If you want to get love, you have to give it. This Valentines Day, let us show your plumbing a little love with these Valentine’s Day tips. You’ll be glad you made the call.
1. Love your drains. You may find it frustrating to have drains constantly in need of clearing. Having your drain clogged when you’re preparing for a romantic evening is maddening. Fortunately, our expert Bieg plumbers can prevent this catastrophe with hydro-flushing. This technique, also known as water jetting, thoroughly cleans drain lines without caustic chemicals or augers. Whether your blockages come from silt, hair, mineral scale, grease, or food particles, fall in love with free-flowing drains. We also perform commercial plumbing maintenance that keeps restaurant kitchens prepared for Valentine’s Day nights out.
2. Love your garbage disposal. You’re at the sink, preparing for a romantic dinner, and suddenly your garbage disposal grinds to a halt. Worse, a leak in the unit soaks the storage beneath your sink or even damages your flooring. How do you prevent this disaster?
- Keep your disposal clean by running enough cold water to ensure it’s clear. Though you might imagine that hot water would be more effective, the heat can liquify grease and cause blockages in your drains.
- Use a cleaning solution weekly. We recommend an eighth of a cup of baking soda to a half-cup of vinegar. Let it remain in the disposal for 10 minutes, allowing the foam to work on stubborn debris.
- Make sure you keep rinsing through the week to keep your disposal clear.
Still, even with your careful attention, eventually, blades can break, and metal corrode. If that occurs, we can install the appropriate replacement unit to keep your kitchen preparations humming along.
3. Love your water heater. What could ruin a Valentine’s Day more than a cold shower? Your water heater may be suffering in silence, accumulating sediment and calcium buildup. These unwelcome elements can damage the heating element. Eventually, this sludge can impinge on the space your heater needs for water, reducing its capacity. While a cold shower will make you uncomfortable, a scalding from overheated water would be dangerous. Your water heater has a relief valve that can break, affecting the temperature. Having to pay hundreds of dollars or more for a new water heater could ruin your valentines day or any day. A water heater should last you from 8-12 years. A proper maintenance check can lengthen the lifespan of your water heater and keep your unit in shape.
4. Love your sump pump. Valentine’s day won’t bring much romance if your basement floods. A working sump pump will keep the flood waters at bay. To ensure your pump works properly, schedule yearly performance tests. A Bieg plumber can spot:
- Broken float switches.
- Faulty installation.
- Insufficient pumping capacity.
Your sump pump will be hard at work when you need it the most.
5. Love your pipes. December saw subzero temperatures in St. Louis, and the hazards of winter remain with us. Pipes bursting from the cold can put a freeze on any Valentine’s Day celebration. Some precautions you can take to prevent burst pipes are:
- Keep water dripping from your faucets.
- Keep your thermostat at daytime settings.
- Keep your garage closed if it has water lines.
- Keep doors open so that air can circulate.
In case a pipe bursts despite your efforts, learn where your water shut-offs are and how to use them. Calling a plumber will get the situation under control as soon as possible.
Loving your plumbing will help ensure a great Valentine’s Day and a safer winter. However, if you need us, Bieg Plumbing is only a call away.
From big to small, Bieg Plumbing does it all!