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Is Your Toilet Tank Not Filling Up?

There’s an old joke that goes: “Is your refrigerator running?” “Yeah.” “Well you better go catch it!”.

You’ve probably heard it before. It’s not a great joke.

But do you know what’s no joke? A toilet tank that isn’t filling up.

We’re a plumbing company. We want your business. And we want your trust. That’s why we want to help you solve problems without needing to call us. It will save you money, and it may save you time. The skills you’ll learn here can help you for your entire lifetime.

So without further ado: “Is your toilet tank not filling up?” – better read this article.

The shut off valve is off

This is pretty rare, but it’s extraordinarily easy to fix, so this is what we’ll lead with.

Sometimes, the shut off valve on your toilet is off. In other words, water isn’t flowing to your toilet. This usually happens if you’ve recently done repairs on your toilet – or if you have curious kids.

Just turn the valve on. Simple as that.

The float is too low

Before you take the steps we describe here, it’s helpful to turn the shut off valve off. Just remember to turn it back on again when you’re done.

Your toilet’s float is connected to its fill valve – though some modern toilets have an all-in-one fill valve/float. 

If your float is set too low, the fill valve will close before your toilet tank can fill with water. You can adjust this in a couple of different ways: 

When you have a traditional ball float, the adjustment is often as simple as fiddling with screws or dials that allow you to change the position of the ball. Simply lift the float ball higher.

With cylinder floats (the all-in-one models), you’ll release a clip. You can then adjust the float – sometimes by turning a screw mechanism up or down.

There are too many ways of adjusting floats to describe here – check out this article on adjusting toilet fill valves to learn more. 

Your flapper is defective

Don’t worry, we’re not talking badly about jazz-loving women from the 1920s.

Your toilet flapper is what seals the flush valve hole. That means it’s what stops water from continuously running into your toilet bowl – and emptying your tank.

There are many potential problems with toilet flappers. If you see debris, it may be stopping your flapper from sealing the flush valve. Simply clean it out with a cloth.

Flapper chains are also prone to getting caught – simply move the chain!

If your flapper is looking very worn or the chain is broken, however, you may need to buy a new flapper. They’re pretty easy to install, so you can probably do this yourself!

It’s something else

If you’ve checked all of the above, you probably have a more serious problem. You may have a leak in your toilet supply line or another defect with your toilet.

Give us a call. We’re plumbers in Winnipeg who can diagnose and repair pretty much any problem you might have with your toilet.

The post Is Your Toilet Tank Not Filling Up? appeared first on Clean Line Plumbing.

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Silent Leaks In Commercial Buildings

Overhead costs are a constant drain on your bottom line. Many articles have been written about how you can reduce your overhead costs.

And if you’re looking to do so, it’s a good idea to start by looking at your utilities. You might be spending more than you need to on electrical, or even on plumbing.

Especially if you have a silent leak.

What are silent leaks?

Silent leaks are an absolutely unnecessary overhead cost – the metaphor of throwing money down the drain fits incredibly well here. True to their name, silent leaks are leaks in your plumbing that you can’t hear. Silent leaks are also “invisible” – you can’t see them. In fact, in most cases, it’s almost impossible for a business owner to know that they have a silent leak.

That is, of course, unless they know how to look.

Detecting silent leaks

There are a number of ways you can go about detecting silent leaks. The first is what you might call the “manual” method. Turn off absolutely every device that uses water in your building. That means faucets, ice machines, coffee makers with water lines – everything. No should be pouring a glass of water, or flushing a toilet. 

Then, mark down the numbers on your water meter. Wait about an hour, then check the meter again. If the numbers have changed, you probably have a leak. 

Obviously, this strategy isn’t viable for many businesses. Shutting your business down to run this test may not be possible. There may also be too many different fixtures to shut off.

The second method is to carefully observe your water meter – if there are substantial changes in billing this year compared to last year, and there are no changes in occupancy or prices, you may have a leak. This method can be pretty inaccurate – use it to determine whether or not a leak is a possibility, rather than whether or not a leak is a certainty.

