Pre-Holiday Preventive Plumbing Maintenance

Have you ever thought about the effects of the busy holiday season on your plumbing? Then it’s time for some preventive maintenance before the holiday season!  No one cares to deal with backed up sinks, toilets and slow draining tubs. With the extra use by guests your plumbing in the kitchen, bathroom and utility room can get a real workout. Take a few moments to give your plumbing some preventive maintenance before festivities get underway.

Maintenance in the Bathroom

You might as well attack the bathrooms first. They will bear the brunt of use by guests. If you are using seldom used guest bathrooms run water down the drains in the tub and sink, give the toilet a few flushes. Be alert for sluggish drains and leaks. If there are missing strainers on the tub or sink replace them before soap chips and hair can clog the drains. A quick home remedy to clear drains in the tub in the sink uses ½-cup baking soda poured down the drain followed by ½-cup vinegar. You will hear and see a Mount Vesuvius action, this is normal. Allow the mixture to rest in the drain for about 15-minutes and then rinse the drain with very hot water. You will have cleared some build-up and enjoy a fresh smelling drain. Watch out for leaking faucet fixtures at the sink and the tub. If necessary install new washers and o-rings. Take your old washers with you to the big box hardware store. There are more configurations than you can imagine. Or call the plumber!

If your toilet seems unstable, or rocks try snugging up the bolts on either side of the bowl. If you are unable to stabilize the toilet bowl you probably need to call a plumber to deal with the issue. If you detect leaks in the toilet tank you can attempt a repair yourself or have a plumber deal with the job. If you live with a septic tank now is a good time to use some RID-X© or Roebic© (both of these products are available at hardware and some grocery stores.) to stimulate the action of your septic system, if you are not already doing this on a monthly basis. Roebic© can also be used to clean traps on standard plumbing systems. It is also not a bad idea to discreetly remind guests to only flush toilet tissue down the drain. Even products advertised as flushable such as baby-wipes are not flushable.

Plumbing Maintenance for the Kitchen

In the kitchen run the same plumbing maintenance checks as above just to be on the safe side. Use the baking soda/vinegar remedy to freshen and give the drain a minor cleaning. If you want to thoroughly clean the kitchen drain traps use the Roebic© product mentioned above. Make a tray full of vinegar ice cubes to run through the disposal. The ice cubes will sharpen the blades and the vinegar will freshen the disposal. Some plumbing professionals may advise you to avoid using the disposal during the marathon cooking that generally goes on during the holidays. Never pour oil or grease down the drains. Place all food scraps in the garbage. While you are at it if your trash pick-up is delayed freeze all food scraps and used cooking oils and place them in the trash on pick-up day. Give your trash pick-up crew a break from stinky cans.

Hope these simple tips help you enjoy happy holidays.

Image courtesy of by Gualberto107 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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