D-I-WHY Don't You Call A Professional???

So, you've just returned home from the home improvement store with a cart full of new fixtures and other accessories for your kitchen or bathroom. You're so excited to see the new look that you decide to install them yourself. The guy at the home improvement store said it's a cinch and that a third grader could do it. Hopefully for your sake that third grader is a licensed plumber.

A seemingly simple task taken on by a non-licensed contractor or plumber can result in catastrophic results. I'm not saying your house will implode if you install a new faucet, but it could leak steadily for a year, soften the floor, and come crashing down in your kitchen on top of the other faucet you installed (that also leaks). Try this, an improperly installed faucet can mean the difference between losing thousands of dollars or keeping money in the bank.

You see, no two homes are identical. Even if they have the same blue print. There is always an alteration to suit a particular home when it comes to plumbing and electricity. There are basic guidelines but there is no one particular way to install these fixtures.

Do you have plumber's putty? Vise grips? A snake? Probably not. If you do, then you're probably a plumber! If you don't have any of those basic plumbing tools then call someone who does. Those fixtures deserve to be calibrated to an exact point for maximum efficiency. That's where we come in. If you knocked a tooth out would you go buy a new one and put it in yourself? I don't think so! Same goes for your home's fixtures.

If you live in Naperville-Plainfield-Aurora, Geneva-Batavia-St.Charles or Wheaton-Winfield-Warrenville-Glen Ellyn area, contact AquaTech Plumbing at 630-416-3555, 630-377-9555, or 630-462-3555 for any of your plumbing fixture replacement needs.

Keeping Your Plumbing Fixtures In Good Working Order

Today, many homes have extra toilets, tubs, sinks, and showers that may not get any use. Maintaining these items is especially important for many reasons:

• If unnoticed, leaks and cracks in plumbing fixtures around your home could lead to costly repairs, in addition to higher than necessary water bills.
• Flush unused toilets at least once a week to keep all parts in good working order. Leaving the commode dormant for extended periods of time can result in leakage from dried out seals, and sticking from other parts. Flushing periodically also minimizes toilet bowl discoloration.
• Running water through tubs, showers, and sinks on occasion will keep the seals in working order, just like the toilet. Doing this at least once a month will ensure that you have longevity from your plumbing products.
• By flushing water down all of the drains, you're preventing sewer gases from stinking up your home. Sewer gas typically smells like rotten eggs and can lead to nausea, eye irritation, and in some cases death. 

Is it too late for some of your plumbing fixtures? If you live in Naperville-Plainfield-Aurora, Geneva-Batavia-St.Charles or Wheaton-Winfield-Warrenville-Glen Ellyn area, contact AquaTech Plumbing at 630-416-3555, 630-377-9555, or 630-462-3555 for any of your plumbing fixture replacement needs.

What Is Video Snaking?

What Is Video Snaking ?

Video snaking or "See-Snake" is a process where a plumbing company runs a video line or camera down your branch lines (the pipes that lead from bathtubs and faucets to the house's sewer line) or down the house's sewer line (the larger pipe that leads from the house to the municipal sewer line on the street). At the end of the line is a camera that lets you see the line close-up. If you are doing an entire sewer line video inspection you will see a walk-through, leading from the trap, down through the sewer line, and up to any obstructions. If the camera can push through the blockage, it may continue through to the municipal line.

How Often Will You Need This Done?

This would not be a frequent occurrence. If you are purchasing a home, adding a bathroom, or remodeling your kitchen or bathroom then video snaking is in order. Typically, most homeowners call in a sewer line video inspection only if there is a problem, such as a blockage that cannot be fixed by plunging, or sewer rodding or drain cleaning. Locating the problem via video is a lot more cost effective than aimlessly digging holes, looking for the culprit.

If you live in the Naperville-Plainfield-Aurora, Geneva-Batavia-St.Charles or Wheaton-Winfield-Warrenville-Glen Ellyn area, contact AquaTech Plumbing at 630-416-3555, 630-377-9555, or 630-462-3555 for any of your video snaking needs.

Prevent A Gas Emergency In Your Home With These 10 Safety Tips:

1. Always follow the manufacturer's instructions when operating and caring for natural gas appliances, and use each appliance for its intended purpose.

2. Keep the area around your gas water clear and free of debris.

3. Ensure fuel-burning appliances are installed, used and maintained properly and safely. Hire a qualified technician to inspect heating and venting equipment annually, and use a carbon monoxide alarm that meets current standards.

4. Never use a gas oven to warm a home.

5. Don't use fuel lines for storage. Heavy coats or other items hanging from a fuel line (often located near the ceiling in basements) can stress the joints in the pipe and cause gas leaks. Don't allow children to swing on the pipes or hang clothes from them either.

6. Use a broom to keep gas meters, pipes and other service equipment clear in winter. Gas-appliance chimneys and vents must be cleared after snow and ice storms to ensure proper venting and prevent carbon monoxide accumulation.

7. Set your water heater temperature to 120 degrees or lower. Check the water temperature before placing a child in the bathtub, and never leave a child alone or with other young children in the bathtub.

8. Replace flexible connectors. Cracks can form and cause serious gas leaks in these flexible pipes that attach appliances to fuel lines. Limit the number of times you move natural gas appliances, and replace flexible connectors at least every 10 years with an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) approved model.

9. Never use a gas generator inside your home, garage, or near a window. Generators emit toxic and deadly carbon monoxide gas.

10. Rely on your eyes, ears, and nose to spot a gas leak. A damaged connection to a gas appliance, a hissing sound, or its distinct smell are all telltale signs of a gas leak.

