Tips For Your Home's Plumbing System To Aid Against Plumbing Problems

With the first day of spring just around the corner, here are some spring cleaning tips for your home's plumbing system to aid against plumbing problems in the future:

• Do a check of all faucets for drips and leaks. Repairing these can save you money and conserve water. 
• Double check all toilets to make sure they are free from hidden leaks. A great way to find out is by doing the food coloring test. 
• Purchase a strainer for each drain to avert clogged drains from hair and other debris. 
• When checking any toilets for leaks, also check for cracks. 
• If you are holding down or jiggling your toilet handle to stop the water, you likely need some repairs. 
• Turn all valves under any sinks and toilets to make sure they work properly and won't stick. 
• Make sure the temperature on your water heater is not set to more than 120 degrees. This can prevent burns and reduces energy consumption. 
• If your home has a sump pump, check that it works properly by pouring a bucket of water into the sump pit. The pump should quickly turn on, get rid of the water, and then turn off without issues. 
• Clean out any yard drains, downspouts, and gutters. 
• If you live in an area where sewers sometimes back up into homes, install a back flow valve in the floor drain. This can prevent backups in the future. 

If you reside in the Naperville-Plainfield-Aurora, Geneva-Batavia-St.Charles or Wheaton-Winfield-Warrenville-Glen Ellyn areas, contact AquaTech Plumbing at 630-416-3555, 630-377-9555, or 630-462-3555 for a complete spring inspection.

How Can I Get My Home Ready For Spring?

When Winter Leaves, It Leaves Damage Behind

Though it's still freezing in many parts of the country, spring is right around the corner. There is no better time it’s time to make sure your plumbing and air conditioning systems are ready for Spring and Summer. Last year’s cold weather may have caused freezing-related breaks and leaks that won’t show up until you turn on the water. Or, this year's winter doesn't leave and this particular blog won't be needed for another couple of months. Let's hope not.

Wait to turn on your outside faucets and lawn sprinklers until after nighttime low temperatures are consistently above freezing (32° F) and once you do, remember to carefully check for leaks inside and outside your home. Or, you can CALL US and we’ll perform a complete Spring Inspection to make sure your home is ready for warm weather. Though there is a storm on it's way and a few more to come, it's never to early to prepare.

Spring Inspection:

- Faucet leak check

- Under-sink leak check

- Toilet leak check

- Water heater check-out

- Water Pressure test

- Main Water Shut-off check

- Comprehensive leak check

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 a complete spring inspection.

Does My Home Need A Sump Pump?

Sump Pump and Back-Up Systems

Thousands of dollars in valuables and stored memories can be lost if your basement floods. Many people lose their furnace too. And the clean up is a long and expensive process.

• Be sure your sump pump works properly before a spring rainy season. Unplug your pump and pour several buckets of water in the sump pit until it is full. Plug the pump in and if the pump doesn’t turn on, it’s time to replace the pump.
• Is your pump running continuously due to a lot of ground water? This will shorten the life of your pump, because it is continually working or “cycling”. If it wears out, your basement could flood. Adding an additional pump is an extra safeguard against loss.
• A back-up pump is a must. If your first pump fails, the second pump will step in. The back-up pump must be run separately. Many back-up pumps fail because they are tied into the primary pump line.
• Our AquaTech PLUS Dual Alternator System with battery back-up system and alarm will alternate your two sump pumps so that neither of the pumps works too hard. It will also keep your sump pumps running in case of a power outage (a distinct possibility in a storm) and alert you if one your pumps fail, so that you have ample opportunity to change it.
• Pumps in a shallow pit can short cycle. This occurs when a pump turns on, but doesn’t run very long, shutting off and making terrible noises. Short cycle doesn’t allow the pump to fully start before shutting down. This is hard on your pump and will shorten its life. Make sure your pit is deep enough to handle the amount of water.

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 assistance with all of your plumbing needs.

How To Check For A Water Leak

Are your water bills higher than they should be? Here’s how to check:

Faucets

• Check your faucets for dripping water and under your faucets for moisture. Fix leaky faucets promptly. Even a slow leak can waste as much as 15 or 20 gallons of water a day. And a leak can ruin your faucet or even your cabinets and floors.
• Leaky faucets are usually caused by seals which are dirty or worn and can be cleaned, replaced, or you may want to replace the faucet.

