Home Improvement Empire

Plumbing system is to a building, what circulatory system is to the human body. Any fault in the system is sure to throw your life helter-skelter and make your life awful. While putting in place a good well-conceived and well-done plumbing system is important, maintenance and preventive measures taken to keep the system in good shape is even more important.

This article is intended to keep you informed of the possible problems you may face with your plumbing system and the preventive measures to be taken to keep such problems at bay.

Clogged Drains:

Case I:

Your sinks / tubs connected to particular branch line drains slowly than normal.

Reasons:

Dumping food/ solid materials into your kitchen / Bathroom drains.

Pouring greasy / Sticky materials into your kitchen sink.

Pouring chemicals /paints into the drains.

Improper / Inadequate venting.

Solution:

Use a plunger to de-clog your drain. This will work for clogs of smaller size. If it still persists, call an expert. Home made solutions do not work for bigger clogs.

Clogs can be removed using various techniques. While a cable can be used to remove solid clogs and break through roots, High pressure water jetting is more effective for clogs due to sticky / greasy materials.

Before using water jetting as option, It is important to determine the quality of the plumbing materials used, for, the high pressure used in the process will rip your pipes apart if they are of a inferior quality.

Check the vents provided for any visible blocks. Find out whether the venting is adequate for the fixture(s) it serves. An expert could help you out in this area. If the venting is absent or inadequate, provide / upgrade to surmount the problem.

Preventive Measures:

Respect your toilet and kitchen sinks. Use them only for the purpose intended. Avoid unmindful dumping of solid wastes, Food materials, Greasy substances and paints / chemicals into the sinks.

Use filters over the drains in your toilet and kitchen to trap hair and solid objects.

Ensure that air vents are provided in adequate numbers and sizes for all fixtures.

Case II:

All the drainage lines of the building drain slowly and there is a backing of the drain water from the main drainage line.

Reasons:

A block in the main drainage line. or

A block in the inlet / outlet of the septic tank. or

A block in the distribution box. or

A block in the percolation pipes. or

The septic tank has frozen due to an abnormal low weather.

Solution:

Use a snake or water jetting to de-clog the main drain line. This is the work of an expert. He could, through his expertise, say whether the clog is due to solid waste or greasy substances or roots and use a suitable technique to de-clog the same.

Check the inlet and the outlet of the septic tank for any blockage due to solid wastes, scum and so on. Remove the block and check for easy flow.

Check the distribution box located between the septic tank and the percolators. Remove blocks, if any.

Check the area around the percolators. See whether it is moist, swampy and stinky. It means that the percolation is not proper. In other works the soil is not absorbing the drain water at the rate of discharge. It could be either because you usage of water has increased of late due to more guests or the soil has become saturated due to moisture from other sources such as rainfall (more than normal) etc. Immediately enlist an expert, the problem requires instant care.

If the septic tank has frozen due to bad weather seek the help of an expert immediately. If an expert and the equipment needed are hard to find, use the septic tank as a storage tank till such time the tank haws by itself. Judicious use of water will help you hold on for some time. To avoid freezing of the septic tank in the future, winterize before the next winter.

Preventive Measures:

Respect your Septic tank. It is designed for the disposal of organic wastes only. Avoid dumping inorganic and non bio-degradable wastes. They are sure to block the normal functioning of the septic tank and spoil it beyond redemption.

Use filters over the drains in your toilet and kitchen to trap hair and solid objects.

Winterize the septic tank to prevent it from freezing in winter. Do the following:

o Insulate the Septic tank, distribution tank, percolators and all out door lines by spreading a layer of hay, grass, dry leaves etc.

o During winter, resort to more-than-normal usage of water. Warmer the water, the better.

o Empty the tank, if you are planning for a long outing.

o Get expert help. Winterization is location, weather specific. A small investment here will save you from all hardships during the winter.

Leaks

Symptoms:

Leaks in your plumbing system are not just unsanitary but is a tremendous loss of a scarce resource. More often than not leaks are detected much later than they had started and after much damage had already been done.

Try this test out to determine whether there is a leak in your plumbing system. Before you go to bed in the night, close the Main valve at the primary inlet of your plumbing system. Note the water meter reading. In the dawn, before you start using water, note the reading. If the reading has changed then, there is a leak in the system.

To locate the leak, repeat the procedure by keeping the main valve open and all but one of your ancillary line valves closed. If the reading shows a change, then the leak is in that particular branch line. Inspect the faucets for visible leaks and path of the lines for subtle hints of invisible leaks behind the plastered walls. If you still can’t detect the leak. Contact us for expert care.

Reasons:

While visible are due to faulty faucets / fixtures, Invisible leaks can be due to cracks in your plumbing lines. The cracks happen due to (a) Ageing lines giving off or (b) Faulty winterization of you plumbing system.

Solution:

Replace the faulty fixtures / faucets.

If the leak is due to faulty line, replace the line. If your plumbing system is considerably old, you can think of replacing the lines in stages without waiting for the system to call for your attention and doing much damage to your cherished home.

Preventive Measures:

Make proper use and take proper care of your faucets and other movable water outlets. Install only good quality faucets that’ll stand the wear and tear. Don’t compromise on quality for price. Remember, a compromise on quality is a compromise on peace of mind.

Properly winterize your plumbing system.

Winterization

What?

Acclimatizing your plumbing system to withstand the test of hard winter is winterization.

Why?