The next method is probably the most obvious – call a plumber! It’s a good idea to have a plumber conduct regular maintenance of your commercial plumbing anyway, especially if you have a number of commercial tenants. During maintenance, or a plumbing inspection, your plumber will be able to spot any leaks.

Finally, you may want to consider getting commercial leak detectors installed. These devices can alert you immediately if there’s a plumbing leak of any kind. They’re a great preventive tool as well – consider installing them even if you don’t have a leak!

Silent but dangerous

Silent leaks aren’t just costly. They can cause serious structural damage, and they can create breeding grounds for mould. Mould, in turn, can cause serious illness. It’s important for your bottom line and for the safety of all occupants to address leaks as soon as possible.

We offer plumbing services in Winnipeg. If you suspect you have a silent leak, don’t hesitate to call us. And if you’re looking for a company with experience handling routine commercial plumbing maintenance, get in touch with us. 

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What To Do If Your Shower Drain Keeps Clogging

Taking a shower can be the most relaxing part of your day. But when the shower water starts pooling at your ankles, you know you’re going to have to unclog the drain.

And when you have to unclog the drain on a weekly basis, taking a shower can seem like a chore instead of a reprieve.

What’s causing your shower drain to get clogged so frequently, and what can you do to prevent it from clogging up again? Let’s take a look at some of the most common culprits – and the solutions to your problem:

Problem #1: A hairy predicament

When your family has as much hair as the cast of the musical, Hair, you’re going to end up with a clogged shower drain. Pulling out that hair by hand can be…unpleasant, to say the least. 

To preserve the functionality of your shower drain you can try using a shower drain hair catcher. You should also avoid using heavy shaving creams in the shower.

Problem #2: A deep clog

You might have a clog further down your pipes that’s causing slow drainage. This clog can lead to other clogs further up the pipe – you might be managing to clear the other clogs, but not the main problem.

This is especially common in old homes, with pipes that tend to clog more easily, or in homes where the pipes are full of twists and bends. In these circumstances, you might benefit from getting a drum auger. These devices are like superpowered plumbing snakes that attach to a drill. They go incredibly deep into the pipes, so you’ll be able to get rid of otherwise unreachable clogs.

Problem #3: A systemic issue

When it’s just your shower that’s not draining properly, it’s very likely that it’s because of one of the two problems above. When you have several drains that you have to unclog repeatedly, it’s more likely a problem with your sewer main line or vent stack.

These systemic issues need to be addressed by a plumber. You can end up with nasty things like sewer backup – not to mention all the work you have to put in to repeatedly unclog your drains.

When you have to continually unclog all of your drains, or when a drum auger and hair trap don’t successfully clear your shower drain, it’s time to call us. We’re plumbing contractors in Winnipeg, and we’re a solution-focused company. That means we’ll get down to the root of the problem, solve it, and give you tips to help avoid any future shower drain clogs.

And that’s all you need to know – now go forth, and reclaim your leisurely shower time!

The post What To Do If Your Shower Drain Keeps Clogging appeared first on Clean Line Plumbing.

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Why Does My Tap Water Look & Smell Bad?

We all know how water is supposed to taste. It’s supposed to taste like almost nothing, with maybe some hint of mineral or chlorinated taste. 

It’s supposed to taste clean.

As to how it’s supposed to look? Well, it’s supposed to look clear. And as many Winnipeggers who’ve experienced brown tap water know, when it doesn’t look clear, it’s certainly not tempting to drink.

Having foul looking or smelling tap water can be a pretty disconcerting experience – water is life, after all. You shouldn’t drink tap water that looks or smells off unless you’re absolutely certain it’s safe. With that said, we figured it would be nice to take a look at some of the many reasons your water might look or smell a bit off. 

