Posts Tagged ‘Lehigh County’

Allentown Plumbing Repair Service: Troubleshooting Plumbing Problems

Monday, February 13th, 2012

Plumbing may seem like a complex mystery, but some common plumbing problems you can investigate yourself before calling in an Allentown plumber.

Drainage Difficulties

Whether it’s a slow drain, a backed up drain, strange gurgling sounds emanating from a drain or unexplained wet spots on the lawn along the path of a drainage pipe, no one wants to deal with a messy drainage debacle.

However, if you are experiencing one of those problems, here are some steps to try in order to get to the bottom of it:

  1. Explore the extent of the problem. If it is just your kitchen sink that runs slowly or backs up, then you know it is localized, but if all your toilets are backing up, then that is probably a different kind of problem.
  2. If there is just one offending drain — as in the kitchen sink example — flush it with boiling water and/or white vinegar. If necessary, you can also try a commercial drain clearing product.
  3. With a more general plumbing problem, it helps to determine the route along which the water is draining. See if you can figure out where the drain pipes run through your home, which can help you determine if the problem is somewhere along the drainage line.

Wasted Water

Has your water bill gone through the roof lately? This could be due to wasted water that you don’t even know about. Below are some  causes of wasted water and how to determine them.

  1. Dripping faucet or running toilet. This can be pretty obvious because they make noise, so listen up! Especially pay attention if the toilet runs sporadically at unexpected times.
  2. A leaky pipe. This culprit is trickier, so look for signs of water along your base boards, on the floor near plumbing fixtures and underneath sinks.
  3. If you still can’t find the culprit, check your water meter and note the reading. Then check it again in an hour to see how much was used. This piece of information can at lease clue you in to the extent of the problem.

These techniques aren’t foolproof and won’t help you determine 100% of problems, so don’t be afraid to call a Allentown professional if need be. If you need any plumbing repairs, remember that Resolve Rooter has plumbers available 24/7!

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Allentown Water Line Tips: Why Water Line Replacement and Repair is Not a Do-it-Yourself Job

Wednesday, February 1st, 2012

Even if you are comfortable doing some of the minor plumbing repairs in your Allentown home, you should never attempt to replace a main water line on your own. You could potentially hit an underground utility line and do major damage, not only to your home, but the homes around you as well.

Only a qualified plumber has the experience and required tools to replace the broken line and affected pipes. Additionally, the sooner you call a qualified plumber to repair or replace your main water line, the less potential there will be for further damage to your home. If you aren’t sure whether or not you need repair work on your water line, there are some definite signs to look out for.

Water backing up in your yard is one of the most obvious indications of a main water line break or leak, but you could also notice drops in water pressure or high water bills before this happens. If you notice any of these issues, it’s best to call a plumber before it turns into a major hassle and expense.

While extreme weather can cause a water line to break, it’s typically caused by corrosion or root penetration. This is another important reason to have your pipes and plumbing system inspected once a year by a qualified plumber. Video scans of your pipes can detect any issues before they get worse.

Plumbers are also able to repair and replace the water line in your Allentown home with advanced technology that does not require digging up your yard. Call Resolve Rooter if you notice any obvious problems or suspect a leak in your main water line. Replacing a water line should be handled by a professional, and we have the experience, skills, and proper equipment required to get the job done safely and efficiently.

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Common Types of Bathroom Fixtures: A Guide from Coopersburg

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2011

There are many different types of bathroom fixtures for sinks, toilets, showers, and bathtubs in your Coopersburg home. Some range from the basic “construction grade” types, used by builders on a budget to the more elaborate custom styles which are often preferred because of looks rather than function.

Choosing a “common” size or style mainly depends on a person’s own taste and use patterns. Let’s start with bathroom sinks.

There are several types of fixtures but not all will fit the existing sink bowl configuration. Take a look at the number of holes and their locations along the top rear rim of the bowl. Usually the bowl will come with a standard three-hole configuration for the water stem and hot and cold water faucets. But once in a while an oddball configuration may pop up so be aware that not every fixture will fit every bowl. The basic configurations include:

  • Single hole faucets which have one arm controlling hot or cold water and one stem or spout for the water flow.
  • Centered faucets where there is on stem centered between the hot and cold faucets, with all components included on one fixture.
  • Spread faucets where each component is unattached and designed to fit into one of three holes in the sink.

There may be space restrictions in your home which would limit the size of the faucets, i.e. a medicine cabinet or window sill which may conflict with a tall spout.

Bathtubs and showers can also use a variety of different fixtures and have similar characteristics as sinks. There can be one fixture with one faucet controlling water flow and temperature. That same fixture might also control flow to the tub filler or to the shower head. This is very common and often the easiest to install and maintain. Other tub and shower fixtures include separate hot and cold water faucets and a separate button or lever to change the water flow from the tub filler to the shower head.

There generally would be no space restrictions on the size of tub and shower fixture, since all are designed to fit into a standard envelope.

Toilets are perhaps the most standard of all bathroom fixtures. The only real differences are in toilet bowl size – and that has become standard thanks to the National Energy Policy Act which mandates 1.6 gallon toilets. Older homes built before 1995 may have larger capacity bowls of 3.5 gallons. The “guts” of a toilet (flushing/water control) may vary and its cosmetic look may definitely vary, but in the end its function remains the same.

The only size restriction to consider may be the shape of the bowl and how it would fit along a wall or in a corner. And it might be a minor point but keep this in mind: not all toilet seats come in generic sizes, i.e. round or oblong.

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Troubleshooting Drain Problems: A Tip From Allentown

Friday, October 7th, 2011

It’s Saturday afternoon in Allentown and you are preparing dinner for a number of guests. The kitchen is packed with groceries and you start to clean a lot of veggies for dipping. But there is a problem. The drain in your kitchen sink is “acting funny.” It drains slowly and is making a gurgling sound. In fact, it’s beginning to smelly funny, too.

The timing couldn’t be worse. Before you hit the panic button, let’s take a moment to troubleshoot the problem. Maybe it isn’t much of a problem after all.

First of all, is the problem confined to just the kitchen sink? There may be similar problems in other sinks, which would indicate a larger problem with the plumbing in your home. Hopefully, the kitchen sink is the only area you need to be concerned with.

Next, if you have a two-basin sink who should check to see if both sides are clogged or just one. Remove all dishes and utensils and run water on both sides. If water drains from one and not the other, there is a clog somewhere in the pipe leading to the union of both pipes. You have now centralized the drain problem. If both sides back up, the clog is further down the pipe. But it is still not a big problem.

One way to troubleshoot for drain problems is to simply run very hot water down the drain. This tends to break up clogs of grease by melting it away. The fix can also be as simple as running the garbage disposal long enough to dislodge any debris. You may even want to grind up some food you were planning to dispose of or take some lettuce greens and use the disposal on them. If this food takes a long time to grind or doesn’t at all, the disposal may be the culprit, leading to blocked drains.

And if you are preparing for your party by taking a shower and the shower drain is acting funny, don’t hit the panic button just yet. You may just have a build-up of hair or skin on the drain cover or screen. Use you foot to swish around the water and if water drains more quickly when you do this, the fix can be as simple as reaching down and picking up the debris. Having a plunger nearby helps, too.

None of this is brain surgery and quick fixes are easy to do. But if the problem persists and you don’t have the time or patience to work on your drain problem, call a plumbing professional – and stick with your party plans.

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