Are you prepared to handle anything that your home’s plumbing system can throw your way?
While plumbing emergencies are best left to qualified plumbing experts, with the right tools and know-how you can handle a wide variety of small and non-emergency plumbing issues in your own home without spending for professional service. It’s important to be prepared in advance, so keep reading to make sure that you have all of these “must have” plumbing tools in your arsenal:
A Caulking Gun and Tubes
Caulking guns and tubes are essential tools for even the most DIY handyman, and when it comes to your home’s plumbing fixtures and appliances, there’s no better tool for sealing up leaks and gaps to prevent water from accumulating.
Caulking is a waterproof sealant which is used to keep the water from your sink, tub, and shower from leaking into unwanted and unexpected areas in your home.
If the caulking around your ceramic sink, tub, or shower has begun to fray or has peeled off completely, then it’s important to re-caulk the area as quickly as possible. If you don’t, you may be putting yourself and your home at risk for issues with mold and mildew.
When caulking a shower, start from the innermost tiles and work your way out, wiping stray caulking away as you go so that it doesn’t try in place. When re-caulking a tub, fill the tub with water as much as you can (we also recommend standing in it with boots on, if possible) so that you pull the tub as far away from the wall as possible to fill the gap.
A Plunger, aka The Plumber’s Best Friend
The reason plungers have this nickname is because they are easy to use and very effective at unclogging stubborn drains. Plungers are cheap to buy, and you should always have at least one of them in your home, though we recommend keeping one in each bathroom of your home, just in case.
To use your plunger, simply press the top against the affected drain and press until you feel it “seal.” Then, push down on the plunger and pull back; you should feel the pressure forming a vacuum inside the pipe, and with a little luck the clog will dislodge itself and be easily removed or washed away.
Fix Small Leaks with a Pipe Wrench
Pipe wrenches are specialized wrenches designed to do – what else? – fix pipes. Our plumbing experts recommend getting two pipe wrenches, one 10-inch, and one 14-inch so that you can tackle any size pipe that you may find.
It’s important to have two because you’ll use one to hold the pipe securely in place, and the other to turn and tighten.
Let our experts help keep your pipes flowing; call Davis Plumbing, in Cherry Hill, NJ, and give yourself peace of mind today.
