There are times in which you will need to drain the plumbing system in your home. Sometimes, if you are fixing a major problem like a water hammer problem, or if you are doing a seasonal (or a winter) shut down of a particular property, or if you are doing other types of major plumbing activities or repair, it will become necessary to do a total drain of the plumbing system .If you are doing a seasonal shutdown, chances are that you are doing much more than simply draining the pipes, but this can be a big part of it. If you don’t drain the pipes, they might freeze, and this will ruin them, not to mention causing a mess. For major repairs, any type of water left in the pipes can cause problems, so it is always best to drain the water completely. The first step to draining the plumbing system in your home is to shut off the main water valve at the water meter. Then, you begin at the top floor, and open up all of the sink faucets. Next, you’ll go to the basement or to the lowest level of your home, and open up the faucet in the laundry tub or lowest sink. Let all of the water from the above floors drain out. The next step is to go back to the upper levels and open up all of the tub and shower faucets. Then, flush all of the toilets. Leave the faucets in the open position. You should see that there is no water coming out of the faucets. There might be a slow drip coming from the faucet at the lowest level of the home, as all of the water remaining will dribble out. That is all that it takes to drain the plumbing in your home. When you are finished with your repair, you will need to reactivate the plumbing system. In order to do this, you should first close the basement faucet, or those in the lowest level of your home. Then, close all of the upper faucets. This will allow water to remain in the pipe to charge the air chambers that might be found in the system. Next, you want to go back and open up the main water valve that will let the water back to your pipes. Go back to your home, and one by one, starting at the highest level of your home, turn on the faucets and let the air and water come out. It will sputter out until only clear water comes. The first water that you see might be discolored, and this is completely normal. Then, open up the shower faucets and do the same thing. The next step is to flush all of the toilets. When the water is all running clear, go back around and turn off all of the faucets, starting at the highest level of your home. The next time you use a faucet you might have the water sputter, but this won’t last for very long and everything will be running like normal soon.

R. Dodge Woodson/Lone Wolf Enterprises, Ltd.

www.lonewolfent.net

Replacing Existing Plumbing Fixtures with Water-Conservation Fixtures

            What is involved with replacing existing plumbing fixtures with water-conservation fixtures? Is it worth the cost of new fixtures to save some water? I have heard that low-flush toilets don’t work well, is that true? How much of the work can I do myself? These questions often come up when homeowners consider installing water-conserving plumbing devices. Short answers are simple, but there is more to these questions than what meets the eye.

            The manual labor required to switch over to water-saving plumbing devices is not extensive. Nearly anyone with basic mechanical skills, a few tools, and a spare afternoon on their hands can do the job. A shower head can be replaced in less than 30 minutes by most amateurs. Faucet replacement could take about an hour for a homeowner to accomplish. Replacing a toilet can be done by many homeowners in less than an hour. None of the jobs are lengthy or complicated.

            What is the value of water-conserving fixtures? If you pay for your water through a municipal system, there is a clear financial gain to be achieved when you use less water. If you get your water from a well with an electric water pump, you will save money on electricity and wear and tear on your pump when you use less water. There is also the reduction of wastewater that has to be treated to take into consideration.  Let’s look at a simple example of what you might gain in financial savings over the coming years. Old toilets often consume 5 gallons of water each time they are flushed. More modern toilets use 3 gallons of water. Most residential low-flush toilets use 1.6 gallons of water. Now think of how many times a day your toilet is flushed. Multiply that number by 365 to get your yearly use and compare the number of gallons of water that can be saved. If you are paying for your water by the gallon, it adds up. The same is true for shower heads that use 5 gallons per minute, 3 gallons a minute, or less. How long to you spend running the water in the shower? Do the math.

            Is it true that low-flush toilets don’t work well? This is a tricky question. In a new installation on a modern plumbing system that is installed in compliance with code requirements, the low-flush toilets work just fine. You can experience problems with low-flush toilets when they are used to replace toilets in homes that contain old, cast-iron piping. This piping is rough on the inside and rusts. Sometimes the piping is not installed with the pitch/slope/grade that current codes require. The pipe works fine when 5 gallons of water floods and flushes it. This same pipe trying to do the same job with 1.6 gallons of water can falter.

            If you have plastic drain pipes in your home, the low-flush toilet should be fine. A 3-gallon-per-flush toilet will usually work with older cast-iron systems, but a 1.6-gallon-per-flush toilet might not have enough force to work reliably with every flush.

            All in all, most homeowners can benefit, as can the environment, from the installation of water-conserving plumbing devices.

Without a doubt, plumbing problems can dramatically upset the comfort in a home. When you have are experiencing busted pipes and floods in the home, the damage that can result has the potential to be enormous. That is why it is critical to phone a qualified plumber to fix the problem. However, it is important to hire a plumber that has the experience needed for the job. You need to hire the right plumber for the job and that means you need to apply certain criteria to ensure the proper decision has been made. Here is a brief look at a few tips for hiring the right plumber.

Probably one of the most important components to hiring the right plumber centers on timing. It is always best to hire a plumber at the first sign of any trouble. When an emergency occurs, it becomes necessary to hire a plumber immediately. The main concern here is to deal with the emergency and not to find a plumber that meets other needs you may have. This can lead to paying more for a plumber, being unhappy with the work performed, etc. Hiring a plumber far in advance of an emergency situation would eliminate such a situation from occurring.

The issue of price needs to be addressed in more detail because it is very important to a household budget to hire someone that is affordable. Calling around and receiving a number of price quotes would be helpful in this regard since you could hire a plumber that is well within your range of affordability.

Of course, it is also important to hire a plumber that has a good reputation. Thankfully, the vast majority of plumbers have solid reputations in their field. But, there are the occasional “bad apples” out there so double checking on references certainly doesn’t hurt. Sometimes, it may be best to hire a union plumber since the union would be less inclined to maintain a relationship with a plumber that is less than professional in his duties.

It is also helpful to hire a plumber that has been licensed and certified by the state. This will increase the odds that the plumber that you hire is a qualified professional that adheres to professional standard. This will take a lot of concerns about whether or not the plumber is qualified off the table. And, really, would you not want a selection process that is free of additional worries or concerns?

In some instances, making sure your plumbing fixtures are in good shape can lead to eliminating a lot of work the plumber will need to perform. For example, upgrading worn faucets will reduce additionally work the plumber may have to perform. When the work you need done is less expansive than it otherwise would be, it makes hiring a plumber easier since the plumber’s work will be reduced. This reduces the need to hire a specialized plumber which, in turn, makes the hiring process much easier.

Yes, there is a little extra work in hiring the right plumber for the job. However, if the end result is work you are happy with then the extra work will certainly be worth it.