How to Stop an Overflowing Toilet

December 28, 2011 By

If the toilets in your home are consistently backing up or overflowing, you’ll want to call a plumber in case there’s an issue with your sewer lines or septic system. However, toilets can occasionally overflow due to heavy use, or if the system can’t handle certain items that have been flushed (see preventative maintenance below for a list of these items).

You can stop an overflowing toilet by following these simple steps:

1. Stop the Water by Pushing Down the Flapper Valve

To prevent the wastewater from overflowing onto your floor, you’ll want respond as quickly as possible. Remove the lid from the tank and look for a rubber valve at the bottom of the tank, near the middle. This is the flapper valve, which controls the water going into the bowl. Reaching in and pushing it down will prevent the water from going into the bowl and overflowing onto the floor. The flapper valve is not the same as the flush valve, which is connected to the handle by a chain; the flapper valve is underneath the flush valve. The water in the toilet tank is clean, so don’t worry about sticking your hand in to push the flapper valve.

2. Lift the Float to Stop the Tank from Refilling

Next, you’ll want to cut off the water from the toilet supply line so that the tank doesn’t continue to fill with water and overflow. Hold up the tank float until the water level recedes. Once the water is at a normal level, let go of the float; the tank should not continue to fill at this point.

3. Shut off the Main Toilet Water Supply Valve

If the tank continues to fill, shut off the toilet supply valve, which is also called the stop valve and is usually located near the floor behind the toilet. Once you’ve turned off the water supply, the toilet should not overflow. If the stop valve is stuck, don’t force it because it can break easily.
If you can’t turn the water supply valve, or you can’t find it, the next alternative is to look for the refill tube, which is the flexible tube connecting the water supply line (connected to the stop valve behind the toiled) to the vertical overflow tube in the middle of the tank. Pull the refill tube off of the overflow tube and let the water pour into the tank instead of the overflow tube. This prevents more water from going into the bowl. Call a plumber if this doesn’t work, or if other toilets or sinks in the house are backing up.

Preventative Maintenance

To help prevent backups and overflowing toilets, here a few of the common items that should not be flushed down the toilet. In general, you should never flush anything that could cause a blockage in your sewer lines.

• Cat litter
• Cigarettes
• Diapers
• Feminine products
• Food
• Harsh chemicals (including cleaning agents that could corrode soft metal pipes)
• Paper towels

A little common sense can save you a lot of trouble and help you avoid major plumbing problems in the future.

Pat writes for plumbers all across the country and tries to provide the average person with home improvement and DIY tips to make their lives easier. Check out Orange County, CA plumber Saddleback Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning’s blog for more information about how to handle plumbing emergencies.

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Maintain Your Hedges Properly or Else!

December 15, 2011 By

Dead hedgesSo like any homeowner, I thought that I could tackle my over grown hedges myself. I mean come on, what science goes into trimming your hedges and bushes. Without much thought, I grabbed my trusty hedge trimmers and jumped right into the project. 30 minutes later, wha la! Trimmed bushes. What I neglected to do, and I’m sure many of you don’t know this either, is that trimming your hedges is more of a science than you might think…

So what went wrong? Nothing for the first few months, my bushes seemed to flourish. It was a particularly hot summer this year and I kept my hedges watered as long as the city allowed. Soon, water restrictions came into effect and watering hedges was no longer allowed except on certain days. It really didn’t affect me much, after all, these were war tested hedges… probably have been there since the building of this home, but slowly two bushes began giving in to the heat. I assumed that I had some sort of bug eating at my bushes so I valiantly spayed them with anti-fungus spray but to no avail… I was watching my hedges die and there was nothing I could do about it.

Conventional wisdom at this point would have told you to call somebody who actually knows about landscaping to come take a look, but not this guy… I was my own “landscaper” and calling in for help would have been a shot to my pride. For 3 months, I watched the bushes go from bad to dead. Nothing I did helped. Luckily, one day, I had a friend over who happened to have a degree in landscaping ( He does landscaping for golf courses… I wish I remembered the title, because it sounded impressive, but I don’t) He informed me that I did not have bugs and what I actually had was a bad hedge trimmer.


In the heat of the summer, if you cut your hedges too short, it allows the sun to bake them away. Essentially I scalped my own hedges, didn’t provide two of them with enough water and bam… dead. I asked a stupid question at this point “Will they come back next year?” The answer was no… the damage was done and I know have an awkward gap in my homes front landscaping.

The moral of the story is simple. For pennies on the dollar I could have had a professional take care of my landscaping and I could have saved the $200 it cost me to replace the bushes with grown replica’s. So don’t be a moron like me. Get some bids from a local landscapers and save your hedges from yourself!

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What a Whole House Plumbing Inspection Includes

December 12, 2011 By

Building a new home is a lengthy and involved process. From acquiring permits to pouring foundation to nailing up drywall, it is a vast undertaking. And, even once everything is installed as it should be, it still may not be done because of the necessary inspections. The plumbing system is one thing that needs to be completed before the house is up to code.

Although the requirements for plumbing codes vary by state and municipality, there is a lot of overlap. This post will discuss things you can reasonably expect will be looked at during full plumbing inspection do you can be prepared ahead of time and address any potential issues.

Materials

• Are all pipes made of an approved material? Some materials, most notably lead, are not approved for use in residential plumbing.
• Are all fixtures caulked and sealed properly? Fixtures need to be completely sealed with watertight caulking material in order to prevent leaks and damage.
• Is primer used properly on all non-metallic joints? Use of primer is generally required for glue joints.

Dimensions

There are some minimum dimensions and specifications for certain components of a plumbing system. Check local codes for the dimensions required of the following, as they are generally examined during an inspection

• Water supply and drain pipes
• Toilet space
• Shower space

Functionality

In addition to making sure everything is made right and measures properly, it is obviously important to be sure it all works right. To make sure the plumbing system is safe and functional, an inspector will perform some tests, such as:

• Flush test on all toilets
• Checking that installed shower pans hold water
• Pressure test to ensure water is under at least minimum required pressure (usually about 40 psi)
• Testing to ensure they are water tight

Some Final Questions

After verifying all these items are up to snuff, there are a few final questions to ask as part of a plumbing inspection. Go through these yourself as a final check that the system is ready for inspection.

• Is the water heater installed in a proper location?
• Are all hot water knobs located on the left hand side?
• Is there a water heater pan installed?

There may be more to your plumbing inspection than is listed here, and it is recommended that you check local codes and requirements, but this list is at least a good summary of some common things you can expect will be looked at.

Author Bio:
Pat writes for a variety of HVAC and plumbing contractors throughout the country, including New Jersey plumber Resolve Rooter. Check out their blog for more great plumbing tips.

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Basement Waterproofing

December 2, 2011 By

Basement LeakingThis is by far not the sexiest topic for conversation, but it is still a real issue, and you need to be aware of the risks. We’ve all seen Hollywood’s mock up of such disasters. Families come home, wander down into the basement (which we all know is where normal people just store useless items) and shabam!! Water 3 feet high… furniture floating across the room and springs of water coming flying from every direction. While in real life, it may not be this dramatic, it is something you want to have a professional take a serious look at.

I’m not telling you anything new here. You basement sits below ground. This means any cracks in the foundation or exposed piping could be a serious issue if not fixed. Most homes will experience some forms of moisture and some home owners will brush it off as “it’s a basement, it’s moist.” This moisture can cause severe molding not only to your homes sub-structure but your belongings as well. I suggest installing a humidity gauge in your basement to continually monitor the amount of moisture in your basements air.


Further, take a good hard look around your basement for any cracks in your walls or ceilings. This could be a sign of your foundation shifting which could be bad news for your basement. These are easy fixes that can quickly be taken care off and your “Hollywood nightmare” can be adverted. Take time to wrap your pipes and inspect for any dripping. More than likely, if you have a basement, then you live in colder climates. Any leaking or unprotected pipes can create nightmares for basement flooding.

Do me a favor, go to your basement, hede my suggesstions, and if any problems are present… click here to get a few bids. Fixing these problems now can save you thousands down the road.

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