New Homeowner Plumbing Tips
If you are a new home owner, then you may know zilch about the plumbing system in your home. The information here can be used as a wonderful guide to introducing you to your plumbing system. This helps you know what to do to keep your plumbing working right and helps you to catch things that are going wrong early on.
You're on septic or sewer
Sewer – If your plumbing is hooked to sewer, then your used water will travel off your property to a treatment facility. You will want to watch for problems with the sewer such as clogs or tree roots interfering with the sewer lines.
Septic – If you are on septic, then your used water will go down into a septic tank on your property where it will be filtered and directed to a drain field. With septic, it is up to you to have the tank emptied before it gets full and starts causing problems. You also want to be sure no one parks on the tank or puts heavy machinery there or it can damage the tank.
You have a garbage disposal
If you have a garbage disposal then all this means is those tiny pieces of food that usually cause clogs will now be ground up by the disposal so they can go through the plumbing without causing those clogs. However, there is a list of foods you can't put down the disposal without causing issues. Also, you still want to scrape most of the food off into the trash or trash compactor.
Sinks should have strainers
If you look in the sinks in your home, you will see most don't come with screens in the drains. This means foods can enter your kitchen pipes and things like hair, whiskers and chunks of soap and toothpaste. Purchasing strainers for the drains and putting one in each drain yourself will help you to really cut down on the number of clogs you will see. You can dump the strainers right in the trash as you see that debris has collected in it. Just know, all that stuff in the strainer would have been put in your pipes.
Pipes can leak or bust
Always be on the look out for the sounds of dripping water or for puddles under your sink drains or even puddles in the yard. Water showing up anywhere for no reason can mean you better get a plumber out right away.
Bathtubs can need refinishing
If you look at your bathtub and you notice that the topcoat is off and the underneath is showing, then you want to have the bathtub refinished. This will ensure the tub remains in good shape, and it also helps you to keep the bathroom looking nice and fresh.