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5 Things to Consider When Choosing a Plumber

March 9th, 2012 by Roto-Rooter Bloggers

If you’ve reached the limits of your DIY skills and decide to call in a plumber to fix a plumbing problem in Tampa, you need to consider a few things first. Most folks just want to find somebody who will do the plumbing job for the cheapest price. We all like to save money but if you’re not careful, a fiasco could result and you’ll end up spending more money than you should have. So here’s what you need to ask when you call a plumbing company or “handyman.”

1. How long will it take for the repairman to get to your house and fix the problem? If your water is turned off or water heater isn’t working, you don’t want to wait more than a few hours for a repair. Some “handymen” might do it for less than a real plumber but is it really worth it if you have to wait two or three days before he can do the job? Roto-Rooter is usually at your house within two hours of your call.

2. If it is 3:00 a.m. on a Sunday morning and the problem can’t wait. Will you pay a higher fee if you don’t wait until Monday morning? Not at Roto-Rooter of Tampa. We never charge extra for nights, weekends or holidays.

3. Are you licensed to do this kind of work? Not all plumbing problems in Tampa require a licensed or master plumber. Faucets and drain cleaning can be done by most anyone with some experience but if you want your water heater repaired or new water supply lines installed, you’re going to want a licensed plumber to do the job. There’s just too much risk here to take shortcuts. Roto-Rooter is fully licensed and follows all plumbing codes.

4. Is the technician and his company fully insured? That handyman might do the job for half the price that a plumber wanted but what if he floods your house or accidentally burns it down? It happens all the time and if your guy doesn’t have liability insurance, you will be left holding the bag trying to sue him for damages. Good luck with that! Roto-Rooter is insured for millions so if we do something to cause damage, you won’t have to worry.

5 . Can the technician be trusted in your home? Who is that guy? Does he look shifty? Is he an ex-con? Can I trust him around my children and my belongings? These are legitimate concerns. That’s why Roto-Rooter conducts crimial background checks on every prospective employee. We don’t hire anyone with a criminal background – so you can have peace of mind. Additionally, Roto-Rooter drug screens its employees. We don’t want druggies working for us because you deserve a safe, sober plumber solving your plumbing problems.

Yes, a fair price is important but so are all of the above points I’ve made. These extra steps cost us a lot of money but we take these steps because our customers expect this sort of premium service from Roto-Rooter. It’s true that your co-worker’s brother-in-law who works out of his garage can probably do the job for less money than we charge you but safety and security need to be factored into your decision too.

 

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Garbage Disposal Care and Cleaning

February 18th, 2012 by Roto-Rooter Bloggers

The kitchen garbage disposal in modern homes has become one of the most favored appliances of today. It helps keep your kitchen smelling fresh by eliminating or reducing the amount of food filling up the garbage can. It also makes the chore of cleaning up after meals quick and simple. To keep your disposal running smoothly, Tampa plumbers recommend paying attention to what you do while using the disposal, things to avoid, and cleaning the disposal.

When Using the Disposal

When you use your disposal, always use cold water. Hot water can liquefy fat and grease. This allows the grease to adhere to the “blades” and build up sludge. Note that disposals don’t actually have sharp blades. They’re more like spinning pulverizers.

Use plenty of water while you are running the disposal. After the food is chopped up, let the water continue to run for 10 to 20 seconds so all food particles will be washed out of the appliance and flushed down the drain.

Don’t stuff the appliance full and then turn on the blades. This can make your blades jam. Instead, put the peelings or food into the disposal a bit at a time and allow the blades to grind away before adding more.

Run the appliance every time that food is put down the drain to prevent the food from decaying and smelling.

Things to Avoid

Some foods and items are very hard on the blades and gears and should never be put down the disposal. Don’t put down fibrous particles such as onion skins, celery stalks, artichokes, egg shells, or corn husks. The fiber from these things can wrap around the blades and make them jam.

Another group of things to avoid are hard items. This includes popcorn kernels, pits from plums or peaches, apple seeds, bones, or nuts. In addition, non-food items such as plastic, glass, or metal should not be put down the disposal. The appliance can’t chop up these things. Moreover, the little bits, such as apple seeds can get wedged underneath the blades and make them jam.

Don’t put your hands down the disposal. If something is wedged, use pliers or tongs to get it loose or call one of your favorite Tampa plumbers to fix your disposal for you.

 

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Plumbing care and help by Roto-Rooter of Tampa

February 17th, 2012 by Roto-Rooter Bloggers

Do you find plumbing to be difficult to manage? Are those leaky faucets racking up costs on your water bill each month? Tired of leaky pipes causing mold and other water damage in your home? Plumbing is a system that takes a daily beating. We rely on it all the time to bring water, take away waste, and work without problem. Because of the nature of water, it causes problems in a lot of different ways. If it starts to leak, it can ruin a faucet head. If it gets on the floor, it can ruin wood and carpet. When a frozen pipe bursts in the winter, you will quickly have flooding and damages to take care of. Roto-Rooter is proud to be the trusted name in plumbing. We have millions of happy customers who have benefited from our years of experience, many great products, excellent service, and amazing well-trained technicians. Since 1935, we have seen just about everything. Here are some tips for better Tampa plumbing care.

A clogged pipe

Drains are an integral part of any plumbing system. All your sinks, showers, and toilets rely on clear drainpipes to carry used water and waste away from your house. Clogs and blockages are extremely common and can cause some messy problems if not taken care of properly. While clogs are bound to happen no matter how careful you are, there are plenty of things you can do beforehand to prevent them, tricks for minimizing them, and products and tools you can use to completely get rid of them.

  • Boiling water. Surprisingly, pouring a few cups of boiling water down the drain every week does wonders for clog prevention. Dirt, grime, and greases cling to drain walls and boiling water can strip them away easily. For added strength, using a bit of baking soda and vinegar along with the water will do away with many chemical based plumbing products.
  • Plunger. You can use a plunger on more than just a toilet. If used correctly, a right sized plunger can help push clogs through a line or even pull garbage up that is too big to pass through.
  • Roto-Rooter Pipe Shield is a great product to use after removing clogs. Especially after a professional drain cleaning, Pipe Shield will go in there and coat your drain walls and keep your pipes slick so more junk doesn’t stick.

 For more information on Tampa plumbing, call Roto-Rooter today and get your pipes inspected by a professional today!

 

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Is it time to go dual-flush at your home or business?

November 11th, 2011 by pabrams

Dual-flush toilets are ones that give the user a choice to use a low-power flush for urine and a full-power flush to wash down solid waste and toilet

Residential dual-flush converter

Commercial dual-flush handle

paper. They only started appearing in the U.S. in the past seven or eight years but still haven’t caught on here the way they have in Europe and Asia. While the U.S. has seen toilet tank capacity shrink over the years from 5+ gallons-per-flush to 3.5 GPF to 1.6 GPF and now the ultra-low 1.28 gallons, we’re still using more water than we need to flush our waste 7 out of 10 times we flush! Even at 1.28 gallons per flush that’s 3.4 gallons more in 7 flushes (requiring 8.96 gallons) tham a dual-flush toilet would require (5.6 gallons). Imagine the water (and water bill) savings we would enjoy as a society if everyone had dual-flush toilets.

As part of Roto-Rooter’s ROTOGreen water conservation program, Roto-Rooter advocates dual-flush toilets and we can even convert your old toilet to a dual-flush model using special retrofit kits. We have one that fits most residential toilets and a different model that works on commercial toilets that use the powerful flushometer systems that are common in most public and commercial restrooms. These units are pretty amazing when you see them for yourself. And they’re even more amazing if you’re the person who pays the monthly water and sewer bill because they can save a family of four about 15,000 gallons per year or about $105 at today’s average water rate. Commercial dual-flush systems will cut water use by about 30% but of course that figure is dependant on users to actually choose the right setting. Roto-Rooter’s Tampa plumbers stock these units on their vans as standard equipment because we really believe they benefit society as a whole as well as individual homes and businesses. Call us if you are interested in new dual-flush toilets or in retrofitting your existing toilets to dual-flush. 813-980-6000

 

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Don’t Let Leaks Linger

October 29th, 2011 by Roto-Rooter Bloggers

All Tampa plumbers of Roto-Rooter will concur, when you have a leak the best thing to do is fix it right away. Leaks are definite signs of plumbing problems. Leaking water can lead to a number of issues including, black mold and rotting.  Also, wet wooden walls are the perfect environment for termites, carpenter ants and rotting in general.

