You can’t flush the toilet. You can’t silence the creaking pipes. You can’t stop the leak underneath the kitchen sink. There are so many problems occurring with your plumbing that it’s frustrating you and your loved ones.
Sure, you can hire a plumber, but you’re already cash-strapped enough. What’s another option?
Have you thought about remedying the plumbing mishaps by yourself? Well, you could if you learned the very basics of plumbing, whether it is stopping spray snarls or removing hard objects from pipes.
Here are five tips to boost your plumbing abilities at home:
1. Invest in an Advanced Toolkit
When a plumbing problem arises, many of us panic. We run to our plunger…and that’s about it. Meanwhile, the toilet is overflowing, the faucet is leaking, and the kitchen floor is flooded. It’s a madhouse in your fortress of solitude.
This is a problem in itself. We shouldn’t only have a plunger in our grasp, but rather a whole host of tools to properly remedy a plumbing issue.
One of the best things you can do is to invest in an advanced toolkit that can assist you in temporarily or permanently repairing your plumbing mishaps. A wrench, a relevant box of tape, and nuts and bolts. These are the types of things you should have.
2. Don’t be Reckless with Your Plumbing
Oftentimes, the reason why we have plumbing difficulties is because we are too reckless or neglectful.
Like everything else in the home, your plumbing needs some TLC on occasion. This could consist of immediately paying attention to a slight leak, regularly cleaning out the garbage disposal in the kitchen sink, or dumping a diverse array of items down the toilet. Don’t be that way.
3. Learn the Basics Once in a While
Every so often, it would be a prudent idea to learn the very basics of plumbing. You don’t necessarily need to enroll in a plumbing apprenticeship, but you could acquire a “Dummies” book, watch several YouTube videos, or schedule a time to view those home improvement shows on television.
For the most part, our plumbing affairs are quite elementary, but we lack the basic knowledge to fix them. So, by studying the basics from time to time, you don’t need to constantly call a plumber.
4. Get Some Tips from Your Neighbours
If you’re on friendly terms with your neighbours, perhaps you can garner a few tips from them. Everything from the types of tools they use to the kind of maintenance they employ, you might learn a few things from your neighbourhood in regards to plumbing.
5. Hired a Plumber? Watch Him
When things get too tough, you will inevitably hire a professional plumber who has been doing this line of work since the 1990s.
That said, you shouldn’t just hire a plumber, let him spend an hour in the bathroom, and mind your own business. You should actively participate in the endeavour.
Rather than sit on the sidelines, you could study the plumber, ask questions, learn what he’s doing, and try to mimic that behaviour the next time you have an issue. This can not only save you some money in the future, it can also make you feel proud and confident.
Plumbing is essential to the fabric of your home, and it isn’t something you want to play around with. That said, when it comes to the little things, there is no reason why the homeowner can’t fix a leak, unclog a toilet, or repair the garbage disposal. By learning the very basics, you can ensure that you don’t need to wake a plumber from his sleep at 3 a.m.