There Are Two Types Of Sump Pumps: Pedestal And Submersible

You may be asking yourself, "What is a sump pump and do I need one?" A sump pump's job is to keep the area under a building dry and to prevent the building from flooding. Sump pumps are located inside sump pits. Water flows into the sump pit through either drains or the soil. The sump pump's job is to direct water out of the pit and away from the building so the basement and building stays dry.

Even if your basement has never flooded, you should still invest in a sump pump.

There are two types of sump pumps: pedestal and submersible. Pedestal pumps use an electric motor attached to a column. It sits above the sump pit. It's easy to get to and if well maintained, can last a long time. Submersible pumps are designed to work beneath the water and are located in the sump pit. These types of pumps are harder to get to, but are quite inconspicuous which is great if you don't want it to be seen. They are typically quieter than pedestal pumps.

Sump pumps don't just prevent your basement from flooding, they also control underground wetness which results in mold and mildew. Mold and mildew can lead to health problems down the road.

If you already have a sump pump and you're not sure if it works properly, now is the perfect time to find out. Areas that experienced excessive snow fall will need to prevent flooding as the snow melts. Also, spring showers can leave your basement filled with water if you don't have a sump pump or if your sump pump is not in working order.

Even though a sump pump can be your best ally against a flood, they do fail under certain circumstances, including neglect and power outages.

In addition to having a sump pump, a battery back-up system is advisable, in case your power does go out. Certain battery back-up systems will automatically “cycle” your back-up pump so that it won’t sit neglected and therefore fail when it is called upon in a power outage. These systems can be expensive but are well worth it, especially if you have a finished basement.

Contact Naperville area AquaTech Plumbing at 630-416-3555 for sump pump installation or repair before you have the task of dealing with a flooded basement.

How To Keep Your Home Free Of Leaks When You Are On Vacation

Here are a few suggestions to keep your home free of floods and leaks while you are away.

10 Plumbing Tips Before You Leave on Vacation:

1. If you don't need a sprinkler system or a pool pump to run, be sure to turn off your main plumbing shut off valve before you leave for an extended period of time. There will still be water in your plumbing system, but additional water won't enter into the system while you're gone. This is a great opportunity to check that the plumbing main shut off valve is working properly.
2. Can't shut off the main valve? You can shut off individual valves under your sinks, behind your toilets, behind the refrigerator, and behind the washing machine. Only turn off the valves that are in good working order.
3. If you turned off your plumbing main shut off valve, this is still a good time to look at all your shut off valves and supply lines under your sinks and toilets to be sure none are wet or leaking before leaving.
4. If you have plumbing behind your refrigerator, pull the refrigerator out and check to be sure nothing is wet or corroded.
5. Look all around your water heater and water softener, make sure there is no water present. These items also have their own shut off valves that can be turned off to lessen the chance of water damage. 
6. If the water heater is in good condition, turn the thermostat down so that it isn't constantly running to heat the water while you are away. On an electric water heater, turn the breaker off at your main electrical breaker box. This will avoid wasting energy while you're away.
7. Add water to all drains before leaving to keep them wet. This will minimize odors in your pipes when you return.
8. Do an inspection of the outside of your home, make sure nothing is leaking before you leave the house. Be sure to check the hoses, sprinklers, etc.
9. If you have a drinking water system, make sure your drinking water system is newer, as older lines on these units can crack and break and are often the culprit causing water damage in many homes. Some of these systems can be turned off individually at the valve under the sink to lessen the possibility of water damage.
10. While you're away, have someone check inside and around your home to ensure that nothing has broken or was forgotten while your family is enjoying their vacation. An unattended plumbing problem can be very costly and frustrating to return home to.

If you live in the Naperville-Plainfield-Aurora, Geneva-Batavia-St.Charles or Wheaton-Winfield-Warrenville-Glen Ellyn area, contact AquaTech Plumbing at 630-416-3555, 630-377-9555, or 630-462-3555 for any of your pre-vacation plumbing questions and needs.

How Do You Prevent Your Household Sinks From Clogging?

How do you prevent your household sinks from clogging? The short answer-- Stop dumping stuff down the drain! The main culprits behind a clogged or slow moving drain are usually hair and food. The bathroom sink drain gets full of hair and the kitchen sink drain gets full of food and debris. If you could keep hair and food out of the drain you would prevent 99% of the clogs before they happen.

How to keep your Kitchen drain clear:

Keeping food out of the kitchen sink drain can be easy, if you have a sink strainer. It's cheap and readily available and saves you from potential plumbing catastrophes. Most strainers are the basket type with holes or there is the screen style which just sets over the drain opening catching all the big food particles. You simply lift out the screen and dump it in the trash when it's full or when the water won't drain. Anything that will slip past this screen is small enough so it won't cause a back-up. They can be bought at Home Depot for around $3.00.

How to keep your bathroom drain clear:

When it comes to the bathroom sink (or tub), your drain's biggest enemy is hair. Unfortunately there isn't a screen that fits a bathroom sink. Bathroom sinks, unlike kitchen sinks, usually have a pop-up drain assembly with a lever right behind the faucet to lift and lower the stopper. The best prevention here is to wipe up any loose hair before it enters the sink drain. You will occasionally need to remove the pop-up in order to clean out the hair. It's a messy job but one that needs to be done. Some tubs have a fixed metal screen and some have a loose rubber plug. If you have a fixed drain cover you'll need to remove this cover so a hair stopper will fit.

Over the years the inside diameter of your drain pipes get smaller and smaller. You'd be shocked if you could see inside your pipes but this is an indicator of the health of your plumbing. There are a number of drain cleaners on the market both organic and caustic but those are not recommended. Always contact a professional plumber before putting ANYTHING, organic or not, down your drain. If you are experiencing slow draining or clogged pipes, contact Naperville area AquaTech Plumbing for all of your drain cleaning needs!