Archive for Garbage Disposal
Toilets and Showerheads Result in Big Savings in Your MN Home!
Posted by: | CommentsEverybody is looking to find ways to save money. Some ways of saving money can be painful and require sacrifice and big changes in lifestyle. I personally like the changes that require minimal effects in my life other than a bigger savings account.
Water is going to be a very valuable commodity in the future. Some people say it will be even more precious than oil or gold. If this happens, the price of water will go up significantly. Learning ways to conserve water will help the pocket book now and will increase in the future.
Below is a list of great ways to save water and thus save money. Feel good while thinking about the future.
- Low Flush Toilet – Conventional toilets use 3.5 to 5 gallons each flush. The new ultra low flow toilets only use 1.2 gallons per flush. The average person uses the toilet about 4 to 5 times per day. This means a low flow toilet has the potential to save a family of four more than 14 thousand gallons a of water per year.
- Low Flow Showerhead - A standard showerhead drops 4.5 gallons of water a minute. Low Flow or Energy Efficient Showerheads only release 2.5 gallons a minute. A quality low flow showerhead can save a family of four as much as 20 thousand gallons of water a year without a reduction of rinsing ability. This will also save hot water. Between 14% and 25% of your home energy use goes to heat water.
Below are 15 more ideas that combined will help you save a lot of water.
- When doing the dishes, fill one sink with soapy water and the other with rinsing water.
- Don’t plant grass in areas that are hard to water or do not retain water like a sloping area or along sidewalks and driveways.
- Keep drinking water in a jug in the fridge so that every drop of water goes down someone and not the sink.
- Check out your bill and water meter to gauge your water use.
- Collect your leftover water for watering plants.
- Shorten your watering time. Early morning is the best time to water grass.
- Adjust the lawn mower to a higher blade setting. This will help hold water. I believe it also makes the yard look better and hides any imperfections.
- Check outdoor faucets, pipes, and hoses for leaks. Call your plumber if leaks are found.
- Use the water from your fish tank to water your plants when you clean it out. The water is nutritious for the plants.
- In your toilet tank, put food coloring to see if it seeps in your toilet bowl. Replace inside parts if it is leaking.
- On driveways and other walking areas on your lawn, use porous materials. I keeps water in your yard and prevents runoff.
- Bathe you pets in a dry area in your yard.
- Install new water saving appliances, like washing machines that save up to 20 gallons per load.
- Aerate your lawn by punching holes in your lawn about six inches apart. Water will reach the roots rather than run off the surface.
- Know where your master shut off is and make sure it works. It will prevent a lot of damage and water loss if your pipes leak or break.
Contact Minneapolis Saint Paul Plumbing Heating Air if you would like help with any of your plumbing problems or suggestions on water saving devices for your home. You can reach us either online or by phone.
What Can I Do To Prevent Frozen Pipes in MN?
Posted by: | CommentsIt is that time again where the potential for frozen pipes increases. I thought I would remind homeowners of the ways you can prevent frozen pipes and what to do if they do freeze.
Steps for preventing frozen plumbing:
- Let a faucet drip that has a supply pipe running along an outside wall. You do not need a strong flow, just enough to keep the water flowing. Flowing water freezes slower than standing water in a pipe.
- Do not turn your heat down during windy cold days. The cooling down period allows the cold to seep into the walls before it comes into your house. The pipes are exposed to this cold air. Hot water heat is more prone to freezing due to the hot water in the heating lines. Hot water will freeze faster than cold or room temperature water.
- Leave cabinet doors under sinks that are next to outside walls open. These areas are not generally heated but, do receive the cold air coming in through walls. This will help prevent frozen water supply plumbing and waste piping lines.
- Insulate walls where your plumbing pipes run. Opening walls and checking is not always practical. However, checking for insulation when walls are open for repairs remodeling is a great idea.
- Keep garage doors closed. The cold air will freeze plumbing pipes exposed to garage walls.
- Shut off water to outside faucets. Leaking outside faucets and plumbing pipes to them are caused by freezing over the winter. We replace many outside faucets and plumbing pipes in the spring due to freezing.
- Have a neighbor, relative or friend check on your house when you go out of town. Total house freeze ups that require major repair result from homes that the heat goes out and the house gets down below 32 degrees. All the plumbing freezes including toilets, faucets etc. This could amount to costs well over $10,000 and may not be covered by insurance.
- Tune up your furnace or boiler to help insure that you will have heat in the house.
If your plumbing is frozen you have some options:
- Expose the pipe and put a space heater in the room or next to the pipe. This works if you have a small room where the pipe is frozen. Under sink frozen pipes can be thawed this way since it is a very small enclosed area that will heat up quickly. Leave the faucet on so the water can flow when it starts thawing.
- Put space heaters in the room that may have frozen pipes or if the pipe is not exposed. This will not work in a large room.
- Do not thaw the pipe if you notice a crack unless you shut the water off first.
- Call a plumber. Plumbers carry equipment that will electrically charge the pipe to warm it up to thaw the pipe. It is recommended that you have a professional plumbing contractor do this due to the possibility of damage if not done correctly.
Do not ignore the problem if the pipe is frozen and do not use a blow torch. Both these options may result in more damage and cost more than having a plumber solve the problem for you.
Minneapolis Saint Paul Plumbing Heating Air is here if you would like to learn more or need help with any of your plumbing, heating, air or drain cleaning issues in your home. You can reach us by phone or schedule online.
Busiest Day For Drain Cleaning in MN? Turkey Day!
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Cause of Drain Cleaning Problems
Ahhh, Thanksgiving Day. Family, food, football, more food and clogged drains. Broken garbage disposals and clogged kitchen sinks have become as much of a tradition of Thanksgiving as family and food.
The busiest day for plumbing and drain cleaning companies is the day after Thanksgiving. Our phones will be ringing off the hook from home owners who have clogged up their drain with left over turkey and the fixings. TV news stations will be requesting to meet us at homes to talk about the clogged drains.
The second most calls for clogging is toilets. Large gatherings result in a larger use of the toilets in homes. The extra usage will overwhelm the facilities and waste main line.
While there isn’t too many ways to prevent the toilet from clogging other than having a toilet that does not clog, below are some tips for preventing clogged kitchen sinks.
- Garbage Disposal – Run lots of water when using the garbage disposal. Make sure you run the water a few seconds after you turn the disposal off to flush the food. Start the disposal before you put food into the disposal.
- Turkey Left Overs – Consider throwing the extra food in the garbage instead of in the sink. The less you run down your sink the less chance of a clog.
- Use Cold Water – When pouring grease down the sink, use cold water instead of hot. That way the grease will not harden half down the drain.
- Use BioClean – An organic drain maintaining product that helps keep drains clear of waste.
Everybody here at Minneapolis Saint Paul Plumbing Heating Air hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving with the knowledge that we are here in case you need us.
Do You Need Drain Cleaning in MN? Call your Plumbing Company!
Posted by: | CommentsRecently a drain cleaning company that we have used decided they had the skills to go into the plumbing business. I guess clearing pipes qualified them to fix them. Time will tell.
When you call a plumber for all your plumbing needs, you know that you will get a licensed technician that has training both in the classroom and on the job. All plumbers in Minnesota are required to have a license to be a plumber. Drain Cleaning Technicians do not need a license to operate.
Many things can go wrong during the process of clearing out a drain. Most drain cleaning projects go smoothly without an issues. However, there are occasions where problems do come us such as.
- Broken Waste Pipe
- Toilet Leaking or Needs Replacement
- Broken Main Line
- Sink Stop Broken
- Garbage Disposal Broken
Make sure that when you have somebody come clear your clogged lines that they have the experience and parts necessary to take care of all of the plumbing issues that may come up as a result.
Minneapolis Saint Paul Plumbing Heating Air has the experience and parts in our plumbers trucks to take care of all your plumbing issues. You can call us or contact us online to schedule your drain cleaning or plumbing service need.