Plumb It Right!
Plumbing problems are considered to be one of
the major problems that each household can experience at least once
in a lifetime. Although most would opt to call a professional
plumber to do the dirty work for them, most plumbing repairs are
actually minor ones that even you can do without having to pay a
plumber some notable amount of cash.
Be Vigilant
One way to fix major plumbing problems is by prevention. Keeping a
sharp eye for sluggish or slow
drains is the key. It is way much easier to fix and unclog a slow
drain than opening one that has wholly
stopped from functioning.
If your drain is slow, you can fix this by simply pouring scalding
water down the pipe. Do this to
loosen any grease buildup. Additionally, you should clean the drain
screen or stopper. This should do the
trick.
However, if it doesn't, then try to locate the problem by checking
out other household drains. Do this to
know whether the clog is present in only one fixture. If it
turns out that other drains are clogged, then
you may have a problem with your main drain pipe.
Sinking In
Fighting a sink clog automatically means getting a bathroom plunger.
In picking a plunger, make sure it
has a large enough suction cup that can completely cover up the
drain. It should also be able to create
an airtight seal around the surrounding sink.
Next, you should fill the fixture to completely cover the plunger’s
suction cup. Do this by using water or
coating the cup’s rim with petroleum jelly. You should create a
vacuum by trying to seal off other outlets, like overflow drain in
sinks. Then, push out any trapped air underneath the cup. After
this, do 15 to 20 forceful up-and-down pumping blows to jerk loose
the clog. It may take you three to five times of this cycle to do
the trick.
Snake It Out If using the plunger doesn’t work, then you would have
to resort to another technique. In this remedy, you would need to
have a plumbing snake. You can get one at your local hardware. These
can work their way through your drain pipes and physically push out
the clogs.
Plumbing snakes are considered to be one of the most dependable
tools for fixing drainage problems. All you have to do is push the
snake in until you hit the clog. Once you hit the clog, hook it up
by twisting
your snake's handle. After hooking it up, push your snake back and
forth until you feel that the
obstruction has broken up. Then, flush out the pipe using cold
water. Main Drain Cleanup
If you detect that more than one of your draining fixtures is
clogged up, then your main drain line may
be the problem. Thus, you have to clean it up. You can start off by
locating the clean-out plugs of the large drain pipes. You can find
these in your crawlspace or basement.
Main drain lines can also be found in your garage or somewhere
outside, along the foundations of your
house. You can see that each plug has a cap on it that has a square
fitting on the top. Use a wrench to
remove the cap.
Make sure that you have a bucket with you to catch some dripping
water. Also, be sure that nobody will
use the facilities while you the main drain line is open, or else
some serious problem can come your way.
Once you have everything in place, use a plumbing snake to break up
any obstructions in the main line by running the snake in all
directions of the pipe.
About the Author: D. Benjamin is the owner of
iapsales.com LLC - a family business specializing in HVAC products. We
are distributors of
Qmark Heaters,
electric tankless water heaters,
bathroom heaters,
patio heaters, electric heaters,
portable air
conditioners & electric towel warmers. Shop on line at
www.heateroutlet.com for these great home improvement products.
Iapsales.com LLC was established in 2003 and is the sister company to
Innovative Air Products located in historical Exeter, NH. We are a 2nd
generation manufacturers’ rep firm dedicated to providing residential &
commercial heating, ventilation and air-conditioning equipment. We offer
a great selection online at the lowest prices anywhere. We can also be
found on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube