The Festive Season is a time for friends and family to come together and enjoy good food, fun activities and catching up on some well-deserved rest and relaxation. However, a clogged drain or toilet can turn a joyous occasion sour very quickly. By keeping a few handy plumbing tips in mind, you can help ensure that holiday plumbing woes won’t dampen your spirits.
1. Leftovers Go In The Trash, Not The Drain
A good feed is synonymous with the Festive Season. Therefore, it’s important to resist the urge to scrape the leftovers from your dishes into your sink and there are a lot of foods that should not go down your waste disposal either! One of the easiest ways to prevent leftovers from going down the drain is to use a simple, inexpensive sink strainer. Once you’re done washing your dishes, or rinsing them before packing them into the dishwasher, you can simply throw the collected waste in the food scraps bin, garbage, or compost. These retail for as little as $2 from Kmart up to $9.99 from Stevens. You can also find one at your local plumbing plumbing merchant or hardware store.
2. Know What Goes In Your Waste Disposal
Homeowners sometimes treat their waste disposal units as magical devices that can eliminate any kind of wate. Unfortunately, there are many foods that can cause serious damage to the unit and clog your drains. It’s therefore important to know how to look after your waste disposal unit. Avoid putting the following foods down the drain:
- Eggshells
- Animal bones and fat
- Cooking oils and grease
- Fibrous or stringy foods (such as celery or other tough vegetables)
3. Buy A Waste Basket For Your Toilet / Bathroom
If you don’t already have one, buy a wastebasket for your bathroom. If there is nowhere in the bathroom to toss rubbish, some people will default to using the toilet as a rubbish bin. When you have the whanau over, the toilets are probably going to put in some overtime. Unfortunately, not everyone may be as considerate of your plumbing as you are! Make sure your guests know what not to flush (link to: https://www.jtplumbing.co.nz/watch-what-you-flush/). These include:
- Sanitary napkins
- Feminine hygiene products
- Cleansing wipes
- Disposable nappies
- Cotton balls and swabs
- Paper towels
- Cigarette buds
4. Dispose Of Grease Properly
When you’re cooking up a storm in the kitchen over Christmas, don’t be tempted to pour grease or oil down the drains. Grease, oil, and fats are one of the greatest threats to your plumbing at the best of times. Hot grease, oil and fat quickly congeals when it cools or comes into contact with cold water. When it solidifies in your drain, it restricts flow and catches other materials until it hardens into a major clog. Rather than disposing of grease down the drain, pour it into a can, glass jar or in some tin foil (clever hack from a mum in Australia). Once cooled, dispose of it in the rubbish bin.
5. Address Any Plumbing Problems You Know Of Now
Before your schedule gets busier, contact JT Plumbing, Drainage & Gas today if you are already aware of a plumbing issue in your home. Things like a slow sink drain, a toilet that clogs weekly, or a tap that is leaking won’t get better with guests in the house. It’s most likely to get worse when more people are using the plumbing.
