Tag: disposal

7 Common Summer Plumbing Problems

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As the seasons change, so does the way you use your plumbing. Summer brings a unique set of plumbing problems that are essential to prepare for and combat. The Roman Electric team has assembled this list of common summer plumbing problems that homeowners should know about. Read on to find out more.

1. Clogged Disposal

Summertime is for cookouts, grilling, block parties, and fresh summer fruits and vegetables. However, more guests in your home and more material going down the disposal could lead to big problems. Corn cobs, melon rinds, fruit stones, and meat grease will block your disposal. If you fear a backup, run cold water for a few seconds before and after using the garbage disposal.

2. Clogged Toilets

School’s out for summer, and that means your kids (and their friends) will use your home’s bathrooms for their restroom breaks. The added flushes will increase wear and tear on flappers, chains, and handles, potentially forcing you to make a repair sooner than anticipated.

3. Sprinkler Issues

In-ground sprinkler systems are especially vulnerable during summer. The increased foot traffic on your lawn threatens your sprinkler heads. A misplaced foot could crack the head and cause a leak. A leaking sprinkler is often hard to detect, because sprinkler heads are designed to spray water. But, the problem will eventually become evident on your water bill. Leaking sprinklers will increase your water usage and raise your utility bill.

4. Slow Draining Showers

Taking a trip to the beach? Be sure to rinse off before hitting the shower. Sand, dirt, and tiny bits of beach debris are common culprits of slow draining showers. However, if your shower is draining slowly, don’t reach for chemical clog removers – these only delay the problem and increase the wear on your pipes. Instead, try to snake your drain. Alternatively, call a plumber.

5. Overloaded Washing Machines

Vacations, trips to the pool, walks outside, and other outdoor activities will increase the work of your washing machine. Overuse and overloading of the machine can lead to leaks in the hose. A hose leak will not only increase your water bill, it can also flood your home! Luckily, a hose leak in a washing machine is easy to fix, you can do it yourself in about five minutes.

6. Sump Pump

If you have a basement in your home, your sump pump is an essential piece of equipment. Sump pumps keep your basement dry when rain threatens to flood it. Summer rains can be intense, and if you don’t regularly maintain your pump, it could break down. When your sump pump doesn’t work, you could be left with a significant amount of standing water in the basement.

7. Outdoor Faucet Leaks

Outdoor faucets get used frequently in the summer, be it for car washes, “slip and slides,” or other fun activities in the sun. But, once you’re inside, the outdoor faucet is out of sight, out of mind. Which means you can’t see it leaking. A leaking faucet can waste up to 90 gallons of water a day. This waste will show up as an increase in your utility bill. Make sure that your faucet is sealed tightly to the wall, and that the rubber washer is in good condition.

Have Some Common Summer Plumbing Problems? Call us today!

We hope this guide has helped make you aware of common summer plumbing problems, and how to avoid them. But, if you have a plumbing problem you can’t solve, don’t hesitate to call a professional. Roman Electric has served the greater Milwaukee area since 1929, providing expert HVAC, plumbing, and electrical solutions. Call us today at 414-369-3798 or schedule an appointment online.

How to Maximize Your Garbage Disposal’s Lifespan

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how to maximize your garbage disposal's lifespan

Garbage disposals are handy little appliances. Sometimes we’ve got food scraps or other pieces of trash that we can’t just throw away, so disposals grind them up for us and let us forget about them completely. But they’re not indestructible. Just like with any appliance, you’ve got to take care of it to ensure that it doesn’t break or wear down. But how do you do that, exactly?

It’s not like you can just “perform maintenance” on your garbage disposal. While that’s true, you can take a few steps to keep yours running smoothly for years to come. All it takes is a more mindful approach to what you can and can’t put down the disposal. Here are a few tips for how to maximize your garbage disposal’s lifespan from the experts at Roman Electric!

Make It Smell Better

The garbage disposal is named what it is for obvious reasons: it’s where we dump garbage down. And what does garbage do? It smells horrible, of course. And last time we checked, you can’t install any air fresheners down there to help with that problem.

But what you can do is use the disposal’s own mechanisms to make it smell better. Put some nicer-smelling garbage like lemon or orange peels down there and grind them up. This will infuse the garbage disposal with some more pleasant smells.

Dump Some Hot Water Down There

Although our disposals are pretty good at getting rid of what we put in them, some food gets stuck. The blades don’t always grind everything up completely, and the leftover food bits can harden and stick there.

To help soften these solidified food bits up, pour some boiling water down the garbage disposal every so often. It’ll help break these hardened parts up and make them more likely to getting ground up by the blades the next time you use them.

Use Some Ice

It might seem counterintuitive to put harder objects like ice down the disposal and running it, but this can actually be beneficial. Since garbage disposals have metal blades, they are susceptible to rusting. Putting ice cubes down the drain and running your disposal, however, can help remove some of this rust — helping your garbage disposal become more efficient at grinding down the things you put down there.

Just Leave It On

Sometimes it’s good just to let your garbage disposal keep on chugging for a bit before turning it off. When you leave yours on and allow it to run for a minute or so, it’ll catch all the food bits that might be hiding somewhere down there and clear the disposal for good.

Always keep the sink running so that water is flowing and constantly flushing any of these dislodged food bits down the drain — the last thing you’d want to do is to break up the food, only to have them just rearrange themselves and remain stuck down there.

Garbage disposals can be finicky appliances, but with a bit of care and thought, yours will stay efficient for years to come. Roman Electric’s team of expert plumbers can help you with any disposal problems or questions you may have, and we’re always willing to help you out.

Give us a call at 414-369-3798 to speak with a team member today!