Toilets

• Fix leaky toilets right away. A leaky toilet can waste over 30 gallons of water a day. Check your toilet for leaks by dropping a few drops of food coloring or a little bit of Kool-Aid in the tank. After about half an hour, it the water in the bowl has some color in it, the tank is leaking, and the stopper (flapper) and/or flush valve seat may need to be replaced.
• Clogged toilet and a plunger didn’t work? If the water level is low fill a bucket with warm water and pour it from waist high into the bowl. Repeat if necessary after water is low again.

Other Leaks

• Check for undetected leaks in your home by making sure all water is turned off inside your home, then checking your water meter. If it is still running, you may have an undetected leak.
• When you know you are going to be gone for a few hours, write down the numbers on your water meter when you leave. If you check the meter when you return and the numbers have changed, there may be a leak somewhere inside your house.

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 assistance with all of your plumbing needs.

A Tankless Water Heater Is Affordable And Eco Friendly

So the old water heater is cutting out again, eh? Is it making a pinging sound? Does it sound like a rusty robot trying to do yoga? Does it sound like it's going to take off into the stratosphere? Well, maybe it's time for a new water heater.

Are you still watching one of those clunky, boxy, tube t.v.'s? Do you check your email using Windows 95? No! So why are you stuck in the past with an old water heater that has behavioral issues and thinks Bill Clinton is still President?

Time for a tankless water heater! They are affordable, eco friendly, and will save you thousands annually.

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 call us for a free estimate on installing your new tankless water heater.

What Should You Do If You Have A Gas Leak In Chicagoland

Our houses are like a living creatures made up of components that keep them running safely and efficiently--much like our bodies. With an intricate system of veins (or in this case pipes and lines) running through, under, around our domiciles. When one of these lines becomes incapacitated, like the human body it can be something trivial like a drippy faucet (runny nose) or something gravely serious like a gas leak (internal bleeding) that can not only compromise the safety of you and your family but could potentially annihilate an entire cul-de-sac.

Don't worry, we're here to help. Carbon monoxide detectors are a must in EVERY home so we will assume you've done the right thing and had them installed. Gas, by nature, is odorless. It is a silent killer. Luckily there is an additive that smells like sulfur to let people know there is gas leaking from somewhere.

What should you do if you have a gas leak?
ACT IMMEDIATELY. TURN OFF THE GAS. CALL US. GET OUT OF THE HOME OR BUSINESS AND WAIT FOR THE CAVALRY TO COME. (That's us!)

A gas leak should be treated with the utmost seriousness. 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 if your home or business has a gas leak.

What Are The Steps To Take If My Pipes Freeze?

The following are a few helpful tips from AquaTech Plumbing to keep your home in good working order this winter:

• As temperatures reach freezing and dip far below it, be sure to close all air vents and other openings in the crawl space under your house. This will prevent heat from escaping as much as possible. 

• In freezing weather, never set your home's thermostat below 55 degrees. Below that temperature your pipes are at risk of freezing. 

• Insulate pipes that are prone to freezing, such as those near an outside wall, in unheated areas of your home, or if they are exposed, such as outside spigots. In an emergency, several layers of newspapers or rags can be used for temporary insulation.

• Keep the cover to your water meter box securely in place to prevent the meter from freezing during cold periods.

• In extremely cold weather, leave cabinet doors under sinks open to keep warm air circulating.

If Your Pipes Freeze:

• We warn against using a hair dryer, heat lamp or light bulb to thaw the frozen pipe yourself. Too much heat in one spot can burst the pipe, and it is difficult to evenly distribute the heat over a large area of the pipe. Also, using any electrical appliance to thaw a pipe can be dangerous because the appliance could become wet, increasing your danger of electrocution.

• DO NOT use a blow torch or any type of flame to thaw a frozen line. In addition to the danger of fire, extreme heat could thaw the pipe too rapidly, causing it to burst and resulting in potential injury and damage to your property. 

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 assistance in keeping your home in tip-top shape this winter season.