Tag: drain cleaning

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Tree Roots Clogging Your Pipes: The Worst Culprits

Clogged Pipes from tree roots | London Plumbing | London Ontario Plumber

Tree roots are one of the most common and frustrating reasons for people to need to hire a general residential plumbing company. That may come as a surprise to you if you aren’t used to how household plumbing works. But it’s true.

How can a tree branch possibly become so strong that it breaks through the wall of your pipes? Most of the underground piping in London is made of either PVC or copper, and it’s not like either of those are particularly soft. And why bother? Wouldn’t it be easier to just go around the pipe?

What’s the story here?

How Do Trees Cause You To Need Water Line Repair?

The answer to this lies in why the tree would want to break into your water line in the first place.

A tree’s root system can go as far deep into the earth as the tree does into the air. The reason for this is partially to anchor it in place so it doesn’t blow over, but also to draw nutrients out of the ground. Two of the most important nutrients a tree will find in the ground are water and oxygen. The larger a tree’s root system is, the easier time it has finding this stuff.

So if you were a tree, and you were sending your roots underground, where do you think you’d look for a fresh supply of both oxygen and water?

Of course, your water lines. But how does a tree know there’s water in those pipes in the first place?

Most of the time, it doesn’t. Water flows through the pipes and into your sink at home with no knowledge of this from the outside world. It’s entirely contained within the pipes.

Unless you have a crack in your pipe.

Pipe cracks in themselves can cause you problems in erosion, reduced water pressure, and in particularly bad cases, basement flooding. But if a tree is snaking its roots underground and finds that there are pools of water around an area, its roots will go in that direction. And then it will eventually figure out the source of the water – the crack in your pipes – and start pushing its tendrils into the hole.

This clogs your pipes right up, and requires a water line repair to get flowing again.

But even if your pipes don’t have cracks in them, a tree can still find out there’s water in side and break through. If your pipes sweat, for example, it can cause condensation to build up around their edges. A tree may find this and grow its roots out around it. As more and more roots wrap around your pipe, it can cause the pipe to crack in the first place.

Tree roots like water, apparently, and they’ll do whatever they can to get it.

Which Trees Cause You To Need Water Line Replacement?

Any tree can grow its roots into your pipes. This is an unfortunate reality of these beautiful shade-providing friends of ours. And you can’t always control what types of tree roots end up in your backyard – sometimes they’re from the neighbour’s property, or you live in a community situation, like a townhouse or condo.

Most people don’t even consider how their landscaping will affect their plumbing. But it can be incredibly costly to repair.

But if you can control it, you should avoid planting certain types of trees. These trees include:

• Oak
• Fig
• Maple
• Birch
• Sycamore
• Aspen
• Elm

Unfortunately, that list includes most of the nicest trees you can find here in Ontario. But you can plant alternatives instead.

Fruit trees, including apple trees, are often much better for your plumbing. You could also plant some beautiful magnolia trees or wafer ash. Palm trees, too, are great for your plumbing, but good luck planting one of those in Ontario.

”But I Don’t Want To Cut My Trees Down!

Don’t worry! You don’t have to. If you have younger trees, you could always relocate them to another point in your property where it won’t affect your plumbing. But even if they’re old and well-established, you still won’t need to worry.

With some preventative maintenance, you can ensure that your trees and your pipes can live harmoniously together on your property, providing your home with shade and running water for years to come.

Contact London Plumbing today to find out more about what you can to do keep your plumbing running smoothly.

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How To Keep Your Drains Clear

How To Keep Your Drains Clear | London Plumbing | London Ontario Plumber

Okay, so we clear drains. That’s our job.

Our goal at London Plumbing is to be the best residential london plumbing repair company in the city, so if you’ve got a clogged drain we’re here to help. We’ve got your back.

But wouldn’t you rather just not have a clogged drain?

I know you love seeing our handsome faces showing up to your door, but you’ll save yourself some stress and headache (and money!) if you just know how to keep your drain unclogged in the first place. So that’s why we put together this little blog article for you.

First Of All, What Clogs Drains?

There are tons of things that clog drains. Often it comes down to knowing what you should and shouldn’t flush.

If you’re planning on flushing something down the toilet, ask yourself these four questions:

– Is it water, or a water-based liquid (eg. not oil)?
– Is it pee?
– Is it poop?
– Is it toilet paper?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, go ahead and flush it. If not, don’t!