There are different causes for the two things – you might have water that smells bad but looks fine, and you might have water that looks bad but smells fine. Let’s break it down:

Why your water smells bad

Your water could smell bad for a number of different reasons. One of the most common culprits? It’s your sink that smells bad, and your water is actually fine. That would mean a backup in your drain is the likely source of the bad smell. Pour your water into a glass, move it away from the sink, then smell it again. If it’s fine, it’s the sink.

If you’re on well water, a rotten egg smell might mean there’s bacterial growth that you need to take care of. On the other hand, if you’re getting a mouldy or musty scent, it could be because of surface drainage polluting your well. In either case, you’ll want to stop using your well water, and get it tested and treated.

There are a lot of other smells you want to avoid – for example, if you smell gasoline, there’s likely a leaking fuel tank or gas line nearby, and you’ll need to call the authorities to have things checked right away. Basically, if your water smells bad, figure out the source of the odour as best as you can, and call for help if you need to.

Why your water looks bad

In Winnipeg, we’ve had a number of events in which our water turned brown. The City addresses this in their discoloured water FAQ. To save you the trouble of reading it, the discolouration was caused by manganese created by our water treatment process. The City has switched up its process to produce less manganese.

There are other potential causes for discoloured water, of course. Sometimes sediment in the water main will find its way to your taps, especially if water pressure has changed. The City advises you run cold water from your bathtub for a few minutes until the water runs clear. If it doesn’t ever run clear, keep trying every 30 minutes, then call 311 after 3 hours.

You want to run cold water instead of hot water because if you run hot water, the sediment that’s discolouring the tap water could end up in your hot water tank. We can do hot water tank repairs in Winnipeg, and we’re here if you need us, but it’s best to avoid the problem in the first place. 

For those who aren’t on the City’s water main, the cause is likely internal. Something might be discolouring your water at the source, or you might have corroded pipes that are leaching metal into the water. In either case, you’ll want to get the problem checked out. 

To cap this post off, we want to mention that there are a lot of reasons for your water to look or smell a bit off. If you’re not sure your water is safe, don’t drink it – feel free to give us a call, or call 311. 

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Under Sink Filtration Systems

There are lots of reasons to want to filter your water, but they usually come down to one central theme – you want to protect your health.

That might be by reducing lead content, reducing VOCs, or reducing sediment. Heck, it might just be that you like the taste of filtered water.

Whatever your reasons are, you might have decided that a filtered water pitcher just isn’t convenient enough. Time is money, after all – what’s more, the cost of those disposable filters can add up! For a lot of people, it might be worth the money to purchase an under sink filtration system. These systems come with a separate faucet, so you’ll have one faucet for dishes and other chores, and another for clean drinking water.

Are under sink filtration systems worth it?

There’s no one simple answer to this question. In Winnipeg, our drinking water is high-quality – check out the City’s Water Quality Report. We’ve actually got some of the best drinking water in the world – though if you’re chlorine-averse, you might not love the taste.

Some homes in Winnipeg still have lead pipes, and filtration can help reduce the amount of lead in your water. If you have lead pipes, however, it’s best to get them removed and replaced, rather than to simply try to filter the lead out. Lead is quite dangerous, and high quantities of lead might not be completely filtered out. The lead can also enter your system through other sources – your toothbrush, your shower, and the like.

All this being said, there are a lot of people who, quite reasonably, want to limit the number of chemicals that they’re ingesting through their drinking water. For these people, an under sink filtration system is a safe and effective way of purifying water.

When it comes to people living outside the City limits, water filtration can become even more important. The quality of well water can vary from well to well, and even from season to season. Having a filtration system in place can protect you from sediment and other runoff that can enter your well. Of course, if your well is contaminated by something like E. coli, you’ll still need to get it treated, which means that even with a filter, you’ll still need to test your well water regularly.

Which under sink filtration system do you recommend?

We love the Aqua Flo Under Sink Filtration System. It’s relatively inexpensive, it does a great job filtering out sediment and chemicals, and it leaves your tap water tasting great. There are a variety of models available, so you can choose how much you want to filter out – from simple chlorine reduction to a 3-stage filtration system.

