The kitchen sink drain is one of the most essential parts of your kitchen. For your kitchen to perform efficiently and smoothly, it needs to have a well-functioning plumbing system. Many homeowners are still intimidated by kitchen sink plumbing issues. It is not only inconvenient to deal with, but it can also cause serious damage to your home!
Can I fix kitchen plumbing issues by myself or call a professional?
It is important to know when to pick up the phone to call a professional and when to fix the issue by yourself. Regardless, any of these common kitchen sink drain problems can bring you much stress:
Clogged Kitchen Sink Drain
This is a common issue with any kitchen sink drain. Food and other debris may cause a buildup on your sink drain which causes foul odor and may attract insects. One way to deal with this issue is to simply pull out food waste or blockage from the drain. Using a plunger can help to pull the clog out by yourself. You can also use (non-acid-based) chemicals to dissolve clogs. If these tactics don’t work, you need to call a professional plumber.
Leaking Kitchen Faucet
Before calling a professional, you may attempt to fix it on your own. If the leakage is coming from the base of the spout, the O-ring seal might have been worn out. Before you dismantle the faucet, turn off the water source. To locate the O-ring, pull out the coupling nut and gently coax the spout from its socket. You can then replace the O-ring seal if it’s worn out.
Leak Under The Sink
The possible reason why there is water beneath your sink is because of a leaking drain basket. It is the area underneath the drain where water should flow into the plumbing. Leaking may happen if there is a bad connection or it is not sealed properly. This kitchen sink plumbing issue is very easy to fix by replacing the part.
Clogged Faucets
This is a kitchen sink plumbing concern that is mostly overlooked. To determine if your faucet is clogged, you need to unscrew it to the very end. You then need to pull out the strainer and check if there is any debris that is causing the obstruction. Clogs can happen when there is a build-up of mineral deposits or sediments in the internal faucet parts. You may attempt to investigate prior to calling in a professional. If not, leave it to us and we will take care of everything!
Kitchen Sink Plumbing Tips
Avoid using acid cleaner products for your kitchen sink drain that can erode the pipes. Go for an enzyme-based cleaner instead. Kitchen sink drain clogs are usually resolved using a small snake machine. Using a plunger might help, but it can be challenging due to several openings that don’t allow the plunger to get good suction.
Before the advent of sewer cameras, excavation was the only option to determine the sewer lines’ condition. Digging may leave a big mess and causes inconvenience not only to you but also with nearby residences or establishment. Today, the job becomes easy with sewer cameras. Doing sewer line inspection with a camera only needs a small entry point. The sewer camera is connected to a flexible cable, and the plumber can watch through a monitor as the gadget travels through the sewer line. Our licensed plumbers now have the ability to see the undetected problems within the sewage pipe.
Common Findings Of Sewer Camera Inspection
The sewer camera findings can help us pinpoint unseen sewer line problems such as:
A single undetected crack in your sewer pipe can allow tree roots to invade your sewer line and grow into it. This will cause serious damage to your sewer line if not prevented.
Damaged Pipes
With the help of a sewer camera, unseen damaged pipes can be detected.
Bellied Sewer Line
When the sewer line starts to crumple, waste gets trapped which causes multiple blockages.
Accumulated Blockages
Over time, there can be a build-up of blockages in your sewer line. Items such as towels, feminine bathroom products, and dips in the underground plumbing due to settling dirt over the years can be detected by sewer cameras.
Types of Sewer Cameras
There are many types of sewer cameras available in the market. You can find a wide range of sewer cameras from RIDGID. We have been using RIDGID cameras for our sewer inspection. Here are some of the camera types you can find.
Manual Feed Black and White Camera
This is the most basic sewer pipe camera. You will only see things black and white. But if your purpose is to only look for blockages in the line, then this is useful.
