to last much longer anyway.  Don't pretend it's the drain cleaner's fault.

A high number of kitchen plumbing jobs involve the garbage disposal, more so that other sink plumbing. Just ask a plumber. Salt Lake City and other Roto-Rooter locations report that most of the problems could have been easily resolved by an informed homeowner.

My wife recently cleaned out my son's 2-gallon aquarium in the kitchen sink. To her credit, she used a strainer to catch most of the tank gravel before it spilled down the sink drain. However, one of those tiny little blue rocks escaped the strainer and found its way to the remotest corner of the disposal. That's all it took to render it useless.

We turned off the power to the disposal then felt around for the rock. No luck. Then I got out my hex / Allen wrenches, figured out which one fit up inside the bottom of the unit through the designated key hole, turned the wrench, dislodged the rock and restored movement to the disposal. Voila! I made the plumbing repair and impressed my wife in the process.

Need a plumber Boston? Need a plumber Salt Lake City? There are plenty of them in the phone book and an on-line search will reveal even more but how do you know which one is best? The short answer is you don't.

Consider more than just the price quote. Ask about a guarantee so you will be protected if the plumbing problems aren't fixed right. Ask if the plumber carries adequate liability insurance. I'd ask that question before the plumbing contractors get out their blow torches and start working on pipe inside your walls.

With the slow down in new construction, a lot of construction plumbers who were helping build new homes have begun doing plumbing repair and replacement work until the housing market picks up again. Make sure the plumber you choose isn't going to disappear in search of new construction work halfway across the country. You'll want a plumber you can find if you need to exercise your guarantee on those kitchen plumbing jobs or that sewer repair.

When the Roto-Rooter man tells you your sewer pipe is clogged with tree roots and you need a sewer cleaning, what exactly does he do? Usually he will begin by feeding a small cable with a sharp blade on the end to bore through the clog and allow it to drain. Next, he will use a larger cable machine with a 4-inch or 6-inch c-shaped blade on the end. The blades are spring loaded and are gently squeezed so they fit into the pipe. Once inside, they spring outward and hug the pipe wall.

When the machine turns on, the blades spin and shave the pipe walls of all debris and roots that have penetrated the sewer pipe at the pipe joints or through cracks. The old Roto-Rooter ads bragged of shaving your pipes "Razor-Kleen." Sewer cleaning can be time consuming and tedious but it's very effective and will keep roots at bay for about a year in most cases.

If the plumber pulls out the cable and notices mud on it, that indicates a serious break in the pipe. The technician will suggest a video inspection using a remotely operated camera. He will show you the condition of the pipe live on a TV monitor and present you with sewer repair options and estimates.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a die-hard do it yourself type. However, not all of us DIY guys have the same abilities, nor do we follow a set standard for a job done right. When it comes to plumbing repair, there isn't much margin for error. It's either done right or wrong and sometimes there are serious consequences for a local plumbing job done wrong.

Those pesky plumbing codes are there for good reason. Plumbing problems demand the know-how of experienced plumbing contractors. The photo at right makes the point rather well. This was an actual jury-rigged clean-out port cap discovered by one of Roto-Rooter's licensed plumbing specialists. No, a basketball lodged in a pipe port does not follow any local plumbing code I've ever seen. The Tulsa plumber thought it was funny enough to photographs with his cell phone camera.

I've found some bathroom plumbing solutions for my unfinished "man cave" or basement. I selected a very nice corner Sterling shower enclosure, which I intend to pick up from Lowe's this weekend. I've already measured around the plumbing rough-in placements and put down chalk lines to simulate the shower's footprint. It will fit in the allotted space!
 

I'm still doing my homework on dual-flush toilets. My blog received some helpful information from Andrea Paulinelli, who distributes the fine line of Caroma dual-flush toilets in the Atlanta area. I'm going to give that line a closer look ASAP to see what's available here in Cincinnati. She informs me that the Aussie-made Caroma toilets are practically clog-free, which means fewer plumbing problems over the long haul. Translation: More time enjoying my private basement sanctuary and less time spent on plumbing repair issues.

This morning I turned on the hot water tap in my shower like I always do. It must've taken two minutes for the hot water to arrive from the basement water heater all the way to my shower on the second floor of the house. After the shower, I waited another minute at the sink so I could shave. I pondered how much water I waste each morning waiting for it to get hot. Bathroom plumbing solutions? I could use one. My problem is typical of residential plumbing.

There are costly heaters that attach to sink plumbing that will deliver hot water fast and waste less water but the trade-off is that they use additional electricity. I'm trying to be green here with few options. This is not one of Roto-Rooter's traditional plumbing problems. I can do a few things to help. The most obvious thing is to add some pipe insulation around all of the exposed hot water lines running through my basement. It will help keep the hot water in the lines hot for a longer period of time. There must be twenty feet of exposed copper hot water pipe without insulation that would probably cost me all of $4.00 at the hardware store. It's a start!

Columbus plumbers for Roto-Rooter were pretty busy the past few days, as were their fellow service technicians throughout Ohio and much of the country. Frozen pipes continue to plague residential plumbing and commercial plumbing due to this Arctic blast. Kitchen plumbing jobs are amassing because kitchen water lines usually run through outside walls and can freeze if not well insulated.

Roto-Rooter's Columbus, Ohio Branch had to purchase additional pipe thawing equipment Friday just to keep up with demand. As frustrating as frozen pipes can be, the real problems will begin when the temperatures rise and frozen pipes start thawing and spewing water. That's when our phones will really start ringing. This type of plumbing repair can be challenging and may require a pro. Tip: Find your main water shut-off valve so you will know how to turn off water if one of your pipes bursts.

The weather forecast for the upper Midwest calls for extreme cold in the single digits and frigid wind chill near or below zero. Brrrr. Those are the magic ingredients for freezing pipes meaning busy times for a plumber. Minneapolis and St. Paul represent the epicenter of the arctic blast but at least they build their homes and commercial buildings with extra insulation to fend off the cold. They even bury their underground pipes deeper below the frost line.

The same cannot be said for Chicago, Indianapolis and Cincinnati. Plumbers there should start getting local plumbing jobs of the frozen pipe nature sometime tomorrow night if the weather forecast proves accurate. Plumbing service calls for frozen pipes always hit an upswing when conditions are right. Residential plumbing and commercial plumbing are equally vulnerable. You want advice? Insulate exposed pipes now. Use heat tape and allow warm air to circulate around pipes as much as possible.

Frozen pipes may be frustrating but the real agony comes when they thaw, revealing splits spewing high-pressure water all over your home. You might want to keep our number handy in case it happens to you. 1-800-GET-ROTO. Roto-Rooter is here to help...fast.