Quick fixes for plumbing breakdowns just before a house gathering!
Even picture perfect home settings, where every corner’s spick and span and everything’s organized from food to cutlery, can get botched up due to a leaky kitchen pipe, clogged toilet, congested kitchen sink or a broken down flush, etc.
Such a perplexing situation won’t just threaten your peace of mind, but ruin your impression in front of your guests.
To get rid of the problem, you make calls in a jiffy, find someone nearby, ask them to come over as soon as possible and agree to the prices they quote. Considering that situations (especially breakdowns) never knock on the door before coming in, you can land up in a tricky situation.
Are there any quick fixes? The answer is Yes, but partly. Let’s see how-
Cure Your Toilet
Though many things can contribute to a broken down toilet, you can still run a check to figure out the cause. Lift the lid of your toilet’s water Tank, check the chain that connects the flapper and the flush lever. If it’s too long, the flush lever will not be able to lift the flapper cap properly. Shorten it if you can.
Secondly, find out the water level in the tank. The amount of water will decide how strong the flushing will be. If the tank isn’t filled to the brim (there’s always a filling line in the inside of the tank), try bending the bulb of the float valve a little and see if the tank fills. If it still doesn’t, examine the rim holes of the toilet bowl (the water comes into the bowl from there) looking through the smallest mirror you have. If it looks blocked, try cleaning it with a nail and an acid based cleaner.
If that too doesn’t work, it means you’ve got an improperly fitted or a defective fill valve. The matter is out of your hands, you must order for a replacement of the system.
Fixing a clogged Kitchen Sink
A clogged sink can be a cause of great trouble. There are various techniques of dealing with it.
Technique 1: Unblocking the sink with a plunger
a) Remove the utensils from the sink and fill it up partly with hot water
b) Place the plunger on the drain. In case you’ve got a double sink, put a tight cloth inside the unclogged drain in order to concentrate the pressure on the clogged end.
c) Push the plunger up and down. Lift it up after repeating the process a few times. If the water starts to drain, you’ve got it done. Keep on using the plunger, until the clog has disappeared fully.
Technique 2: Unblocking the sink with Baking Soda and Vinegar
a) Wear a pair of rubber gloves. Use a small pail/container to remove the stagnant water out of the sink.
b) Take some baking soda and shove it down the sink. See that all of it goes down.
c) Take a cup of vinegar and pour it into the drain.
d) Wait for 5-7 mins to let the solution work its magic.
e) Now drain down some warm water into the sink. You’ll see the drain will start unclogging.
f) If it doesn’t, pour 4-5 cups of boiling water into the drain.
g) If it still remains clogged, repeat the solution of baking soda and vinegar.
These are just a few home remedies that can rescue you from plumbing malfunctions. Depending on the resources available at hand, it might buy you some time to see the occasion go by uninterruptedly.
And as for a permanent solution, get in touch with a reputed plumbing service provider!