Power Feed with Either Color or Black and White Camera
This camera type automatically snakes its way through the drain and pipes whenever you press a button and put the camera down the pipe to get it started. It stops when it hits a blockage. You have the option to choose a black and white or full-color video to identify what the blockage is.
Power Feed with Color Camera and Recording Features
The camera system has a recording feature that records what the camera sees in the pipe. With this type of camera, we can further study and find a better solution to solve sewer line issues. This camera has an SD memory card that plugs into a special slot inside the main compartment of the camera’s handheld monitor.
Get Your Sewer Line Inspected
If you are experiencing sewer line issues but the cause of the problem is puzzling you, then you need to get your sewer line inspected. Contact us today to schedule a sewer line inspection.
| Photo Credits: Leone Plumbing photos, Canva
Trees add beauty to a property. It can either beautify your surrounding or destroy your sewer line due to root growth. The best solution is still prevention. With roots wrecking your plumbing system underneath and unseen, how can you apply prevention? You need to figure out the signs of tree roots in the sewer line.
What are the signs of tree roots in sewer line?
•The initial sign is slow drains telling you that something is blocking your sewer line.
• Slow flushing toilet and sewage back up. If your toilet is showing these signs with gurgling noise when you flush, roots may have entered the pipes.
• Clogged pipes caused by root obstruction.
• Unpleasant smell coming from damaged sewer line caused by root growth.
How to prevent tree roots from destroying your sewer line?
Avoid the inconvenience by taking the following preventive measures.
• If you are planning to plant trees and shrubs, make sure to stay away from any sewer line. If you are not sure where to locate the sewer line on your property, you can call 811 “Call Before You Dig” hotline for help.
• If you plant near the sewer lines, choose slow-growing trees with a small root ball. It is also recommended to limit the number of plants you place near the sewer lines. If you are going to plant large trees, make sure that they are far away from sewer lines for roots to reach.
• Regular plumbing inspection and maintenance can prevent root growth inside the pipes.
Professional Tree Root Removal
Our master plumbers are well experienced in dealing with tree roots removal. How do we approach this problem?
• We use a specialized camera to probe through the sewer line and drainpipes to locate damaged areas. In this way, we will be able to determine if it is indeed tree roots that are causing the problem or something else.
• We might recommend snaking the line using several snake machine tips. Through this procedure, our master plumbers will be able to retrieve roots and other debris that is causing the blockage.
• If there is a hole in the pipe that is allowing roots to enter, the only way to fix this is by digging up the line and making a repair. While the camera is in the line, we bring out sonar equipment which allows us to precisely identify where in the pipe the roots are entering. They will make markings in the yard to identify where exactly the line should be dug up and a repair made.
Bury Your Head In the Sand or Take Action
Do not allow tree roots to invade and destroy your sewer line. If you see signs of tree roots in the sewer line, take action, or be sorry. Contact us to learn more about how our service can help you. Leone Plumbing & Heating is here to relieve your stress caused by plumbing concerns.
Sewer lines are not something that most people think about, until the time something goes wrong. When that happens, you can have a real mess on your hands. Some of the early signs of sewer line problems include gurgling noises coming from the toilet, water that drains slower than normal, or a smelly sinkhole that suddenly appears in your yard. If you begin to smell sewage, notice that patches of your yard are always wet regardless of the weather, or if you see a wet sinkhole in yard, then you probably need to have your sewer line replaced.
At some point all sewer lines need to be repaired or replaced, particularly in homes built during the 1970’s or earlier. The fact is, the older your pipes are, the more likely it is that you will have trouble with them. Sewer pipes in older homes are usually made of clay tiles that can crack or break apart, allowing tree roots to infiltrate the pipe and create clogs. Problems can also result from pipe sections that have settled or collapsed. When properly installed, PVC pipes that are used today should have a lifespan of over 100 years.
