Plumbing Tips for the Holidays in Anaheim

The holiday season is a busy season for many of us in the Anaheim area. You may be hosting friends and family for parties or extended visits. During this time, you are probably doing a lot more baking and cooking than usual. As a result, you are probably operating your garbage disposal and dishwasher more than usual. You might also being putting things down the garbage disposal that don’t really belong there.

Having more guests puts more stress on all of your plumbing. The toilet is getting flushed more often, the faucets are being used to wash hands more often. If you host overnight guests, the shower is probably being used more often.

There is never a convenient time for your plumbing to fail, but the holidays are a particularly bad time for it. Check out these plumbing tips for the holidays in Anaheim.

  1. 1. Don’t pour cooking fat down the sink. This includes grease, oil, and any other types of fat. Fats are in a liquid state when they are hot off the stove, but they will congeal and solidify as they cool off in your kitchen drain. As a result, you will end up with a clogged kitchen sink drain. Rather than pouring fat down the drain, let it sit in the pan until it cools. Then you can empty it into the trash can. You can also keep a metal can handy, such as an empty coffee can, and use this to store grease drippings. Keep the can in the freezer so that it doesn’t turn rancid or smell.
  2. 2. Watch what you put into the garbage disposal. Any types of food that are stringy or fibrous should go into the trash can, not the garbage disposal. This includes corn husks, pumpkin guts, banana peels, and celery, among other things. These items are too tough for the garbage disposal and will cause it to jam.
  3. 3. Turn the garbage disposal on before you place food into it. After you use the garbage disposal, flush the drain with cold water for 15 seconds.
  4. 4. If you are having overnight guests, it can be tricky to get all the dishes, clothes, and people clean without running out of hot water. You can make this a bit easier by turning on the dishwasher and clothes washer just before you go to bed for the night.
  5. 5. Stagger shower times throughout the day so that there is enough hot water for everyone to bathe. Rather than rushing everyone through the shower consecutively, wait a minimum of ten minutes between each shower so that the water heater tank can replenish.
  6. 6. Turn up the temperature setting on the water heater just a little bit. This higher setting will provide a bit more hot water for you and your visitors. Don’t set it too high, though; it should never be above 125 degrees. A higher setting than that can cause scalding.
  7. 7. Improve your water pressure by cleaning the shower head. The easiest way to do this is to use a plastic bag full of white vinegar. Just take a sandwich bag, and pour plain, white vinegar into it. Place the bag over the shower head, with the shower head inside the bag of vinegar. To keep the bag in place, secure it with a rubber band or twist tie. Leave it this way to soak overnight. In the morning, remove the bag of vinegar, and wipe down the shower head. This will get rid of mineral deposits that can hamper the water pressure.

If you have a plumbing problem this holiday season, call Scott English Plumbing.