As a homeowner keeping the pipes and drains clean is a hard task, and everyone seems to stay away from that. If you are someone who does not like clogged pipes and overflowing sewers, you need to put in some work to prevent that. Fixing things, in the end, is hard, but taking care of them while they work regularly is one of the easiest ways to avert more significant issues. Most modern plumbing solutions are fit for a lifetime if you take superior care of them, but if you don’t, the results can be awful.
Plumbing emergencies are costly and need to be fixed very quickly; otherwise, they can damage many other parts of your home, but all emergencies can be prevented with regular care.
So, let’s have a look at some expert ways to take care of your pipes and drains so you don’t have to panic over plumbing emergencies.
1. Clean Drains Regularly
One of the most straightforward ways to keep your pipes and drains in a better condition is to clean them regularly. When the pipes and drains are not clean, they can leak back into the home and cause awful smells and water leaks around the house.
To make your pipes and drains last longer, always clean them regularly. Today you can clean the pipes and drains with multiple detergents and chemicals that are freely available in your nearest supermarket stores. Just ensure that you are using enzyme-based cleaning solutions, as they are better than chemical cleaners which can even harm the pipes.
If you don’t find any good cleaners for the drains, you can create one at home pretty easily. Just mix up some baking soda and vinegar together and pour the solution down the drain. Let the solution settle through the pipes, and wash it out after 15-20 minutes with some hot water. You should plan on cleaning the drains with a cleaning solution once every month and always rinse them with hot water to clear off germs from the pipes’ internals.
2. Use Drain Guards
Drain guards are among the cheapest options that can help you take care of your pipes and drains. As the name suggests, a drain guard is a metal or plastic piece with some minute holes that you put over your drain as a cover. This cover acts as a filter and allows only water to flow through it.
Any other thing like hair or bigger objects that do not belong to the drain gets trapped in the cover, and you can clean it later on.
Putting the drain guard is simple, and it is pretty effective. It protects your drains and pipes from objects that don’t go into the drain. You can buy a drain guard at your nearest hardware store, or your plumber can also suggest an inexpensive one to keep your drains clear of unwanted objects.
3. Preventing Pipes from Freezing
During winter, it’s common for homeowners to experience issues with water freezing in their pipes and drains. This can cause significant damage to the health of your pipes and drains.
When water is flowing, there is no problem, but if it freezes in the middle of a pipe, it can create a blockage. This can lead to water backflowing from drains into your home and even result in leaks in your pipeline system. In worst cases, freezing water in the pipes can cause them to rupture, leading to contaminated water flooding your home. This is a dangerous situation that requires immediate attention and can cost a lot of money to fix.
To avoid plumbing emergencies like this, it’s important to take preventative measures. Regularly draining your pipes and ensuring that water is flowing continuously can help prevent water from freezing in your pipes.
4. Replace Old Pipes
Though most people believe that pipes and drains last for a lifetime, it is only true if proper care is taken. Otherwise, pipes can break, and they need to be replaced. To avoid emergencies, you should plan on replacing your drains and pipes periodically.
Typically a brass pipe lasts anywhere between 40 to 70 years, and you should plan on replacing it after 60-65 years, considering the usage. If you are using cast iron drain pipes, they can easily last between 75 to 100 years. On the other hand, if you laid out PVC drain pipes, you don’t have to worry about replacing them unless there’s a leak or crack in the pipe.
PVC pipes are made to last a lifetime. So, if you want to decrease your expenses in the long run, you should choose PVC pipes when you replace your old pipes.
5. Don’t Flush Everything Directly
Many people make the mistake of flushing unwanted things directly, and that’s a bad habit. The drains are meant for only human waste, and they cannot handle anything and everything that you throw at them. If you want to take significant care of your pipes and drains, ensure that you never flush anything else in the drains. Whether it is a diaper, a sanitary pad, or any other thing than human waste, it should go into the garbage containers and not in the flush.
6. Stop Pouring Grease Down the Kitchen Pipes
Grease is a notorious substance, and it sticks to the insides of drain pipes which can eventually lead to blocking. If you are using grease or oil for anything in your house, you should never pour it down directly from the kitchen sink and drain. The kitchen sink will ultimately connect to the main drainage pipe, and if the grease sticks there, it can cause significant blockage and damage to your drains.
Hence, you should cut out on pouring grease down your kitchen sink to take care of your drains and keep them better for a long time.
7. Never Put Garbage in the Drain
Many times people put the vegetable waste and other such items directly into the drains while they are preparing anything. If you are one of those, beware; you are harming your drain pipes significantly.
Bigger pieces of garbage can get stuck in the drains and cause blockages which can result in water flowing back from the drains. If you don’t want to see such visuals, never put garbage down the drains directly.
8. Lay the Pipes Correctly
Laying the pipes correctly is a step you can take early on while building the house. Always ensure that the pipes and drains are not in very close proximity to objects. If you lay pipes near the roots of trees and plants, the roots can damage the pipe when they expand, and it can also lead to the breaking of pipes.
Hence to take care of pipes for a long time, place them in isolated areas so that it is easy to fix them whenever there’s an issue, and they are also not bothered by other objects.
9. Reduce Water Pressure
Pipes and drains are ready to accept a steady flow of water, but they are not meant for extremely high-pressure water transfer. High-pressure water transfer is only available if you have laid such pipes. Otherwise, there can be significant issues.
Each pipe has its own pressure handling capacity, and if the pressure crosses that level, the pipe can burst and have leaks. To keep the pipes safe from such issues, you should reduce your water pressure to 80 PSI at max. Anything above this can cause clogging and leaks in drain pipes.
10. Get the Pipes Inspected
A tip that works well for every homeowner is to get the pipes inspected. At Haynes plumbing services, we provide excellent pipe and drain inspection services that protect you from plumbing emergencies. We even provide a comprehensive report stating all the issues and fixes that can be performed on your pipelines. So get in touch with us to get your pipes inspected by professional plumbers.
Everyone loves their homes, and a plumbing emergency is the last thing they can expect. Taking care of drains and pipes is pretty easy if you follow the rules that we discussed above, and these can help you avoid a plumbing emergency very easily. At last, just keep on getting the pipes inspected by professional plumbers like Haynes Plumbing Services periodically to ensure that the pipes are fit for work.
Contact us today to get an expert’s advice on any of your plumbing issues!