With holidays come plumbing problems

With the holiday season at hand, there are many things to consider about your plumbing that if left unchecked can cost you time and money in the future. Expert Plumbing, Heating, Air and Electrical can help you with these problems should they arise, but it’s best to make sure they don’t happen to begin with. Not only do you not want to pry a plumber in Salt Lake City away from their holiday festivities, but you don’t want the extra burden on your finances during the holiday season, or any time for that matter.

There are a few simple things you can do to avoid holiday plumbing problems. Remember that when you have extra people over visiting and enjoying one another’s company, your plumbing system will be taxed beyond its normal use and possibly beyond its recommended use depending on what the equipment is and what you are sending down the drain.

Avoid putting grease or cooking oils down your drain.
Always scrape the food from your plates and bowls into the trash. The grease on them can cause blockage in pipes if it is allowed to build up.
You should have a can or some other receptacle ready for your left over cooking grease from your holiday meals. You should allow the can to cool to a point that you can touch it and then you should put the can of oil in a proper trash receptacle.
Never put potato peels down the garbage disposal or any other fruit or vegetable peel. The will jam the disposal and clog the line.
If you are frying your turkey this year, you can call around to find out where the local collection facility is and they will take the frying oil and dispose of it properly. A tallow company will pick up the turkey oil and recycle it.
Have our number on hand (801-224-8118) should you have problems with grease or oil build up in your pipes.

If the fats, oil and grease from your waste are allowed to build up in your pipelines, the build up over time can block the flow of liquid and back up into your home. Your small blockage problem can turn into a catastrophe in no time and you will have to call a plumber.

Do not use hot water and soap to clean the oil, fats and grease from your pipelines. The soapy water will harden once it cools down and just add to your blockage. The oil, grease and fats that you have and need to be aware of probably come from cooking oil, lard, meat fats, butter or margarine and food scraps. Don’t put any of these items into your home garbage disposal. Dispose of them into your trash can.

Cleaners that you might pick up from your local house center to unclog a drain might not be powerful enough to clean a grease, fat or oil clog. One home remedy that might work is to add some baking soda with an equal amount of white vinegar into a bowl and pouring the mixture down the drain to sit. The baking soda and the vinegar should start to break down the buildup. You can rinse this out with hot water and repeat as necessary. If your clog is too bad, this might not help at all.

Another holiday plumbing issue is what gets flushed down the toilet. Never flush something down the toilet that is unflushable. If necessary, you should let your guests and families know of anything specifically that should not be flushed down your sewage system, especially if lots of young kids are around. If you have a septic tank with specific needs, someone might flush something non-biodegradable down your system and clog it up, causing unnecessary costs and repairs. When someone does something they should not have done, such as flushing sanitary napkins into your septic tank, you might have to call a professional to help you out. Items that should be noted that cannot be flushed down your sewer system include baby pipes, toilet bowel cleaning pads, cleaning wipes, dental floss, diapers, condoms and feminine hygiene products.

One final holiday plumbing warning is the regular maintenance and well being of your system that you might not have time for. Whether it is snaking your lines to keep roots out or ensuring your septic tank is cleaned before your holiday onslaught happens you can take measures to ensure bad things don’t happen at your home during the holidays. If you do have problems, don’t hesitate to consider calling Expert Plumbing to help you out. 801-224-8118.