A plumbing emergency usually involves a leaking or broken pipe, and not knowing what to do in case an emergency happens can cause serious damage to your home or your furnishings.

Besides calling a plumber to repair the problem, here are some steps you can take in the event of a plumbing emergency:

Step One: Know Where Water Shutoffs are Located

When moving into a new home, be sure you know where all valves and water shutoffs are located. Familiarizing yourself with the plumbing before an emergency happens will enable you to respond quickly if a pipe breaks or springs a leak.

Step Two: Deal with the Problem at the Source

Often, a break or a leak involves a specific portion of plumbing, such as the plumbing for a sink, toilet, or washing machine. Shut off the water closest to the source, and get a bucket under the leak to prevent further damage. Valves are usually located at junctions where pipes connect with one another; to find them, start at the problem and trace your way back along the problem pipe.

Step Three: Shut off the Water Main if You Have To

If closing a valve doesn?t stop the problem, then you?ll need to turn off the main water supply. The valve is normally located either inside or outside the house at the point where water pipes come in from outside. Often, it will be inside a basement or crawl space.

Step Four: Call the Water Company

In some cases, a shutoff valve will malfunction, causing horrible flooding or a steady leak that can undermine your home?s foundation. If this is the case, contact the water company to shut off the water at its source so you can have the valve repaired.

If you are on a well, you are going to need a plumber, and you might need an electrician or well company to help, too.

For any and all serious plumbing repair, emergency plumbing (Dallas and the surrounding cities), and maintenance issues think of calling Al?s first.

One of the most effective ways to reduce the total water consumption in your Denver home?s plumbing is to replace your existing toilet with a low flow alternative. In the past, toilets were one of the greatest water consumers in a modern home, whereas today they are much more efficient, with some models offering as little as one half of the consumption per flush.

When they were new, low flow toilets were often assumed to not work quite as well as regular toilets, and that was certainly sometimes the case. This is no longer true, however, as the technology has been largely perfected and clogs are much less frequent.

Second, low flow toilets are generally quite affordable. Whereas once the upgrade to a low flow model could cost quite a bit, today it costs the same or sometimes even a little less than a standard model. Super low flow toilets may cost a bit more, but the savings they offer will more than compensate for the added initial expense over time.

So, how much does a low flow toilet actually save you? To start, consider how much water a traditional toilet consumes ? one that is more than 30 years old. Toilets produced before 1980 came in a number of configurations, but some used as much as 7 gallons of water per flush. That means that, on average, the toilet used 40,880 gallons of water per year.

Now, consider that low flow toilets use on average 1.6 gallons per flush and there are even some models that use as little as 1.2 gallons per flush. Even if you have a slightly newer toilet from after 1980, it could use as much as 3.5 gallons per flush. You will save between 11,000 and 35,000 gallons of water per year just by upgrading your toilet. That?s a savings of between 55% and 77% of your water consumption from one simple upgrade.

If you are looking for a simple way to reduce the water consumption in your Denver home, installation of a new low flow toilet is a great place to start. For any upgrades you need for your Denver plumbing, give Bell Home Solutions a call!

Spring Cleaning For Homeowners

As our temperatures edge a little higher each day, our attention starts to turn towards the warmer weather. We may not be fully ready for spring cleaning yet, but this time of year is perfect for scheduling maintenance for your air conditioning system in Pittsburgh and the surrounding areas. Hiring a professional to perform a full tune-up on your AC system brings benefits that will last all season long, and scheduling your maintenance appointment now gets you ahead of the crowd.

Basic maintenance for your air conditioner.

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How to Spring Clean Your Air Conditioner

Finally, spring is in the air and it?s that time of year again to clean up your home. As with all of the other areas in your home, your air conditioning unit needs to be checked over and cleaned to ensure that it will operate properly in the warmer months of the year. Over time dirt can clog your system, coolant can run low and your filter can become filled with debris, reducing the effectiveness of your air conditioner.

There are several steps you can take to clean out your air conditioner and have it running effectively without any help from a service professional. All of these steps are easy to follow and will only take a few hours to finish. If your air conditioning system seems to have a serious issue, call in an expert to take a look at your unit.

Get Yourself Ready

Choose a day in early spring to clean your system. If you find any problems with your unit, it will be much easier to schedule an appointment with an air conditioning technician in the spring than if you wait until the warmer days in early summer. Pick a day when the temperature is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit ? this is the minimum temperature level at which you can test that your system is operating properly. Take out the owner?s guide to your unit and read through the section on cleaning and maintenance. Put on your work gloves to protect your hands while you do your cleaning.

The Parts of Your Condenser

Your outside unit is referred to as the condenser, which holds the compressor, the fan, the coolant tubes and the cooling fins. There should be two tubes running to the condenser ? one with a foam covering and one without a cover. The fan in your condenser uses the fins to bring in cool air, which lowers the temperature of the coolant. The coolant is then pumped by the compressor into the evaporator that is located inside your home. The warm air inside your home goes through the evaporator where it is cooled and then blown back into your rooms. As the air is cooled, it is also condensed. The condensation from the air is drained into a tube and removed from the system.

