3 Ways to Maintain Your Sewer Lines

You probably don’t think much about your sewer lines. Those large pipes that transport waste and used water from your home quietly do their job year after year, often with no care at all. But if they do have a problem, it can be a messy, expensive issue. There are ways you can maintain your sewer lines and help avoid sewer backups and emergencies. Here are three ways to maintain your sewer lines and keep them working like they should.

  1. Watch what you put down your drains. Sewer line clogs don’t usually happen overnight. It is months, even years, of fats, grease, hair and other items that go down the drain that accumulate in the pipes. Use hair traps in your bathroom drains, don’t dump grease down the sink and don’t flush down non-biodegradable items. Have clogged drains repaired by a plumber before your pipes are permanently affected.
  2. Protect your sewer lines from damage. Driving over sewer lines can cause damage. Make sure you know where they are in your yard. Also, tree roots pose a risk to sewer lines. Plant trees away from sewer lines to avoid root infestation that can break your pipes.
  3. Routinely clean your sewer lines. Your local sewer/septic service can clear your sewer lines of sludge to avoid clogs. Schedule routine cleanings using hydro-jetting to remove tree roots and accumulated debris in your sewer lines.

Just doing a few maintenance tasks can go a long way in protecting your sewer lines. You can also have your sewer lines inspected with a digital camera to proactively repair problems before you have a backup. With some care, you can avoid many sewer line problems and the possibility of a sewer line emergency.

Posted on behalf of:
Seagraves Plumbing Sewer & Septic
4980 Plant Atkinson Rd SE
Smyrna, GA 30080
(494) 792-2221

Top 3 Tips on Preventative Drain Care

Unfortunately, most people don’t think about their drains until they need a clog removed or there is some other plumbing problem. Many common clogs and drain issues are preventable, saving you time, money and frustration. Here are some preventive tips that can keep your drains and pipes clear and free from the need for clogged drain repairs.

Eliminate Grease, Fats and Oils

One of the main issues that cause clogs is the grease and fats from your dishes and pans. While it may be easy and convenient to rinse greasy messes on your plates and pans down the drain, you can expect that that grease will eventually cause a clog. Wipe greasy residue from your plates and pans before rinsing.

Use a Drain Strainer

Hair and soap are another hazard to drains. Make sure your bathroom sinks and shower have a drain strainer. This catches pieces of soap and hair from going down into the drain and cause clogs. It is easier to clean out the strainer every few days than deal with a plumbing clog.

Don’t Use Drain Cleaners

It can seem easier to dump chemicals down your drain to reduce clogs. However, drain cleaner can harm your plumbing and is terrible for septic systems. If you have a clog, call a plumber. They can completely remove the clog and clean your pipes. It will last longer and be safer for your expensive plumbing.

Anything that can accumulate in your pipes should not be put down the drain. Fats, grease, hair, soap and solid food can all cause problems. Think before you put anything down the drain and you can prevent many plumbing issues with your drains in the future.

Posted on behalf of:
Seagraves Plumbing Sewer & Septic
4980 Plant Atkinson Rd SE
Smyrna, GA 30080
(494) 792-2221

Why You Should Steer Clear of Liquid Drain Cleaners

It seems like a simple solution. You have a slow drain in the bathroom due to soap and hair going down your drain, or a clogged kitchen sink. Simply dump some liquid drain cleaner into your sink or shower and presto! No more clog. But have you ever stopped to think about what is in drain cleaners and what they may be doing to your plumbing and the environment? Here are few good reasons why you should steer clear of liquid drain cleaners. 

  • Corrosive chemicals. The chemicals in liquid clog removers are meant to breakdown hair, fats, soap and other items that typically are in home drain clogs. However, those chemicals can also breakdown the interior of your plumbing. This is especially true if you have a pipe that already has some corrosion; drain cleaners will weaken the pipe quicker.
  • Toxicity. Drain cleaners are very dangerous to your health and that of your family. Just the fumes alone can make you sick, and getting drain cleaner on your skin can burn. You must be very careful to ensure that kids cannot access this toxic substance and possibly injure themselves.
  • Environmental damage. Chemicals that we put down our drains must be purified to keep them out of our water supply. Drain cleaner is poison and can kill animals, fish and other creatures. Plus, if you have a septic system, it will kill the good bacteria you need to keep your tank healthy.

Next time you have a clog, don’t reach for the drain cleaner. Instead, remove the clog yourself or call a plumber for professional drain cleaning. It is a more effective way to completely clear a drain and will do much less damage to your plumbing, health and the environment.

