Plumbing Tips & Advice
Common causes of blocked drains
Have you noticed any odd noises coming from your drains, or water that’s taking an unusually long time to empty? It’s likely you’re seeing the first early signs of a blocked (or...
What’s causing all these blockages..?
YOUR PIPES DON’T LIKE BABY WIPES
In the last few months we’ve been called to an increasing number of drain blockages, and they’re not caused by tree roots.
The number one offender that we remove from drains, other than tree roots, is baby wipes.
Wipes and other ‘towelettes’ are becoming a very popular bathroom accessory. They’re designed to be durable and they don’t break down when soaked in water like toilet paper does. Designed to be flushed, toilet paper pretty much turns to mush once it comes in contact with water.
Punching Above Our Weight
Did you know that your plumber—that would be us— is the winner of not one but two awards? That’s right. We are the current reigning champions of Manningham Business of the Year and we also won Manningham Professional Services of the Year.
Around 40 businesses entered these awards so we are very proud of our achievement. As our reign is coming to an end in the next couple of months we would like to let you know some of the things we have been doing this year.
Flexi connectors can be ticking time bombs
Flexible water connections or ‘easy hookers’ as they are known in the trade can be ticking time bombs if they’re not replaced when showing signs of fatigue.
One of the most common plumbing emergency call outs is having to attend to a burst flexible water connection that is flooding a house.
How this can be prevented:
Inspect the braided section of hose for rust spots and oxidisation. If this is present, the connection should be replaced immediately as this is a sign that the inner tube is weeping and could burst at any time…
Preventative Plumbing
Did you know that there are certain valves and mechanisms on your hot water service that need replacing every five years? Did you know that some of those flexible hoses attached to your taps are ticking time bombs if not replaced when showing signs of wear? Count the number of taps in your home. Do they turn on and off easily every time? Are there any drips? How is your water pressure? Did you know that if it exceeds the manufacturers specifications your tap fittings are more susceptible to failing and warranty replacement is unlikely?
These are just some of the many things that can go wrong with your household plumbing. We should all consider implementing Preventative Plumbing into our household maintenance.
Stormy Waters
As we move into the colder months and heavy rainfall becomes more frequent, it’s good time to ensure that your storm water drains can handle the load.
Storm water drains are more susceptible to blocking up than sewers as they can be exposed to silt, leaves and tree root build up without us knowing. Generally we know if our sewer is blocked straight away as our toilet may not flush away properly or our shower will back up. In the case of storm water we usually only notice in heavy downpours as partially or fully blocked drains aren’t capable of ridding water from areas such as channel and grate drains, pits or gutters.
Your Local Bloke
Just for a moment, close your eyes and open your mind. Think about all of the unique little shops in our community. Now replace them in your mind with multi-international franchised companies, Starbucks or Gloria Jean’s. The Warrandyte Pub now a Hard Rock Cafe.
Quintons IGA gone and a massive Coles in its place selling caged eggs. All those gorgeous little craft and clothing shops replaced with Just Jeans, Sportsgirl and The Reject Shop. Does it still feel like our local community? The answer is no.
If money continues to be spent outside of the community by people not supporting local shops and industries, this horrible image may well be transplanted over the existing Warrandyte and surrounds. That’s why it is so important to support the local people. Rather than your money going to the Gerry Harveys of the world, why not share it with the community?
Control your TEMPERature
What is a Tempering Valve and why do we Install so many of them?
A tempering valve is a anti scald device that can be fitted to your existing hot water service. It’s a device that restricts your hot water temperature to 50 degrees celsius.
A water service without this device delivers a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius or more depending on the thermostat setting. The reality is that it can take 1 second for a serious burn to occur at this temperature. With a hot water delivery of 50 degrees celsius a serious burn will not occur until after 5 minutes of contact.
Low Cold Water Pressure? Here’s a possible explanation and the easy solution.
If the cold taps in your home suffer from low water pressure and it is over 30-35 years old, chances are that it is caused by rusty, corroded galvanised wrought iron pipes. It was common practice up to the late 1970’s to run cold water supply pipes in galvanized wrought iron pipes.
Melbourne’s water is classed as ‘soft water’. Soft water has low levels of calcium and magnesium salts which react aggressively with galvanised wrought iron pipes. Due to this process the pipe rusts from the inside out over time. This leads to lower water pressure as the inside pipe diameter is restricted more and more over time.
What you need to know before buying a toilet
Things you should know before purchasing a new toilet
A frequent phone call we receive at H2- Pro Plumbing is “Hi, I’ve just bought some new toilets and I need you to send one of your plumbers around to fit them”.
The first question I then ask is “do you know that they are going to suit your current plumbing configuration?”. The answer is usually “oh, I’m not sure, I assumed they’re all the same”.
There are several factors to take into account when replacing a toilet in your home.
- Waste configuration
- Water supply tap location
- Waste set out measurements
- Types of toilets