Shut Off the Condenser

Shut off the power to the condenser unit of your air conditioner located outside. If you are unsure where the switch is located, check the manual to your unit. If you cannot find your manual, turn off the condenser power switch on the main electrical panel. Read more.

Importance Of Spring Cleaning For Your AC

Spring is a great opportunity for many things, including getting some of that important work done around the house that you may have been putting off during those chilly winter months of the year. When that time does come around once again, it?s important to remember that you need to pay particular attention to your air conditioner. Not only does routine maintenance help keep your equipment running as efficiently as possible, but it can also be a great way to prolong the lifespan of your AC unit as well. Calla(713) 812-7070 us for your home service and repair needs.

For more related articles and info visit https://www.abacusplumbing.net/category/air-conditioning/

Whether you?re a fan of laundry or it?s in your top five least favourite chores, we think most Canadians can agree that a laundry machine that runs smoothly (and quietly!) is best. Cleaning your clothes requires numerous steps, and your washer needs to perform all of them. It has to drench everything, mix in soap and softener, wash the clothes, and then spin it all dry. Here?s how you can help your laundry machine work better for longer.

Keep an Eye out for Leaks.

Washing machines use a lot of water, and that means if the fill hose breaks or the water level switch malfunctions, you may very quickly find yourself with a flooded laundry room and substantial water damage. Fortunately there?s a solution: a water shut off system. This system prevents damage by automatically detecting malfunctions and shutting down water before your floor floods.

Don?t Overload.

The laundry machine requires a fairly delicate balance to make sure everything gets properly wetted, washed, and spun-dry. When machines are overloaded, it puts extra strain on the mechanics and can even lead to problems. No one wants to deal with complications like clothing coming out drenched and dripping, and overload will also mean your laundry machine will age faster and will need repairs more frequently.

Give it a Wash!

Laundry detergent, softeners, stain removers, etc. all leave gooey, sticky residue. Use an all purpose cleaner and wipe away stains on the exterior of the machine. For the dispenser (the tray where you put the detergent), wash away any mess with a soft, gentle soap and hot water. As for the inside of the machine, scrub it with a rag to remove any soap residue and mildew about once a month. If your machine has a cleaning cycle, follow the manufacturer?s instructions to keep your washer in great shape.

Maintaining your laundry machine shouldn?t be difficult. Set yourself up for success by choosing a machine that can accommodate the needs of you and your family. Also ensure that it is installed level and on the correct surface ? tile, stone, or cement is usually recommended. Want to learn more about how to maintain your washer? Need help with a laundry machine repair? The experts at Plumbing Paramedics are here to help! Call us today.

Water heaters are designed to last a long time, but sooner or later, every system needs replacing, and this is true for your water heater as well. Time and general wear and tear take their toll, especially here in Las Vegas, NV where hard water is a recurring issue. While you can postpone the date for a replacement with steady maintenance performed throughout the unit?s life, you?ll need to prepare for the eventuality that the old water heater just isn?t going to do the job anymore.

When that day comes, you may be tempted to perform the operation yourself, especially if you?re a handy do-it-yourselfer around the home. This is a huge mistake. The reasons to have a professional install a water heater are numerous, and easily outweigh the perceived (and often false) benefits of performing the operation yourself.

In the next few weeks, we?re going to count down the 30 biggest reasons to use a professional service when installing a new water heater. We hope they?ll impress upon you the need to rely upon a trained, experienced plumbing service not only for water heater installation, but for any operation involving your home?s plumbing.

1)aaaaa We Believe in the Best for You. A proper installation job means that your water heater will provide safe and reliable use for decades to come. A first-time installation, even from the most enthusiastic do-it-yourselfer, will likes lead to early repair issues and less efficient functioning.

2)aaaaa The Rules Have Changed. Laws and standards for proper installation of a new water heater change all the time, and must encompass a bewildering array of makes and models. A properly trained professional is intimately familiar with the latest updates and will ensure that your installation session adheres to the latest standards and updates.

3)aaaaa New Family Members Mean More Hot Water. If you?re expecting a new baby, or even if you just expect your family to grow in the next few years, you want a water heater that can accommodate those needs. A professional knows which systems will suit those needs best. An amateur must rely on educated guesswork.

4)aaaaa We Understand Safety. Water heaters can be very heavy and often involve potentially dangerous components such as gas lines. A properly trained professional knows the right steps to take to ensure that the installation is performed safely and effectively.

5)aaaaa Pros Back Their Work. If you attempt to install a new water heater yourself, you?ll be on the hook for any damages or additional costs incurred. Professional plumbers, on the other hand, are licensed and bonded, and if something goes wrong, you?re protected from additional costs.