Avoid Problems With Your Plumbing Projects
Plumbing problems can turn into nightmares or even worse, plumbing emergencies. The water pressure, a toilet in your house, or something as simple as caulking may wreak all kinds of havoc in your pipes and your plumbing. Plumbing is easily maintained with a little tender loving care. At Stephens we recommend preventing leaks and complications early before the problem happens. If there seems to be a problem, get to the bottom of it the moment you think something is wrong to prevent expensive repairs and extensive damage to your pipes that can cause replacing instead of repair.
Get Your Toilet Maintenance in Check
Think your toilet is on the outs and might be leaking, but you’re not quite sure? Check out the back of the toilet. In some cases, the flapper, which is the rubber disc at the bottom of the toilet that releases water throughout a flush, can almost disintegrate, tear, or just get warped over time. If the flapper is out of shape or worn thin, you’re going to have a leak. Just add a few drops of green or blue food coloring into the tank and leave it for about 24 hours. If you have colored toilet water the next day, it’s time to replace the flapper.
Your Bathroom Might Need to be Re-caulked
The caulk around the base of the toilet, no matter how old it might be, can wear and cause costly leaks. If the wax seal deteriorates, you might not find the leak until it’s too late. Waterproof caulking does prevent water leaking from the bathtub, or an overflow, from getting underneath your toilet and rotting the floors. So your bathroom appliances like the toilet and bathtub often need to be re-caulked to keep from having to replace a whole floor which can be quite costly if you have to replace the tub and toilet, as well.
Ditch the Dirty Tank
Over the years, thick layers of scale, metal stains, bacteria, and black mold can find its way into your tank and make a home in the back of your toilet. Ditch the dirty tank and clean it once in awhile. Every time you flush, water is going from the tank to refill the bowl. If your tank is full of dirty debris, that water is feeding straight into your bathroom bowl, making it hard to maintain and could lead to plumbing problems that can, in some cases, require repiping. Just ditch the dirt and scrub your toilet tank after a while and avoid that kind of plumbing nightmare.
Brush out Your Toilet Bowl
It’s that simple. Keep it clean and you’ll preserve it from corrosion and clogging. You don’t have to buy expensive cleaners to keep those pipes running smooth. Just mix up 1/4 cup vinegar, baking soda, and water. Pour it into the toilet bowl. Brush it around a bit. Let your simple bowl cleaner sit for 5 to 10 minutes and voila! One clean bowl can be the key to keeping plumbing nightmares at bay.