Posted on behalf of:
Kiddco Plumbing, Inc.
106-M Oakgrove Road
Sterling, VA 20166
(703) 435-4441

Tips to Keep Grease Out of Your Drains

Fats and grease are a hazard to plumbing, especially congealing fats like butter, animal fat and shortening. Once it goes down your drains in liquid form, it can begin to congeal in the cooler pipes below, coating the inside and collecting debris to form a clog. While it may be easy to pour grease down the drain, it can be expensive to undo the damage to your plumbing. Here are a few tips to keep grease out of your drains and prevent nasty, expensive grease clogs.

Make a Grease Can

Having a metal container that you can pour grease into after cooking is a good start. However, you want to make sure it is made from hefty metal and has a cover. Open cans of grease can attract pests, which no one wants. Make sure to empty the can into the garbage as soon as the grease cools and congeals.

Wipe Plates and Pans Before Rinsing

Even if you pour out the grease out of pans or eat the food on the plate, there is often still fat left on your dishes. Don’t rinse these items in the sink or stick them in the dishwasher without first wiping them with a paper towel. This will collect any leftover fats and keep grease out of your drains.

Use a Grease Trap

To catch accidental grease that is put down the drain, a grease traps can be used. These need to be cleaned and emptied periodically.

If a grease clog does occur, call your plumber for effective drain cleaning.  They can remove the clog and flush the pipe to ensure all grease is removed to prevent future problems.

Posted on behalf of:
Metro Septic LLC
1210 N Tennessee St
Cartersville, GA 30120
(404) 973-2471

Four Common Items That Cause Drain Clogs

What goes in, must come out, can be a key phrase to many things in life, including your drain plumbing. That is why you need to be careful what goes in your drain, because it many not make it out so easily! Here are four regularly disposed of items that should NOT go down your drains:

  1. Grease. Grease may slide down your drain quite well, especially when it’s warm. The problem is that it can cool quickly and make a mess in your pipes, making it much easier for clogs to begin.
  2. If you have anyone with long hair in your home, you may know about hair clogs. Sure hair can make it down the drain, but it won’t get too far before catching on something. Then it will accumulate quickly, as will your draining problems.
  3. It may be tempting just to scrape those last little crumbs from dinner down your sink drain, but you will soon find out that it is a big no-no. Food can get caught in your drains, cause a clog, or start to rot. That would stink!
  4. Cotton. Many people believe that if they use it in the bathroom and its a cotton disposable, it can be flushed. Not much is meant to fit down your toilet drain. Most packaging will let you know whether or not something can be flushed.

Have you made the mistake of flushing one of these common items down your drain? Don’t be embarrassed! We all learn from our mistakes. In the meantime, you can rely on a professional plumber to get your drains and plumbing clog free, so that you can be worry free.

Posted on behalf of:
Metro Septic LLC
1210 N Tennessee St
Cartersville, GA 30120
(678) 873-7934

Reoccurring Slow Drains

Once again, your kitchen or bathroom sink is draining slowly. You have tried to use a plunger or snake to clear the drain, maybe with some success. However, after a few weeks or months, the same old problem is back again. There are a few things which may be happening down in your pipes that need altering to get that clogged drain clear for good.

What Is The Problem?

In most reoccurring slow drains, there is a good reason that it keeps becoming clogged. Either you did not completely clear the clog in your previous attempts, or there are new clogs being formed each time. If these are new clogs each time, it is probably due to something you or one of your family members are putting down the drain.

  • Kitchen sinks. The most common issue in kitchen sink clogs is grease and food particles. Make sure your family members aren’t putting any oil, fat or grease down the drain of your sink. Clean out pans and dishes before rinsing, wiping them out with a paper towel, rather than washing fats and oils down the drain.
  • Bathroom drains. Hair and soap are the common drain cloggers in bathroom drains. Make sure you have a drain cover on your sink and shower, removing any collected hair or soap particles after each use.

While these preventative measures can stop clogs from forming, they’re not effective in addressing existing issues. The best solution may be a professional drain cleaning to remove any residual clogs. While your attempts to remove the clog may have been partially effective, there may be residue on the lining of the pipes still remaining. This residue can collect any debris which comes down the pipe, resulting in another clog. Your local plumber has professional equipment capable of clearing your pipes to get those clogs which are causing your slow drains gone for good.

Posted on behalf of Shawn Bynum, Bynum Plumbing

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Common Causes of Kitchen Drain Clogs

Nothing can be more frustrating than a clogged drain, especially if it is in your kitchen. Has your kitchen drain ever clogged at a convenient time? Usually, of course, the clog occurs when you are at your most hurried, either cooking the family meal or cleaning up afterward. Usually the kitchen sink is the one in the house most used so there really is no convenient time for a clogged drain.

