No matter how well you take care of your home or how careful you may be, you will eventually run into some kind of plumbing issue at some point. Plumbing is more complicated than many people believe, and in most cases it's best to simply contact a good plumber in your area to fix a severe plumbing problem. You can be sure that your problem is being handled by a professional, and you will most likely save money since you're taking care of the problem before it can cause too much damage.
Before you go looking for the best Pittsburgh plumbing services to take care of a plumbing problem in your home, you might want to make sure you really need their help. Some plumbing problems are minor and common enough to be fixed with some equally common quick solutions. Here are just a few to keep in mind.
Clogged Drains
A clogged drain is a very common plumbing problem, one that actually has a number of solutions depending on the severity of the clog. Many clogs can be fixed with a simple plunger, something that no home should be without. To use a plunger to unclog a drain, simply create a seal with the plunger over the drain and plunge it vigorously for several minutes. That should loosen up the clog enough for your sink or toilet to drain.
Another great tool to have on hand for clogged sinks is a plastic clog remover. These are long strips of plastic with barbs along the side. When you stick these down a drain, the barbs grab hold of any hair or other material that may be clogging your sink.
If your plunger or plastic clog remover does not work, you can try using a chemical drain remover, but you need to be careful with these. They do often work, but many of them are caustic enough to damage your pipes along with whatever is keeping them clogged.
If you have multiple clogged drains, you may have a problem with your sewer line, which is beyond the DIY resources of most homeowners. In these cases, you will need to contact a professional to perform a plumbing camera inspection to find what is wrong with your sewer line.
A Running Toilet
Most toilets will occasionally run when they're not supposed to, and fixing them is an easy task. When you flush your toilet, a rubber flapper will open to allow the water to drain into the toilet bowl. The flapper closes when the tank is empty, and the tank will fill with water until a float closes its intake valve.
A running toilet is usually caused by a problem with the flapper or the float. If the problem is the flapper, it may not be creating a tight enough seal or is unable to close. This can happen if the chain connected to the flapper gets twisted or if the rubber flapper is worn down. The chain can be untwisted, while a rubber flapper can be replaced without spending a lot of money.
Sometimes a toilet will run if the float is too high and won't shut off the intake valve. Once again, this is easy to fix. All you need to do is adjust the level of the float so it shuts off the intake valve sooner. This can be accomplished by bending the rod that is connected to the float so it sits lower in the tank.
Frozen Pipes
A frozen pipe can be a serious problem. When the water inside a pipe freezes, it expands and can cause the pipe to burst. This can do thousands of dollars’ worth of damage, but it is fortunately avoidable. If you have to cope with extremely cold weather, turn on your faucets just enough so that there is a drip or a trickle going down the drain. Even this small amount of flowing water will keep your pipes from freezing. You can also wrap exposed pipes in your basement or garage with insulation or even some old towels to keep them from getting too cold.
Rid your home of the most common plumbing problems with help from the Pittsburgh plumbing services from Tudi Mechanical Systems. Our Pittsburgh plumbers can help rid your home of your plagued pipes, keeping your entire plumbing system in tip-top shape all year round. Subscribe to our Home Comfort Plan, and save even more on all of your plumbing repairs! Call us today for a free estimate on any plumbing problem you face, and discover what makes Tudi’s Plumbers some of the best in the business.
