High Water Bills

Question: None of my faucets seem to be leaking, is there anything else that could be causing the sudden increase?
Answer: The first thing you should check is your toilets, make sure they are not leaking. Then you can check to make sure your fill valve, inside the tank, is not overflowing through the overflow pipe. There is a small tube that should be connected to it, you want to make sure the water level is about 1 inch below the overflow tube or level with the manufacturers mark inside the tank. The last thing you can check is your flapper. You can do this by adding a couple of drops of some food coloring to your tank water, let it sit for about 15-20 minutes and check to see if the water in you bowl has changed color. If it has then you will need to replace your flapper.

Strange Noises

Question: I can hear a strange whistling sound when I flush my toilets?
Answer: There could be a few reasons you hear whistling noise’s when your toilet is flushed, the most common being: a small chip or hole in your tank cover is allowing air to pass through at a high rate of speed causing the whistle noise. It could also be caused by you fill valve and a simple adjustment would stop the noise.

Slow Drains

Question: The sink in master bathroom is draining really slow.
Answer: If you are having trouble with just one sink draining, then more than likely you have a stoppage in the immediate drain line. These can usually be removed by using a drain snake to clear the line. However if it is further down the line you might not be able to reach it with a regular drain snake, and you should call your plumber. If the water is draining slowly then you might have what is referred to as a partial stoppage which is allowing some water to pass through at a much slower speed. The first thing you should check is the pop-up to make sure there isn’t any obstructions like hair in the line. If there are no obstructions that you can see, you can try using a drain cleaner to remove the debris in the line.

Low Water Pressure

Question: We used to have great water pressure in the master bath shower but it seems to be very low now?
Answer: If you are experiencing low water pressure where you once had good water pressure there could be several possibilities. The first thing you should check is the supply line, make sure it is turned all the way on. Another common reason is the aerators are clogged, simply unscrew the aerator from the faucet head and clean out the sediment that may have collected by soaking it in vineger overnight then using an old toothbrush just bush out the buildup. If you are still experiencing low water pressure you should call your plumber for further advise.

Toilet Replacement

Question: We are currently looking to replace one of our toilets, but I have heard that the new toilet models do not flush properly and sometimes require multiple flushes to wash everything down.
Answer: In 1994 a law was mandated by the federal government to regulate that the new toilets were to use no more than 1.6 gallons of water per flush. The manufacturers then had to develope a toilet that would properly clear the bowl and carry the waste to the septic system or the city sewer. The first models that were introduce were cause for complaint, so the manufacturers have developed new flushing technology and enlarged internal passageways resulting in a properly functioning toilet. There is also a toilet known as a powerflush commode which uses a pressurized tank to produce a surge of water that enters and clears the bowl of any waste. Although they are not as quite as convetional models they work well, and are like commercial toilets.

Water Heaters

Question: When should I drain my water heater and how often?
Answer: Once a year, I usually do mine around a holiday. This helps keep the sediment from building up in your water heater tank.