For instance, many things can leak on a bathtub…

The faucet can leak inside the wall or externally from stems, the shower head or the spout. The drain can leak from the gasket on the back of the waste and overflow and the trap under the tub. The surrounding tile can also become affected by a leak at the joints to the tub around the faucet spouts and in the corners.

When you suspect a bathtub leak test it immediately. Fill the tub till it reaches the overflow tube. Then open the access panel  behind the tub and examine the overflow. If water is not coming out of the gasket or riser the overflow is not leaking.

Then, let the water drain and check the bottom of the tub for leaks. Once the tub is empty you can also turn on the spout  faucet and switch it to the shower head and once again check behind the access panel for signs of a leak.Once you determine the problem, you can then proceed with a solution with some plumbing repair, but my best advice would be to act fast. Do not let a little leak linger.

For more Tampa plumbing tips and online scheduling visit our Web site or call 813-980-6000 for service.

 

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Bathroom Sink Faucet Fix

October 27th, 2011 by Roto-Rooter Bloggers

A Tampa plumbing customer recently inquired about a pressure problem associated with their bathroom sink faucet. When they turned on their faucet the hot water pressure dropped almost instantly to a mere trickle and the pipes would begin to clatter. It’s one of those problems, that is annoying but not annoying enough to fix instantly; something you’ve always wondered how to fix.

Surprisingly, it is one of the easiest plumbing problems to fix. This is one of the many bathroom plumbing solutions that may be applied to almost any faucet. It works with the hot or cold; temperature makes no difference. Below are steps to follow:

1. Turn off water to whatever side applies.

2. Dismantle the faucet by removing the handle of the side you are working on. Includes- bonnet nut and side stem (shuts off water by compression)

3. Next, at the end of the stem there should be a rubber gasket- check the condition of the gasket, it may need to be tightened or replaced if damaged.

4. Finally, after gasket tightening or replacement reassemble stem.

The rubber gasket is usually the culprit of this faucet issue. If the screw is loose the water flowing by causes the rubber washer to flap and make noise. By following these four simple steps you too can achieve faucet pressure peace.

If you would like assistance with this or need another plumbing problem addressed, feel free to visit our Website for more information and online scheduling or call our Tampa Plumbers at 813-980-6000.

 

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Roto-Rooter of Tampa offers Commercial Plumbing Services too!

October 20th, 2011 by Roto-Rooter Bloggers
It’s not a problem if your business operates from one location or in multiple markets, the Tampa Plumbers of Roto-Rooter can take care of it all.  We can tailor a program to meet all of your commercial plumbing and drain cleaning needs.  From dripping faucets to sewer pipe replacement, our staff of skilled commercial plumbers can handle it all.

Roto-Rooter provides complete commercial plumbing repair and sewer and drain services to large and small businesses throughout the U.S. and Canada through our network of 50 company-owned branches.

Roto-Rooter is the company to call for any commercial plumbing work, drain cleaning, high-pressure water jetting, underground leak and line detection, video camera pipe inspections, grease trap and liquid waste pumping, backflow protection, automated drain care programs and pipe repair and replacement.

In the  Tampa area?  Visit our Website or call us at 813-980-6000 to get started now!

 

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Laudry Room Plumbing is often overlooked by homeowners

October 14th, 2011 by pabrams

Because of the big appliances that dominate a laundry Room, we don’t often think of it in terms of being a central hub for your home’s plumbing. But as plumbers here in Tampa, we can tell you for certain that we deal with lots of plumbing problems in the laundry room.  There are incoming hot and cold water lines for the washing machine and sometimes for a laundry tub sink. There’s also an important drain that carries away the washwater from your washing machine. When it backs up, you’ve got trouble. And of course the drain for the tub sink, which can clog from time to time. Finally, some laundry rooms are equipped with a floor drain to carry away water that spills on the floor.