Yeah, I know that box of cat litter says it’s flushable. Yeah, I know that baby wipe seems like it’s the same thing as toilet paper. But it’s not.

In fact, some of the biggest causes of clogged drains are cat litter, baby wipes, and feminine hygiene products. If you can just not flush these things, you’ll be way ahead of everyone else who does. And, y’know, your drain is less likely to be clogged.

But it’s not just this stuff that causes clogs. Sometimes, you can do everything right and still get a clogged drain. Some of these causes include:

– Tree roots growing through your pipes
– Ground shifting your pipes out of sync with each other
– A clog in your main sewer line

When this happens, what do you do?

Call us!

How To Keep Your Drains Clear

It’s pretty simple, really. Follow these tips and you can avoid having clogged drains. But all it boils down to is, don’t put stuff down the drain!

– Don’t flush stuff down the toilet that shouldn’t be there. This includes feminine hygiene products, dental floss, cat litter, baby wipes, and more.
– Don’t rinse stuff down the kitchen sink that shouldn’t be there. Food, coffee grinds, rice grains, whatever. Don’t stick it down the drain.
– Don’t rinse stuff down the bathtub drain that shouldn’t be there. This is mostly hair, which sticks together with soap scum and can cause a nasty paste that clogs things up wickedly.
– Don’t rinse stuff down the bathroom sink that shouldn’t be there. That’s mainly hair too, but all the above things still count. Yeah, don’t rinse cat litter or condoms down the bathroom sink either!

Just keep your drains clear of stuff that isn’t water or human waste, and you’ll be good (mostly).

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5 More Things You Should Never Flush Down The Drain

5 More Things You Should Never Flush Down The Drain | London Plumbing | London Ontario Plumber

Last week I told you about a few things you shouldn’t flush down the drain.

Ever.

Ever ever ever ever!

They were:

• Cat litter
• Baby wipes
• Disposable diapers
• Feminine hygiene products
• Cotton balls

But that’s not all. There are a whole lot more things that, if you flush them, you’re booking yourself a one-way trip to 24 hour emergency plumber city. Population – you, your toilet, and your wallet.

Yeah I know, it’s a hassle. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just throw everything in the toilet and flush it? Then it all disappears and you never have to think about it again?

Maybe in the future we’ll have robots in the pipes to clear up any clogs. But until then here are five more things you should NEVER flush down the drain.

Condoms

Imagine a tree root growing through your pipe. A stick right through the middle of it, like a no smoking sign. Then imagine you flush a condom past it. What do you think is going to happen?

Maybe it’ll pass by, if you’re lucky. But maybe it’ll catch on it, which will make the tree root block more of the pipe. Then imagine more stuff catches on it, and you can see what I’m talking about here.

Don’t flush your condoms. Wrap them up in toilet paper and throw them in the trash. Trust me, it’s embarrassing when your plumber finds out that’s the reason for your clogged pipes!

Bandages

Is it a cloth bandage? Then it’s not going to break up when you flush it. And because it’s designed to absorb liquid (blood, in this case), it can end up expanding in your pipes and catching on the smallest chip or root in your pipe.

Is it an adhesive bandage, like a Band-Aid? Then it’s sticky, so it might get stuck to the side of your pipes. And even if you fold it up before you flush it, it’s not designed to break up, so you’ll get the same problem as anything else.

Just don’t flush it. I know it’s kind of gross and has blood on it. But don’t flush it.

Fats, Cooking Oils Or Grease

You’re probably not flushing this down the toilet. You’re probably pouring it down your kitchen sink drain if anything. But hey, don’t do either of those.

This stuff is gooey and sticks to the sides of your pipes. Then when you flush that bandage or cotton ball down the drain (even though I told you not to!) it can get stuck to the goo that’s built up. Don’t flush it!

Keep an empty can in your freezer, and pour the grease into it when you’re done cooking. Then when you’ve filled it up toss it in the garbage. Or you can open the door and toss the oil in your backyard. Or you can whip it up into a smoothie, I don’t care. Just don’t flush it!

Rice

Again, probably not a toilet thing. But look – rice expands in water. So if you’ve got a bunch of rice going down your drain, what do you think is going to happen?

Don’t flush rice. Don’t put rice down the drain. Put it in the garbage, or better yet – just eat it!

Paint, Household Chemicals, And Other Hazardous Waste

Are you crazy? You’re pouring that stuff down your drain? Stop stop stop!