The culprit for most kitchen drain clogs can be traced to a combination of food particles, fat, and soap that has accumulated over time. Because of their dense weight, food particles can lay on the bottom of pipes, piling up until the movement of water only picks up the first loose layers. On the other hand, fat goes down the pipe as a liquid, which comes into contact with the coolness of the piping, causing it to condense. Just like plaque in the human body, the fat solidifies and slowly fills the pipe from the sides, which narrows the passage. Soap, then, soaks into the entire wet mass, sticking to the walls of a horizontal pipe. Since soap is caustic or corrosive, it can slowly erode the pipe wall. Add to this messy mass of clog, hair, if you are in the habit of washing your hair in the kitchen sink.

This type of nasty kitchen sink drain clog may require the services of your local plumbing professional. You can try unclogging it yourself first by running very hot water down the drain, to liquefy the fat. One of the many drain cleaning products available at any hardware store just may work. If your efforts are ineffective, your local plumber should be able to snake free that nasty clog with a water jet cable.

Drain Clog: When to Call a Plumber?

Nothing can be more frustrating than a clogged drain, whether it’s in the kitchen sink or bathroom toilet. Of course, this always happens at the most inconvenient time. How do you know when your clog requires the expertise of a plumber? If only a single fixture is clogged and the rest of your drains seem to be draining well, then the clog is close to the clogged fixture and you may be able to unclog it yourself.   Avoid caustic drain cleaners – these can damage your pipes, cause chemical burns, and if the clog does not respond, you will be left with a sink or toilet full of caustic chemicals.   Some clogs will quickly loosen with the use of a plunger or a household drain snake. If all of your efforts fail to unstop the clog, call a plumber.

If more than one fixture in your home is clogged, you may be experiencing a main sewer line clog. The main sewer line is the line through which all of your plumbing exits your home, either to the city’s municipal sewer system or your private septic system. If you are seeing dirty water backing up from more than one fixture at the same time, this is a clear indication of a main line clog. For instance, when the water drains out of your washing machine, it may back up into a sink or toilet. In the lowest level of your home, a floor drain may back up when an interior toilet is flushed.

If these types of “system-wide” backups are occurring, you should call a reputable local plumber to have the problem repaired.  Your plumber will be equipped with commercial grade sewer snakes, high pressure hydro-jetting equipment, and other professional drain cleaning equipment.  They can clear the clog without damaging your system and may also be able to advise you on how to prevent future problems.

Using a Plumber’s Auger to Clear Clogged Drains

When a plunger isn’t accomplishing the job of clearing a clogged drain, using a plumber’s auger or plumber’s snake may be needed to remove the clog. Although a homeowner could purchase this tool and attempt to use it himself, it is recommended that you leave the use of this tool to the professionals who understand when and how to use it. There are different types of plumber’s augers. Using the wrong type of auger on the drain that is plugged could cause more problems than they solve.

The auger that most people are familiar with is a long wire that has spiraled end. These augers are sent down the drain until they reach the clog. The auger is rotated as it progresses down the drainpipe. When the auger reaches the clog it can clear the clog in one of two ways.

If the clog is created by an object, such as a toy or washcloth, the auger may connect itself to the object and be able to pull the object out of the drain. If the clog is created by hair or grease, the auger may simply drill through the clog and then break up the clog into debris that can be flushed out of the pipe. This type of auger works well for sink or bathtub drains but should not be used for a clogged toilet. This type of auger could cause damage to the porcelain bowl and could also get tangled in the larger drainpipe beneath the toilet.

There is a special auger that plumbers use for unclogging toilets. These are often referred to as closet augers, since they are used on water closets or toilets. Clogged toilets that can’t be cleared with a plunger should always be referred to a professional plumber.

A Gritty Problem: Sand Clogged Drains

Clogged tub, sink and shower drains are common events, and there are numerous remedies to rectify a clogged drain. Plungers, augers and various drain-cleaning products are available, one of which is likely to clear most clogged drains. Small objects and organic materials are the usual suspects in such backups, but when the trouble is caused by a buildup of sand the solution may be more difficult to achieve.

For one thing, unless you know exactly how the sand got into the drain in the first place, you may be dealing with a situation that is way beyond your control. If you’ve just cleaned out the fish tank in the kitchen sink or the kids have dumped buckets full of beach sand into the tub, it’s one thing, and you can try a few experiments before calling your plumber. Here are a few DIY tips that may be worth a go.

  • Wet-Vac – You might get better results from pulling rather than pushing. If the sand is near the top end of the drain system you may get it back out by vacuuming.
  • Bladder – A bladder is designed to increase the water pressure into the drain, which can break up a sand clog, dispersing the sand so that a regular flow can flush the system clean.
  • Garden Hose Reducer – As with a bladder, a hose reducer will increase the water pressure and may wash the sand away.

If you can’t identify where the sand came from or your initial efforts are unsuccessful, it is time to call in a licensed plumber. The problem could be a broken water line, necessitating major work. Your plumber may even have to “scope” the line with a miniature camera to identify the problem. But, that’s what your professional serviceman is there for, so don’t hesitate to call for help.