Plumbing systems are primarily intended to transport water to the locations of need from a centralized water storage facility. In the winter, as the temperature dips to appreciable lows, water freezes. The density of ice is more than that of water. Hence to accommodate water turned into ice, your plumbing system expands. When this expansion is beyond its elastic limit, it cracks wreaking havoc on your entire plumbing system.

Solution

Prepare for the winter ahead by properly acclimatizing your plumbing system. Do the following.

Insulate the drains outside your home.

Open the cabinets under sinks to facilitate circulation of warm air to avoid freezing.

In the temperature is harsh, allow water to flow through the lines in a trickle, when not in use, to avoid freezing.

If you are going out and if the plumbing system will not be in use for a long time close the main valve and drain all water form the system, to ensure that there is no water to be frozen.

Remember, winter is a testing time for your plumbing system. Take preventive measures or you may have to spend a fortune to restore the system back to normalcy. If you need more information, feel free to avail our expert care.

Plumbing is a science, but proper use and maintenance of it is an art. A good plumbing system will give you peace of mind. A bad one is sure to derail your day and make a hell out of it. The problems and the solutions suggested here are generic and not case specific or location specific. It is intended to equip you with the knowledge of the intricacies in plumbing so that you could understand and appreciate the workmanship better. Remember a few procedures are health hazardous and needs to be handled by an expert. Do not try them your self. IF you need experts, think of eServicePlace (ESP), where hand picked professionals are ever ready to address your problems in the shortest possible time and in the best possible manner. Think expert care, think ESP. http://www.eserviceplace.com

Drain waste and vent piping are the two most important components in plumbing. These are the systems that take water away from your home. Let us examine how do they work.

Drain Waste-Vent System and Gravity

Earlier galvanized caste iron was used in the piping system, but now-a-days PVC piping is generally used. PVC piping is much better than the galvanized caste iron, as the later one clogs much easier. This distribution PVC piping system brings the water to the toilet bowl and the drain waste-vent system takes all the used water and waste away from the home to the sewer or septic system.

The functions of most sewer systems are based on gravity. That is the reason why everything goes down. In this process, the wastewater runs down the drain, enters the waste line, and finally leaves the bowl. Supply lines in the drainage system are fitted at forty or ninety degree angles. This drainage specification goes with the flow and helps the gravity of the sewer system to move the wastewater.

The Venting System

Venting system is a piping system and one of the most important components of drainage. The venting system consists of pipes. You must have noticed several pipes sticking up through the roofs of the houses in your neighborhood. These pipes are the venting system.

This system is also an essential requirement by the building code, as it prevents the water to draw out of the traps that are under sinks. Moreover, the other main function of this system is to allow gases to escape. It also helps wastewater to drain properly by relieving air pressure.

House Trap and Lateral Line

When the plumber ties the waste water pipes into the sewer line, he/she also installs house trap and lateral line. The main function of the house trap is to keep the waste and odors flowing out of the home, while the lateral line ties the house to the municipal sewer line.

This lateral line first goes into a sewer system down the street, and then it collects through a main distribution line, and finally goes to a sewer processing plant.

Air Admittance Vents

Air admittance vents are fitted under the sink. It helps sewer gases from coming out while drawing a bit of air in from under the sink. This way, these vents save money for you by reducing the amount of waste line vent stacks that you run. Moreover, they also help in reducing the possible number of penetrations through the roof.

Other Important Things

 - The sewage lines coming into the house must be higher than where they go to connect to the city sewer line. This is an essential requirement, as we know that the sewage moves by gravity.

 - There must be at least 2%-3% fall in your sewer system. However, it depends on the elevation of your home as well as the elevation of the city, which is the location of the connection.

 - The fall the drain waste-vent system that carries fluids through the sewage system must be at least 0.25 inch per foot.

 - There must be two-degree fall into the main line for the lateral.

Hence, here we see what are the components of a drain waste-vent system, and how do they work.

Basement bathroom plumbing work needs considerable skill, experience and care. It is advisable to hire the services of a plumbing contractor for carrying out basement bathroom plumbing work. The existing floor needs to be busted and in the process drainpipes may also get broken if adequate safety measures are not taken up.

Basement bathroom plumbing procedure

Some concrete may need to be removed for installing basement bathroom plumbing system. The fixtures required for setting up basement bathroom plumbing – bathtub, one-piece shower unit etc. may not be easily obtainable. Special effort needs to be made to secure them.

Often, the concrete of the basement needs to be broken. Marks are made on the surface along some demarcations and the concrete is chipped away usually employing a jack hammer. The debris thus obtained has to be cleared and new plumbing pipes are well glued to the original setup. After completion the new setup has to be covered up with concrete.

Another approach to basement bathroom plumbing is installation of a plastic sump beneath the basement floor. A sewage ejector pump or lift pump is used to pump out the waste as the sump becomes full. The pumps have devices to grind solids. In case the pump fails the toilet will not be draining properly.

There may be some houses where the building drain lies below the basement level. So, no pump is needed. A plumber can help in this regard by providing various estimates of drain line locations and plumbing setup plans.

Again, there may be homes where the main drain lies at floor level. To help out in such cases you may build a false floor for the bathroom. Of course your ceiling needs to be high enough in such case. The false floor erection would ensure that the fixtures are higher than the sewer line. This will do away with the necessity of installing a sewage ejector pumping unit.

Basement bathroom plumbing – a special plumbing

Basement bathroom plumbing is a special kind of plumbing setup. Therefore, special care needs to be taken while proceeding with the installation, maintenance and repair or replacement of the basement bathroom plumbing system. If you are contemplating basement bathroom plumbing for your home then you may conveniently hire some competent plumber for helping out.