First of all, that’s illegal. And second, this stuff can get into the water supply, harm wildlife, and also damage your pipes.

You can take it to a waste disposal site. Here’s a list of the ones in London. You might also be able to donate your old paint to community projects or children’s charities.

Prescription Medication

For those of you at home counting along, you’ll notice this is the sixth in a list of five. But that’s just an added bonus for you. That’s right – buy five, get one free! You never know what sort of crazy deals you’ll find

Now look, this one’s not so bad for your pipes. But there’s more to life than just pipes.

When you flush this stuff down the drain, it can end up in the local water supply, in the Thames River, or in other ponds or lakes nearby. And if they’re antibiotics they can kill a lot of the animals in the water. And look, the Thames River has enough problems as it is. We don’t need to make it worse.

The London Police has a program where you can turn in your old prescription drugs. Here’s a London Free Press article on it.

Contact London Plumbing

Look, no one’s perfect. Even if you know this stuff, maybe your kids don’t. And maybe you’ve got a clogged drain because your teenage son wants to flush his condoms so you don’t know what he’s up to.

Whatever the reason, we won’t judge. We’ll just clear your drain. Give us a call, we’re happy to help!

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5 Things You Should NEVER Flush Down The Drain

5 Things You Should Never Flush Down The Drain | London Plumbing | London Ontario Plumber

Here at The London Ontario Plumbing Company, we’ve been clearing drains and solving plumbing problems for a while now. But the same problems often pop up from house to house, and I’m convinced this is because people just don’t know enough about how their toilets should work. I guarantee every london general plumbing repair company deals with these on a regular basis.

Drop it in the water, flick the lever, and the problem disappears, right? That’s how it might seem on the surface, but there’s a lot more to it than that. In fact, the only things you SHOULD flush down the toilet are toilet paper and, well, your waste.

Here are some of the most common things that can clog a toilet.

Cat Litter

This one drives me nuts, because there are lots of brands of cat litter that the companies advertise as “flushable” as though it won’t cause tons of problems if you flush them!

The truth is, this stuff clogs up drains like crazy. Because it’s designed to clump up, it can stay stuck in the drain and build up, causing a clog. And if you’re using clay-based litter, it can be so tough and so solid you have to actually drill through it. No fun!

Just dump it in the garbage. I don’t care what the label says. Don’t flush this stuff down the toilet!

Baby Wipes

You might think you can flush baby wipes down the toilet because you can flush toilet paper down the toilet but it doesn’t work this way.

Toilet paper is thin and flimsy and designed to dissolve in water. Go ahead, soak a piece of toilet paper and a baby wipe. The baby wipe is much stronger! This is good for your baby, but it’s not good for your plumbing.

When you flush baby wipes, they have the tendency to get stuck in the drain. This gets even worse when you have tree roots growing through your pipes, since they get caught on it and stop other things from flowing through.

Instead of flushing baby wipes, wrap them up in your used diaper and toss them away.

Speaking of which…

Disposable Diapers

Now I know what you might be thinking. How does anyone think you can flush a diaper down the toilet? They’re too big to fit!

Yeah I know, but not everyone thinks like you and I do. Some people think you can flush anything.

Don’t flush diapers. Just don’t do it. It’s a terrible idea. I don’t care what the package says – they’re not going to fit down your drain, and even if they do they’re not going to make it to the sewer. They’re going to clog your toilet and cause all sorts of problems.

Feminine Hygiene Products

Similar to baby wipes, feminine hygiene products aren’t designed to dissolve the same way toilet paper is. So when you’re done using them, you can’t flush them.

Feminine hygiene products are one of the most common things that clog drains, so if you use them you can save yourself a lot of plumbing headaches by disposing of them in the garbage.

This is especially true for tampons – after all, they’re designed to expand when they’re wet. They’re practically designed to clog pipes!

Cotton Balls

Cotton balls or cotton wipes are horrible for your drains. Cotton is designed to absorb water, so if you flush a bunch of cotton down the drain it will expand and fill your drain.

It’s even worse if you flush cotton swabs because they’re on sticks. The smallest thing can stop them from flowing through the drain away from you – and they’re going to catch everything else after them too.

Do you want a plumbing nightmare from your cotton? No? Then throw them in the garbage.

Contact The London Ontario Plumbing Company

If your drain is clogged, even if it’s because of one of these reasons, give us a shout. We’ll be there to help clear out your drains and get everything working smoothly again.