If you have the necessary plumbing tools, you can easily fix plumbing issues and update the fixtures. It will require little effort because these activities don’t require much plumbing skills.
On the other hand, technology has significantly changed many plumbing tasks. Plumbers are now using complicated tools and technology to solve plumbing problems.
But for common plumbing issues that you can solve, you only have to be familiar with pipes, fittings, glue, and others. These are the common tools to equip yourself for DIY enthusiasts.
However, you must be cautious to avoid making plumbing mistakes. No matter how small the mistake may appear, it could cause more damages in the future. It is therefore recommended to contact your plumber in Melbourne when you experience these challenges.
These are the mistakes to avoid:
1. Over Tightening Your Plumbing Connections
Over tightening your plumbing fixtures such as pipe fittings, supply tubes, and toilet bolts are among the common mistakes amateurs make. Excessive cranking on galvanized or black pipes, tees, coupling, or elbows causes cracking of the fitting.
Cracking may not occur at that moment, but due to excessive force, it will likely break fixtures after days or weeks, thus causing flooding.
Remember that sealing supply tubes requires little pressure. So, you don’t need overtightening because you can break them, causing more leakage.
2. Using Drain Cleaners
If your kitchen or bathroom is clogged, the mistake you can make is using drain cleaners as your option. In such situations, you should use a snake or barbed drainage cleaning tools. The other option to avoid drain cleaners is to remove the drain P-trap. After that, pour the material causing the blockage.
Most homeowners and DIY enthusiasts will use liquid drain cleaners and even pour excess in their drains. The results will lead to more serious problems such as:
- Destroying the rubber gaskets in the couplings causing leakage in the future
- Excess amount of drain cleaners causes metallic traps and pipes damages, leading to leakages
- The liquid drain may fail to clear the clog but remove the drain trap arm, which will be corroded.
3. Using Inappropriate Tape/ Wrapping Backwards
The plumber uses threading tape known as PTFE or Teflon tape. When installing plumbing fixtures, you must wrap this tape clockwise around the threads and ensure it works as supposed.
Unfortunately, most homeowners and DIY enthusiasts make the mistake of wrapping it backward. So, when you’re tightening the fixture, this tape will unwind itself. It makes the tape useless and thus not sealing the fitting effectively.
The recommended method is to wrap thread tape three times around the fixtures. The final wrap must face left when you’re screwing the fixture. In case it will face right, then stop screwing and wrap with thread tape again.
4. Handling Plumbing Tasks Without Right Tools
The other common mistake is trying to solve plumbing issues without the necessary tools. These could also be recommended spare parts such as cartridges or washers for repairing the faucet. When washers and cartridges are worn out, most likely, even the other parts are worn out.
Failing to replace gasket, stem, and O-rings when replacing washer or cartridge, you may end up with a leaking faucet. It will force you to disassemble and reassemble your faucet again.
The advantage is that such peripheral components are cheap and recommended replacing them together. It minimizes the stress of replacing them later.
You have to do so with the drain lines. When you disassemble the p-trap or metallic arm, you should equip yourself with sufficient rubber gaskets. In other words, you need to have some spares, mainly when replacing a damaged washer or plumbing fixture.
5. Lacking Appropriate Tools
When you look at how plumbers work, you may think plumbing is an easy task. But there is something not to forget, plumbers are skilled and equipped with appropriate tools.
Using inappropriate tools in plumbing is a mistake you must avoid. For example, you can’t use typical pliers or any pipe wrench to remove an old, galvanized nipple. The process is likely to break the water pipe and threads left on the wall. These are damages resulting from inappropriate tools. You can avoid them after you invest in the right tools.
There are affordable sets of plumbing tools in the local hardware stores. Pick those recommended for your plumbing installations and repairs.
Conclusion
Avoiding these common mistakes will help you prevent causing plumbing damages in your home. It is always recommended to hire plumbers from Endpoint Plumbing because they are equipped with skills and appropriate tools
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