Have you spent half the day washing dishes by hand after they went through your dishwasher? If you’re struggling with hard water, you’re not alone. Most people don’t realize how much water quality can affect routine activities. Many products are available to manage the symptoms, but installing a water softener will take care of multiple problems at once.

Hard Water: The Symptoms

If you have hard water, you may experience one or many of the following symptoms in your home.

• Soap, shampoo and other cleansing products don’t lather well
• Reduced water flow through pipes
• Scale buildup in coffee makers, teapots and other items that have frequent water contact
• Residue in pet water bowls
• Spots and streaks on dishes
• Greasy, grimy residue in tubs and sinks
• Dingy-looking laundry
• Rough-feeling, stiff fabrics
• Lifeless, dull hair
• Dry, itchy or irritated skin

What Causes Hard Water?

According to Texas A&M University, these water problems are related to the … Read Full Post »

Do your drains become clogged so often that you’re on a first-name basis with folks at the Plumbing Contractor’s Association? Life doesn’t have to be so hard. You might just need to tweak your water-related habits. Here are some great tips to help you keep clogged drains from slowing you down.

Simple Ways to Keep Clogs at Bay

1. Run hot water down your drains regularly. It helps to loosen clogs and melt grease, soap and other debris. If you make it a habit to run hot very water for several minutes each time you wash dishes, you may experience fewer clogs in your kitchen sink.

2. Avoid putting grease in your drain. It coats the sides of your pipes and causes other debris to get stuck. Drain and store grease in a metal can or other container instead.

3. Don’t put sticky, gummy or fibrous food waste in sink or garbage disposal. Foods … Read Full Post »

What happens in the plumbing lines should stay in there. Any unscheduled surface incursion of materials that flow through those hidden pipes, whether clean or waste water, is cause for alarm for homeowners. Plumbers in San Antonio will tell you that problems can quickly turn from minor annoyance to horrifying nightmare, costing serious money to resolve.

As a homeowner, you need to pay attention to little things such as leaky faucets and groaning pipes in the walls because these could be symptoms of bigger problems.

The Toilet Runneth Over

The bathroom can present plumbing problem red flags. Leaky faucets could be the result of a worn out gasket or improper installation. Water running nonstop in a toilet may be a defective flapper. Both cases result in clean water being wasted, higher water bills and rust damage to fixtures.

A clogged toilet can flood your bathroom and render the toilet unusable, which can spell disaster … Read Full Post »

Did you ever wake from a sound sleep because of an annoying drip coming from the next room? You probably know that if you don’t fix a leaky faucet, you won’t get a good night’s sleep until you stop the drip. Even if you have the tools and expertise to fix a minor plumbing problem, you may be too busy to tackle the job until the weekend, and by then, you’re likely to be exhausted from lack of sleep. A San Antonio plumber can take care of minor plumbing problems as well as major troubles quickly and efficiently and help get your life back to normal again.

If you’re handy with tools and have plenty of time, you may want to replace a faucet, repair a small leak or unclog a drain without getting help from an expert. If you’re confident about your ability, you may save money by doing those … Read Full Post »