Laundry Room Tips and Maintenance
•Run the washing machine only when it has a full load.
•Inspect washing machine hoses for signs of wear. Replace rubber hoses with stainless steel braided hoses. They last longer and are resistant to leaks and cracks.
•Ensure that all drains have strainers to keep hair, soap and debris from entering and clogging the drain lines.
•Use a strainer on your washing machine hose. Hardware stores have strainers specially designed to fit laundry hoses.
•Check exposed pipes under sinks for signs of leaks.
•Apply Roto-Rooter® Pipe Shield® to laundry drain lines once each month to keep lint and detergent scum from building up and causing clogs.
•To prevent sewer gases from backing up into your home through your laundry sink drain or other infrequently used drains, periodically pour a bucket of water down the drain to keep the trap seal full.
For more laundry room plumbing tips, check out the laundry room page on our website. And if you want one of Tampa’s best plumbers to assist you with any problems you’re having, visit our home page and schedule a service call or call us at 813-980-6000.

 

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Can a plumber reliably tell you the cost over the telephone?

October 7th, 2011 by pabrams

Some customers ask what it will cost for a specific plumbing repair, sewer cleaning or water heater replacement when they call for service and sometimes they get huffy when they learn that Roto-Rooter does not give price quotes over the phone.  ”Just give me your best price,” they’ll say.

Well, that sounds simple enough, but here are the facts: Any Tampa plumber who routinely quotes prices over the phone without laying eyes on the caller’s plumbing system is either misleading the customer or putting his business at great risk.  Why? Because every situation is different. A plumber needs to look at the plumbing problem to see if there are other contributing factors at work before an accurate diagnosis can be made. There are simply too many possible variables to make an accurate diagnosis over the phone. That’s why Roto-Rooter’s Tampa plumbers will come to your home or business, evaluate the problem, determine the best solution and give you a free written estimate prior to performing any work.

Many Tampa plumbing contractors will give you a “ballpark quote” over the phone only to raise the price once they see the actual level of difficulty, or worse, once they’re already in the middle of the repair. If you send them away, they may charge you a fee just to have come out and looked at your problem, even if they didn’t actually fix anything. Ultimately, you may have paid a higher price than you needed to.

When you call Roto-Rooter, Tampa’s best local plumbing company, you’ll get a free, professional visit, a thorough analysis of the problem and a solution and cost estimate, in writing. If you think it’s unreasonable, send our plumber away and you won’t be charged a dime. But if you agree to the estimate, the Roto-Rooter plumber will get to work right away and fix your problem and give you a guarantee that the job will be done right. When you’re calling other Tampa plumbing companies, be sure to ask them if they offer free written estimates. Then call Roto-Rooter of Tampa at 813-980-6000, or click here to schedule a free visit and estimate at a time that is most convenient for you.

 

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Tampa Sewer Backup Caused by Bad City Sewer Line

October 6th, 2011 by Roto Rooter Bloggers
Roto-Rooter, one of the top Tampa plumbing companies, recently investigated a residential sewer back up only to find out that the problem wasn't with the customer's sewer at all. The backup turned out to be caused by a broken city sewer line that affected the customer's sewer. Roto-Rooter alerted the city and made sure the problem was fixed quickly.

But while completing the sewer line inspection with a fiber optic camera, we discovered that there was actually a bad section of pipe in the customer's sewer line that was allowing raw sewage to leach from the pipe and into surrounding soil. Additionally, the pipe was offset and was already catching toilet paper and debris to form a clog. It hadn't yet blocked the line but it was only a matter of time.

The customer opted to fix the line now rather than wait for the problem to manifest itself into a full-blown sewer clog.  Our Tampa plumbers did a nice job replacing the bad section of pipe and added a cleanout port that will allow for easy access if future cleanings are required. Great work and the customer couldn't be more satisfied. If you have a sewer backup in the Tampa area, call the Tampa plumbing company that offers complete sewer solutions, Roto-Rooter. We can be reached at 813-980-6000.

 

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