How to Protect Your Plumbing From President’s Day Fun!
How do you want to spend President’s Day? Undoubtedly, you’re planning on spending some time with friends and family while enjoying some delicious food. Everyone makes their favorite dish. Your aunt’s potato salad, your mom’s broccoli casserole, your sister’s seven-layer cake, and your famous bacon, cheddar and jalapeno wheels. The only problem is - this year, you were running short on time.
Without thinking, you drained a huge pan of hot bacon grease down your poor, innocent kitchen sink. Whether you wanted it or not, the damage was done, and it could mean disaster for your plumbing. This is a common issue that happens everywhere when the home cooking and festivities start, so take some steps to protect your plumbing system!
Before Disaster Strikes: Clog Prevention
It doesn’t matter if it’s President’s Day, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Earth Day, National Administrative Assistants’ Day or what.
There’s no Day of National Drain Clog Celebration. Drain clogs are a problem 365 days a year, and they are a major hindrance to celebration. The most common culprits show their ugly faces at the most inconvenient times.
For example, you’re hunched over the kitchen sink, sweat on your brow, desperately trying to peel enough potatoes for Thanksgiving mashed potatoes and before you know it, your sink looks like the River Styx.
The solution? Making sure your drains are professionally cleaned and cleared out before undertaking a major project, Thanksgiving mashed potatoes or otherwise.
Beware, Troublesome Food: Garbage Disposals Are Here to Stay
Not all kitchen sinks include garbage disposals. There are various reasons for this. Some kitchens are in need of upgrading, including the sink. A lot of older kitchens also lack dishwashers; another important upgrade to discuss with your plumbing professional.
There is a myth that exists that garbage disposals can cause foul odors to permeate the kitchen due to the accumulation of food particles in the disposal unit itself. Other homeowners assume that the cost of the disposal, combined with the price of professional installation, is unaffordable.
You should get a garbage disposal and here’s why:
Food scraps are virtually demolished into tiny particles, making things much easier for your drain pipes.- Installation and the cost of purchasing the drain pipes is surprisingly low.
- Doing your dishes is about 1000 times easier.
- Your sink will not smell like old food, which is pretty gross.
- Way less food winds up in the landfill. Landfills are also incredibly gross, not to mention a biohazard.
- It’s easy to keep a disposal clean and free of gunk, allowing it to work the way it’s supposed to.
Professional Drain Cleaning
Yes, you can attempt to clean your drain yourself with somewhat successful results. However, think about it this way. You clean your teeth twice a day (hopefully) every day. Maybe you even floss.
And perhaps you even regularly rinse with fluoride (sure you do). Even if you do all of those things, it’s not the same as going to the dentist twice a year for a professional, thorough cleaning, now is it? No.
Dentists and dental hygienists undergo years of training to know and understand how to properly give your teeth a thorough, effective deep cleaning. They have special tools and equipment. Now, think about your drain.
Yes, you can try to scrub it out, snake it, and pour harsh chemicals down it (which is NOT recommended) in order to get rid of whatever problematic clogs you are dealing with. You might wind up with a temporary fix, but without a doubt, the clog will come back. With a vengeance. And it will die hard. With a vengeance. Unless, of course, you call in the services of a professional, like Captain Rooter.
Drain problems? Clogged pipes? Need a garbage disposal? If you have any plumbing issues this President’s Day, or any other day, call the professionals at Captain Rooter Emergency Plumbing of Chicago - we have a solution for you.
