How do you keep your home’s plumbing system from breaking down or needing major repairs? Here is expert advice for plumbing mistakes to avoid.
Our actions can be the biggest threat to our home plumbing system. If you wash the wrong things down the garbage disposal or do a poor DIY job, you could be risking an expensive repair or a plumbing emergency down the line. Read this article for advice on avoiding common plumbing mistakes, and ways to prevent damaging your home plumbing system.
1. Flushing “flushable wipes”
Ask any plumber how they feel about “flushable wipes,” and they will tell you these disposable wipes are every plumber’s nightmare. Don’t flush them down the toilet!
为什么？因为它们可能会在排水管中造成部分堵塞，并且随着更多的下水道沿着您的下水道沿线，它们可以随着时间的推移而被压实以形成完整的排水堵塞。发生这种情况时，房屋的排水系统将完全备份。
Water rising up your drains and other fixtures like toilets, bathtubs or washing machines indicates a full blockage. If a flushable wipe lodges further down the line, other fixtures in the home might back up, too.
Removing this type of clog can cost homeowners upwards of $500.
A general rule of thumb? If it isn’t toilet paper, don’t flush it.
2.将油脂倒入排水管
After cooking with a hot pan of grease, the worst thing you can do to your drain pipes is to pour the grease down the kitchen-sink drain. As the grease solidifies in the cooler faucet water, it will stick to the walls of the drain pipes and a thick, gunky blockage will begin to build.
当发生这种情况时，需要“抛射释放”排水管以清除堵塞，其中水管工通过管道爆炸高压水，成本为200至500美元。取而代之的是，将烹饪油脂和油倒入容器中，并根据当地废物拆除服务的建议将其处置。
3.选择错误的排水清洁器
试图打开堵塞的排水管时，对于大多数房主来说，第一个也是最快的修复方法是使用溶解阻塞的液体排水清洁器。
当有一个总排水管堵塞,人们往往to go with the most powerful acidic liquid drain cleaner they can find. In some situations, this can actually cause damage. Aggressive drain cleaners should not come in contact with fixtures because they can remove or etch the porcelain or stainless steel. A better solution is tosnake the drainor call a plumber.
Nonetheless, drain cleaners can work if used properly in certain cases. But use the right one for the type of drain you are trying to clean.
For kitchen blockages，使用排水清洁剂，以去除进入排水管的脂肪和油脂。
For bathrooms，使用该类型的排水管中通常发现的肥皂渣和头发配制的东西。还要注意，大多数化学清洁剂至少需要一些流动，因此酸溶液可以到达阻塞。在某些情况下，有必要用柱塞或管道螺旋钻（蛇）机械清除块，以便化学物质可以有效地流过下水道线并粘附到阻塞。
当使用排水清洁化学品时，请务必遵循安全预防措施 - 通用清洁剂可能是危险的。在使用产品之前，请仔细阅读所有标签说明，可提供适当的PPE，并避免与皮肤，眼睛或衣服接触。
4.使用不当（或不使用）螺纹密封胶带
When you want to change out a shower head or connect threaded metal pipes, use thread sealant tape and—wind it properly—to seal the joint and make the connection easier to disassemble in the future if required.
将密封胶胶带顺时针缠绕在螺纹周围，并以3到5旋转。如果将其包裹在错误的方向上，则密封胶胶带将拧在淋浴头或管道贴合时。发生这种情况时，连接可能会泄漏，会导致昂贵的水损坏。
Using a grey color tape as shown in the photo will match the fixture’s finish and be less visible. Knowing how toselect and apply the right tapefor a specific project will save you costly plumbing fixes in the future.
5.不当使用垃圾处理
Throwing potato skins down the garbage disposal may make kitchen clean-up easier, but the thick, starchy mess could cause some serious damage to the garbage disposal or your pipes over time.
The grinder in the garbage disposal chops up waste into manageable sizes and then disposes of it down your drain system. When this system is abused, it can lead to thick blockages and is environmentally unsound. For information about basic garbage disposal care and repair, seeHow to Fix a Garbage Disposal – DIY Repair.
6.不知道水关闭阀的位置
In an emergency situation, such as an unexpected pipe burst, it is important to know how to turn off your water. You also need this information when you switch out fixtures in the kitchen or bathroom. For information about where you can find your home’s shutoff valves, see如何将水关掉到您的房屋或单个固定装置.
You can find the main water shutoff close to where the main water supply pipe enters the home. Each sink or toilet usually has shutoff valves on the supply tubes that serve it (commonly they are directly below the fixture).
安装阀门时，它们通常会闲置很长时间，直到使用它们为止。由于它们没有定期打开，因此必须每年将它们关闭，以防止它们扣押。
7. Failing to winterize pipes before winter
冬季管道涉及一系列步骤，这些步骤使房屋的内部和外部管道准备以承受低于冰冻的温度而不会冷冻的温度。这可以防止毁灭性的管道爆裂和泄漏。
As water freezes and becomes ice, it expands. The expansion quickly builds pressure within pipes that can eventually burst the pipes.
有关更多信息，请参阅Winterizing Home Irrigation.
8. Over-tightening pipe connections
When installing under-sink pipes or plumbing fixtures, don’t over-tighten the joints. These pipe connections don’t require much force to seal. Over-tightening can damage the internal seals and make for a difficult repair job later.
手工拧紧，然后用扳手进行¼到½转弯，足以足以供水管线连接，以喂养房屋中的大多数固定装置。一个答案是在触及不足的一侧犯错，然后测试连接。如果发生泄漏，您始终可以更多地拧紧连接。
About the author:Sean Comerford是Oatey Co.的技术客户服务专家。他是第三代商人，拥有近20年的管道经验，包括担任商业/住宅新建建筑，服务和防火工作的主要水管工。他持有俄亥俄州洒水和立管的俄亥俄州消防许可证。
Don Vandervort writes or edits every article at HomeTips. Don has:
