Preventive Maintenance: Keeping Your Pipes Healthy Year-Round

The smarter approach is to keep pipes healthy year-round so problems never develop in the first place. Some preventive maintenance you can handle yourself; others call for a plumber who has the tools and training.

In this brief article brought to you by Texas Rooter, we offer our two cents on how you can keep your plumbing system healthy all year long and what plumbing service can take prevention to the next level.

Daily Habits That Protect Your Pipes

The foundation of pipe health starts with how you use your plumbing every single day. Believe it or not, some small changes in habits can prevent the majority of common plumbing problems.

In the kitchen, never pour grease or cooking oil down the drain. Fibrous foods like celery or potato peels, starchy foods like bread and pasta, and hard leftovers like bones should never go down the drains – even if you have a garbage disposal.

As for the bathroom, install a drain screen and clean it regularly. Moreover, consider brushing your hair before jumping in the shower. Don’t flush everything down the toilet, either. Only toilet paper, pee, and poo; everything else goes in the trash bin.

Keep Drains Flowing With Routine Cleaning

Even with perfect habits, drains still collect buildup over time. Soap scum, minerals, hair, food particles, and residue will eventually stick to the inside walls of your pipes. Some DIY solutions to tackle this include pouring hot water down the drains weekly or using a mixture of baking soda followed by vinegar to clear scum and debris.

That’s only good for surface clogs, though. Once every couple of years, consider scheduling hydro-jetting drain cleaning to have a plumber get down and dirty to clear gunk deep in the drain lines and even the sewer line. Texas Rooter is proud to offer affordable drain cleaning services.

Insulate Pipes – Especially Before Winter

People who’ve never been here think Texas is desert and sunshine. If you’ve lived in Texas for long, then you’re probably familiar with the winter storms. Freezing temperatures can strike unexpectedly, and you’ve got to make sure your plumbing pipes are prepared.

To this end, insulate exposed pipes in unheated areas like garages, crawl spaces, and attics. While you’re at it, drain outdoor faucets and sprinkler systems completely and shut off water supply to prevent freezing.

Schedule Periodic Leak Detection

Clogs and leaks make up the bulk of service calls, and the latter is certainly the bigger headache. Even worse are hidden leaks. Unlike visible leaks, hidden leaks can cause serious structural damage long before you know they exist.

While you can watch out for signs of hidden leaks (like water stains on walls or surging water bills), the damage is already done by then. Licensed plumbers use tools like infrared cameras and moisture meters to detect and pinpoint leaks.

Annual leak detection by a trained plumber is one of the best preventive steps you can take… especially in older homes or commercial buildings.

Hire a Local Plumber Today

Whether you’ve noticed inexplicable spikes in your water bills, are ready to schedule a professional hydro-jetting drain cleaning, or want a plumber to inspect your entire plumbing system, the team at Texas Rooter is here to take your call or message today.

We are happy to schedule a convenient appointment, go over our prices and fees, and even arrange an emergency plumbing repair service for as soon as possible. Contact us today to get in touch.