If you have your first home, then it is easy to make several plumbing mistakes. Here are some of the most common mistakes that beginners make when they work on a home’s plumbing without the proper knowledge.
Rookie Mistake 1: Failing To Have a Rubber-tipped Plunger
As soon as you move into your new home, make sure to buy at least one rubber-tipped plunger. When you have a home that is larger, keep multiple plungers in different areas to have the items ready when a clog occurs in a sink or toilet. The bottom cabinets in bathrooms are fantastic places to keep the plungers. Practice using a plunger to understand the process of suctioning debris from a clogged toilet. Make sure to check your home’s plungers occasionally to verify that the rubber tip hasn’t degraded.
Rookie Mistake 2: Flushing the Wrong Things
When you move into a new home, it is easy to make bad choices about what you put into a toilet. While numerous products are labeled as flushable, if you want to maintain your home’s plumbing, it is better to flush only bathroom tissue. Don’t flush paper towels, makeup pads or feminine hygiene products. In addition, never place infant diapers or baby wipes in a toilet because it can lead to dense clogs that cause a toilet to overflow.
Rookie Mistake 3: Not Protecting Plumbing Devices During Cold Weather
Before the temperature drops in the autumn, you must begin to protect your home’s plumbing devices. Look for adhesive insulation tape to wrap around the pipes in your home’s basement or crawl space. Drain your home’s exterior pipes before placing a foam device over the exterior pipes that are located near a patio or garage. Check all of the pipes in your home to verify that there are no cracks that will get worse in the winter during a blizzard.
Rookie Mistake 4: Putting the Wrong Things Into a Garbage Disposal
It is convenient to have a garbage disposal in your kitchen sink, but there are some foods that will break the blades inside the appliance or clog the pipes underneath the sink. Avoid placing fibrous garbage such as banana peels into a garbage disposal because the items will create a thick clog. In addition, don’t put bones or grease in the appliance. Make sure to use a lot of water while operating a kitchen’s garbage disposal to ensure that the food waste runs through the pipes.
Rookie Mistake 5: Delaying Repairs Until There Is a Major Problem
You might notice a problem with a plumbing fixture, but instead of making a repair right away, you procrastinate until the situation is worse. If you notice a tiny leak in a water pipe, then fix the item immediately rather than waiting several weeks. Small plumbing problems only get worse with time, and the items may break completely on a weekend or holiday.
How Can You Avoid These Rookie Mistakes?
Learn more about making plumbing repairs by reading books from the public library or watching videos online. If you don’t understand how to fix something on your own, then hire a knowledgeable plumber. A plumber has the proper training to make installations and repairs in your home’s kitchen and bathrooms.
Charlie Teschner started MESA Plumbing, Heating, and Cooling in 1982. Charlie has a journeyman and master plumber’s license. He was raised with a strong work ethic and he now applies those values to tasks such as Longmont, CO heating repair.
