Home Improvement

6 Common Plumbing Misconceptions

Story Highlights
  • 1 -- Fresh and rusty lemons
  • 2 -- Entering into eco-mode
  • 3 -- The importance of regular maintenance
  • 4 -- In-tank cleaners are a must?
  • 5 -- “I can handle any clog”
  • 6 -- The cheapest pipe

There are so many plumbers and countless texts on plumbing online that homeowners no longer know what to think.

Over the years, such a situation has led to many myths and misconceptions being created about your home’s plumbing.

In some cases, these misconceptions are outright hilarious but in others, they pose a serious risk to your home’s plumbing.

Please allow us to share with you the 6 most common plumbing misconceptions that could apply to your home’s pipes as well:

1 Fresh and rusty lemons

One of the most common home cleaning advice that you can read online is to pour a concoction including lemon juice down the drains.

Allegedly, this will clean the drains and leave a lemony after-smell. However, this works fine if the sink or bathtub drains are made from plastic for example. Once the lemon juice comes into contact with metal pipes, the acid starts corroding them fast.

That is why you always have to apply lemon juice with water. The best solution is to freeze lemon juice in ice cubes and let it melt into the drain. This way, lemon juice will eliminate all the nasty smells but it will wash away before it gets a chance to corrode the inside of the pipes.

Furthermore, the myth that ice cubes on their own have the power to sharpen garbage disposal blades is false as well. They can thoroughly clean the blades, yes, but no, they are not strong enough to sharpen them.

2 Entering into eco-mode

Most modern appliances that use water in their operational process have an “E” sign listed somewhere.

For instance, the scale on the water tank will feature the letter “e” somewhere down the middle of the scale. If you set the tank to this degree, this means that the optimal amount of after and electricity will be used to run the device.

Washing machines and dishwashers also have this sign so make sure to make good use of it.

It is a common fallacy that the eco wash mode appliances come with is useless and devised by manufacturers to trick their customers.

3 — The importance of regular maintenance

Most of us are so lenient when it comes to maintenance of the plumbing around the house that we pick up the phone to call a plumber only in case of an emergency.

However, when a burst valve creates a geyser in your bathroom, it is often too late for a quick and cheap fix. You will lose more money if you keep postponing regular maintenance and visits of the plumber as a form of prevention.

Like everything else in life, plumbing requires regular maintenance.

Talk to your local plumber to determine a timeline of his or her visits. Essentially, regular plumbing maintenance will guarantee that your water pipes are alive and well for decades to come.

And do we have to repeat that regular upkeep is several times cheaper than emergency repairs?

4 — In-tank cleaners are a must?

The water inside the water cistern or a tank can become stagnant to the point that nasty smells start spreading from it. There is also a buildup of stone on the edges, forcing the owner to do something.

Commercials cleaners are actually quite inefficient because they are too potent and they can damage the inside walls of a plastic tank.

Furthermore, they can build up on the bottom themselves, worsening the problem. That is why regularly flushing will ensure that your toilet is in perfect working order. If you’re going away for a while, then close the valve so the tank will remain empty.

5 — “I can handle any clog”

Cleaning the inside of water pipes is a tricky business. As we have seen from previous examples, even a bit of lemon juice can damage the inside of a pipe.

That is why sticking a brush made from metal as if you were cleaning a chimney can have devastating effects.

In fact, you should restrain yourself from cleaning the pipes on your own. Damaging the pipes is always a danger and having them replaced will knock out hundreds of dollars from your pocket.

Smaller clogs that are near the drain are OK to combat if you use the right chemicals but any major clogs are really a matter for plumbing professional to handle. They possess both the experience and the equipment you could never have (nor are you required to).

6 — The cheapest pipe

Because you are not versed in plumbing, you are probably thinking that all the materials are the same.

That’s what the Romans thought too and installed lead pipes that have arguably led to the fall of the Empire.

It is not all the same what kind of pipes you install in your house, as there are significant differences in the quality of materials used. That is why you should always enquire about the best possible materials and ask the plumber to install those. The price difference is not as large as the difference in quality.

By clearing out these 6 common plumbing misconceptions, you are one step closer to improving the maintenance of the water network inside your house.

Never underestimate the importance of regular checkups and the power of home cleaning solutions.

Looking after your pipes is actually a great way of looking after your home budget and we all like to keep that intact, don’t we?

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