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Tips on Water Heater Maintenance

By Drain Cleaners, Gas Water Heaters, Plumbing, Plumbing and Air Conditioning Dallas TX, Water Heaters

Maintaining your water heater is crucial for ensuring it operates efficiently, lasts as long as possible, and provides your home with consistent, hot water. Neglecting your water heater can lead to inefficiencies, higher energy bills, and premature failure. Here’s a comprehensive guide to help you maintain your water heater and keep it in top condition.

Understand Your Water Heater

Firstly, identify the type of water heater you have. The most common types are tankless (on-demand) and storage tank water heaters, powered by electricity, natural gas, propane, or solar energy. Understanding your type will dictate specific maintenance requirements.

Regular Inspections

Visual Inspection: Regularly inspect your water heater for any signs of leaks or corrosion on the tank and in the surrounding area. Check for water pooling, which can indicate a leak.

Pressure Relief Valve Check: The pressure relief valve is a safety feature that prevents your water heater from becoming too pressurized. Test it annually by lifting the valve’s lever and letting it snap back. You should hear a gurgling sound as water is released into the drain tube. If it doesn’t, the valve may need to be replaced.

Flush the Tank

Sediment build-up can reduce your water heater’s efficiency and damage the tank. Annually flushing the tank can help:
– Turn off the power (for electric heaters) or the gas supply (for gas heaters).
– Connect a garden hose to the tank’s drain valve and run it outside or into a bucket.
– Open the drain valve, allowing the water to flow until it’s clear. If the water remains cloudy, briefly turn on the cold water supply to stir up remaining sediment, and drain again.

Check the Anode Rod

The anode rod protects your tank from corrosion. It should be checked every three years, or more frequently if you have hard water:
– Shut off the power or gas and water supply.
– Unscrew the anode rod from the top of the tank.
– If it’s less than ½ inch thick or coated with calcium, replace it.

Adjust the Temperature

Setting the temperature to 120°F can reduce energy consumption and prevent scalding. This setting is adequate for most needs and helps to slow sediment buildup and corrosion.

Insulate the Water Heater

Insulating older tanks can improve efficiency. You can insulate the tank with special blankets made for water heaters. Also, insulating the hot water pipes reduces heat loss as water travels through your home.

Annual Professional Inspection

Even with diligent maintenance, having a professional inspect your water heater annually is wise. They can check for issues you might miss, including checking the burner (for gas heaters), inspecting the heating elements (for electric heaters), and ensuring the system is operating safely and efficiently.

Be Proactive with Replacements

Water heaters typically last between 8 to 12 years. If yours is approaching this age range and experiencing frequent issues, consider replacing it before it fails. Newer models are more energy-efficient and can save you money in the long run.

Regular maintenance of your water heater can significantly extend its lifespan, improve its efficiency, and save you money. By following these steps, you can ensure that your water heater remains in good working condition for years to come. Remember, while many of these tasks are DIY-friendly, don’t hesitate to call Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning if you’re uncomfortable performing any maintenance or if your water heater shows signs of serious problems.

February 7, 2024

Drain Cleaning Services

By Drain Cleaners, Drain Cleaning, Drain Clog, Plumbing, Plumbing and Air Conditioning Dallas TX

Discovering a blocked drain can swiftly turn an ordinary day into a frustrating one, whether it’s a kitchen sink or a bathroom issue. For residents of the Dallas-Fort Worth Area, Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning offers expert drain cleaning services to tackle any blockage, ensuring your plumbing remains intact.

Curious about the origins of clogs, their signs, and the benefits of professional drain cleaning? Let’s delve into these aspects.

Root Causes of Drain Blockages

Often, drains are mistakenly treated as all-consuming disposals, leading to the need for professional cleaning. The substance of the clog varies by location:

– Toilet drains may suffer from non-flushable items like wipes or feminine products. Remember, if it’s not labeled flushable, it shouldn’t be flushed.
– Kitchen drains can become clogged with excessive grease or fibrous materials, whereas bathtub drains might accumulate hair or soap residue.

Identifying a Clogged Drain

Watch for these warning signs in your home:

– Bubbling toilets
– Slow drainage
– Water backing up into other fixtures
– Leaks at the toilet’s base
– Unpleasant odors from sinks, toilets, or tubs
– Puddles around plumbing fixtures

Commercial drain cleaners may offer a temporary fix but can damage your plumbing over time, often leading to recurring clogs. Opting for a professional drain cleaning service, like Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning, is a safer and more effective solution.

Our Professional Drain Cleaning Process

Our team comprises highly skilled and certified technicians familiar with the plumbing systems in your area. We avoid harsh chemicals, instead employing advanced tools like motorized drain augers and hydro-jetters to precisely target and eliminate clogs.

The motorized drain snake efficiently breaks down stubborn blockages without harming your pipes, while hydro-jetting cleans the interior of your plumbing, preventing future clogs.

Advantages of Professional Drain Cleaning

Attempting to clear a clog on your own may seem tempting, but professional cleaning offers numerous benefits:

– Provides a long-term solution, eliminating the need for frequent fixes
– Removes unpleasant odors and slow drainage
– Prevents water damage, which can cause allergies or respiratory issues
– Saves money by avoiding ineffective DIY methods

Choose Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning

While searching for “drain cleaning near me” might yield many options, Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning stands out in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. We treat your home as our own, offering the level of service we’d provide to our friends or family. Don’t let a clogged drain stress you—contact Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning for a swift and thorough cleaning.

February 7, 2024
Chemical Drain Cleaners Are Bad

Why Harsh Chemical Drain Cleaners Are Bad (and What’s Better)

By Drain Cleaners

If you’re a homeowner in Frisco, TX, or if you’re living anywhere with toilets and drains, you’re likely going to encounter a clog at some point. Over time, hair, food particles, and other debris can build up in your plumbing system, leading to a clogged drain.

When you notice a clogged drain or a backed-up toilet, your first instinct probably isn’t to call for professional drain cleaning services or toilet repair. Most homeowners decide to go with a quick chemical solution to handle the issue, you can find these products in almost every supermarket around the country.

However, while harsh chemical drain cleaners are a popular option, it’s actually horrible for your plumbing system. In fact, professional plumbers hate these products, and for good reason. They can cause serious damage to your pipes over time, which can leave you searching for “plumbing repair near me.”

You’ll likely end up with costly repairs if you use chemical drain cleaners repeatedly, including toilet repairs or even garbage disposal repairs, depending on where you’ve used them. 

How Do Chemical Drain Cleaners Work?

You’re probably feeling a bit confused. After all, how could a product be so popular and yet so harmful? The quick answer is that chemical cleaners can be effective at removing blockages, but the way it does so can also be damaging to your pipes, as well.

You see, most chemical drain cleaners are made up of aluminum, salt, sodium nitrate, bleach, and lye. You might be familiar with these chemicals, and when they’re joined together, several chemical reactions will happen simultaneously.

First, the lye will decompose any physical matter in your pipes. Next, the aluminum comes in to react with the lye. This reaction creates a near-boiling temperature, which helps to speed up the decomposition process.

The lye will then react with the grease in your drain to form a soapy substance that serves to dissolve your clog. This creates enough room for hot water to wash away the rest of the clog, which is why you always follow a chemical drain cleaner with a flush of hot water.

These chemical reactions effectively remove blockages, but they’re also way more than most residential drains can handle. Prolonged use of chemical cleaners can cause damage to your pipes, and you will probably end up searching for “plumbers near me” before too long. 

Why You Should Not Use Chemical Drain Cleaners

There are many reasons to avoid using harsh chemical drain cleaners. Here are some of the top problems you may encounter after using this product or anything with a similar chemical makeup:

Damage to Your Plumbing

One of the biggest problems with chemical cleaners is that they are corrosive to your household pipes. The same chemical reactions that remove your blockage can also eat away at your pipes, causing cracks, leaks, and other issues.

These products can also melt the glue that holds your pipes together, causing a host of issues. In the end, you may need to replace your pipes, or at best, you could end up needing repairs. 

Potential Health Risks

As we explained, these cleaners are made up of dangerous chemicals. As you use it in your drain, you will undoubtedly inhale some of the fumes, which can be very bad for your health.

Fumes from these products can also cause your eyes to burn, and it may be difficult to take a breath unless the area is well-ventilated. If you use enough chemical drain cleaners, over time, you could experience health complications, and even one exposure isn’t good for your body. 

Unpredictable Results

These products are also unpredictable, and it may not even clear your clog in the first place. Even if your water starts running smoothly again for a short while, that doesn’t mean it will continue doing so. In fact, this is only considered to be a temporary fix, which is another reason why professional plumbers never use it.

Though a chemical cleaner may temporarily restore water flow, part of the blockage likely remains. This serves as an easy target for more buildup, so over time, your blockage will probably return, leaving you in the same situation as before.

Not only that, but products like these can react in unpredictable ways depending on how you use it. There may be other chemicals in your drains you’re unaware of that could react poorly with the ones in the drain cleaning product. The result can be disastrous, so it’s best to avoid using it in the first place. 

Environmental Damage

Even if your cleaning experience goes smoothly, that doesn’t mean it can’t have negative consequences elsewhere. These products are full of chemicals that are terrible for the environment, and when you pour it down your household drain, those chemicals are eventually released into the community water supply.

While wastewater treatment facilities can remove these chemicals, they still need to travel all of the way there. Along the way, the chemicals can seep into the ground, harming all plants and wildlife in the area. 

Call Professionals Instead of Using Harsh Chemical Drain Cleaners

If you have a blockage in your plumbing system, hold off on using a chemical product. Chemical drain cleaners can be detrimental to your pipes, health, and the environment. Instead, you’re better off searching for “plumbing repair near me” because professional plumbers can remove your blockage without using harsh chemicals.

Professionals will use specialized equipment that’s designed not to cause damage to your drain. While it will cost slightly more than a bottle of drain cleaner, these professional services will be more effective, so you won’t need to keep clearing the same blockage over and over. 

Additionally, since these products can actually cause significant damage to your pipes, you’ll avoid the need for more expensive plumbing repair by going with a professional the first time around. 

The Experts: Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning 

The next time you need expert plumbing services due to a blockage, don’t waste your time searching for “plumbers near me.” Instead, call the team of experts at Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning in Frisco, TX. We offer trusted and timely drain cleaning services to clear your blockage and get your water flowing smoothly again.

January 13, 2022
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