DIY PLUMBING EMERGENCY TIPS YOU NEED KNOW

How prepared are you to deal with plumbing emergencies in your home? Is your emergency solution simply picking up the phone and hoping a professional plumber can come to your home at a moment’s notice? The truth is that with a few simple things to keep in mind, you can deal with most plumbing emergencies without losing your head. Here are some plumbing emergency tips to consider.

EMERGENCY KIT

Luck favors the prepared mind, or so they say. So one of the best preparations you can do to face plumbing emergencies is to make sure that you have an emergency kit handy. You don’t really need to spend a lot of money to put together your emergency kit, you just have to have a few things on hand:

• Tool caddy — to keep all your tools in place of course;
• Five gallon bucket — this is to catch the water when doing repairs and can also double as a tool caddy in case you don’t have one;
• Plungers — it is better to have both a regular plunger and a forced cup one, each of these has its own usage to ensure that clogs are dealt with properly;
• Wrenches — an adjustable wrench, pair of medium-sized slip joint pliers, and varying sizes of wrenches should allow you to deal with most plumbing emergencies;
• Multi-bit screwdriver — to help you loosen or tighten different sized screws;
• Allen wrenches — these help you deal with specialized screws;
• Tape — normally duct tape, Teflon tape, and those used to seal leaks are a must to help you cope with emergencies;
• Blind caps — allows you to deal with broken valves; and
• Heavy-duty paper towels or rags — for the cleanup afterwards.

USEFUL TIPS

There will be a variety of plumbing problems that you can face that would constitute an emergency. So here are some tips that you may find useful when faced with various plumbing emergencies.

• When there is no isolation valve for the plumbing fixture, always use the main;
• Check your isolation and shutoff valves at least twice a year to check if it is functional;
• A gas water heater’s switch should be placed in the pilot position when there is a leak;
• Avoid damaging your plumbing by using two wrenches and turning them in opposite directions (backing off);
• Loosen collar nuts on the drain line with a slip joint pliers;
• Supply tube leaks can be temporarily shut off by using a blind cap seal;
• Tie Teflon tape on leaking ferrules to buy some time to get it properly repaired;
• Pipe sealing tape or duct tape can help reduce leaks from a cracked pipe;
• Cup plungers are used for small drains like those found on bathtubs, sinks, and showers, while forced cup plungers are good for toilets and drains — make sure you use the right one to get the best result;
• A second plunger becomes handy when unclogging the kitchen sink. Use it to cover the other drain to generate more force that will remove the clog;
• You can unscrew the chrome cap from the bathtub drain to expose the entire drain underneath. This gives you a better view of the drain and allows you to see the clog. Proceed by using the right plunger on the drain and positioning a second plunger over the overflow of the tub to make unclogging easier. Plunge the drain and check if the clog has been dislodged; and
• Taking care of plumbing problems associated with your faucet or garbage disposal becomes easier if you have Allen wrenches available.

These are just some of the tips that you can rely on when faced with a plumbing emergency. Although it may not solve all possible problems, you can be sure that in most cases, these can be enough.

Make sure that after you have made applied these band aid solutions that you call a licensed professional plumber immediately