Sometimes homeowners wonder if they can simply patch their existing pipes instead of opting for replacing them. If the sewer line is old then there will most likely be other bad spots that will give you problems in the near future. The cost of a series of patch jobs can add up quickly and in the long run it makes more sense to replace the entire line. That way you can save money over time and have the peace of mind that comes with knowing your sewer line will remain in good repair for years to come.
If you want to check out the condition of your sewer line before you have a crisis on your hands, you can pay to have a camera run through the line to check it out. That way you will know if you have any impending problems.
Tree roots cause some of the most common problems that lead people to have to replace their sewer lines. Since they love the constant source of moisture, tree roots will often invade broken sewer pipes and then continue to grow until they completely clog the broken sewer lines. Even though copper sulfate can repel roots as a temporary fix, it can also damage, or even kill, the tree. If the copper sulfate does not work, then you still have the underlying problem of growing roots waiting to invade your sewer lines.
Sewer pipes can also become clogged from an accumulation of muck, grease, and other material that gets washed down your drains day after day. Sometimes sewer lines will collapse, break, or simply rot away. Tree roots can do a lot to exacerbate this process. Running a snake through your pipes to clear out the tree roots can do even more damage to your sewer line.
Here are some tips to help keep your sewer line in good shape:
Find out where your sewer line is located. This can help you make decisions about landscaping and parking.
Don’t plant trees or shrubs near your sewer line because the roots will eventually seek out the moisture in the line.
Don’t park a vehicle directly over your sewer line because the weight and pressure of the vehicle could weaken the pipe below and eventually crush it.
Don’t flush anything down the toilet that is not toilet paper or human waste. Use the trash can instead of the toilet for disposing of any other items in your bathroom.
Never pour grease down a drain because it can clog pipes. Pour it into a can to let it cool and then dispose of it in the trash.
Most often the responsibility to pay for sewer line repair or replacement falls on homeowners and it can be costly. However, replacing or repairing sewer lines is definitely not a do-it-yourself home repair. Not only is it very labor intensive, but if you don’t know really what you are doing you can do some serious damage. Don’t trust your home’s sewer line to just anyone. Hire a plumbing company you can depend on to get the job done right. At Leone Plumbing and Heating we have made it our mission to provide excellent service that leads to the highest levels of customer satisfaction.
This is something as a homeowner I hope I never have to do, and that is replace my sewer line. I have actually had to replace several sewer lines when I did plumbing calls every day, and this is something that no one should have to go through.
One of the main causes of having to replace a sewer line is having tree roots in the plumbing pipe, and this is when you need a 24 hour emergency plumber in Rochester, NY. Your main drain line usually runs in the back yard out to the alley or septic tank. If you have trees in your back yard and have problems with your sewer line backing up on a regular basis, you might have roots in your line. Once roots have entered the pipe, they continue to grow and expand, exerting considerable pressure at the crack or joint. This increased pressure can cause the pipe to break or collapse, in which case it will need to be repaired or completely replaced.
If left undisturbed, roots will completely fill the pipe with hair-like root masses. The root masses quickly become clogged with toilet tissue, grease and other debris flowing from your home to the main sewer. A complete blockage may occur if the roots are not removed and enough waste material accumulates.
If you think some of the problems mentioned in this article are occurring at your home, schedule a plumber today.
The kitchen sink drain is one of the most essential parts of your kitchen. For your kitchen to perform efficiently and smoothly, it needs to have a well-functioning plumbing system. Many homeowners are still intimidated by kitchen sink plumbing issues. It is not only inconvenient to deal with, but it can also cause serious damage to your home!
Before the advent of sewer cameras, excavation was the only option to determine the sewer lines’ condition. Digging may leave a big mess and causes inconvenience not only to you but also with nearby residences or establishment. Today, the job becomes easy with sewer cameras. Doing sewer line inspection with a camera only needs a small entry point. The sewer camera is connected to a flexible cable, and the plumber can watch through a monitor as the gadget travels through the sewer line. Our licensed plumbers now have the ability to see the undetected problems within the sewage pipe.
At some point all 