Of course, you won’t have to install it yourself – your Winnipeg plumbers at Clean Line can do the hard work for you. Just be sure to let us have a drink of that filtered water once we’re done!

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Boiler vs. Water Heater: What’s The Difference?

You’re walking through the basement of a building – maybe it’s your house, maybe it’s a small business. You notice that there’s a tank down there – a powered tank that seems to be heating water. 

Is it a boiler? Is it a water heater? Is there any real difference between the two?

Good questions. Let’s answer them:

What is a water heater?

Water heaters are sometimes referred to as hot water heaters – but that’s a bit like calling a toaster a toast toaster. That’s redundant, so let’s just call them water heaters.

These appliances heat water specifically to provide you with hot water. Whether you’re taking a shower or running your dishwasher, your water heater is what’s keeping things nice and toasty.

Water heaters come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, but there are two broad varieties on the market right now: tank water heaters and tankless water heaters.

Tank water heaters are the most common – they store large quantities of water that they continually heat. They tend to cost less than tankless heaters, but they’re also less energy-efficient. This is the type of water heater you might sometimes hear someone call a boiler.

Tankless water heaters would never be mistaken for a boiler, because they don’t store water – they heat it on demand. 

What is a boiler?

Boilers are very similar to tank water heaters, in that they store water in a large tank and heat it up for your use. The major difference is that most of the time, when people are talking about boilers, they’re talking about appliances that are used to heat a building.

There are a variety of different types of boilers, but they all have tanks. Some boilers will simultaneously heat your building and provide you with hot water – these are known as combi boilers. 

To add to the confusion, some people will call tank water heaters that don’t heat your home boilers. That means when someone says they have a boiler, they might mean that they have a tank water heater, a boiler that just heats their home, or a combi boiler. For the most part, however, a boiler means an appliance that uses hot water to heat your home/business.

Finally, the word “boiler” implies that water is, well, being boiled. This is rarely the case – you don’t need to heat water to its boiling point to generate steam – which is all steam boilers need to heat your building. That’s because technically it’s not even steam (that is, it’s not water that has turned to its gaseous form) – it’s more like a fine mist under pressure.

The more you know

Now that you know the difference between boilers and water heaters, you can properly assess which one you need. Looking for hot water tanks in Winnipeg? Get in touch with us. We’ve also got great information on tankless heaters, and we can advise you on whether or not going tankless is a better solution for your home and/or business.

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Should I Replace My Plumbing?

Replacing the plumbing in your entire house is a costly proposition – there’s no two ways about it. Understanding whether or not you need to replace your plumbing means knowing a bit about why pipes get damaged in the first place, the lifespans of different pipes, and how you should diagnose and treat plumbing problems. 

That’s a lot of information, so let’s get to it:

Why plumbing fails

Plumbing fails for the reason that most systems fail over time – wear and tear. Pipes are built to be corrosion-resistant (for obvious reasons), but corrosion resistance is not corrosion immunity – time makes fools of us all. The water in your pipes doesn’t have a neutral pH; there’s some degree of hardness to it. Over time, this can corrode even the strongest pipes.

This corrosion happens very slowly – there’s slight internal pitting for some time before the pipe will spring an actual leak.

There’s also the problem of sediment build-up. Over time, minerals can start to clog up your pipes. This clogging leads to an increase in pressure, as the diameter of the pipe shrinks. This increased pressure seldom causes pipes to burst, but if they’ve already been weakened by corrosion, it can become a perfect storm scenario.

How long does plumbing last?

For this, we’ve got some pretty concrete numbers – though fortunately, very little concrete plumbing (who wants cement pipes?)

Supply line lifespans

Material Lifespan Brass  80-100 years Galvanized steel 80-100 years Copper 60-80 years

  Drain line lifespans

Material Lifespan Cast iron 80-100 years PVC 20-40 years

Of course, these are just guidelines for how long your plumbing will last – a variety of factors, from frequency of use to water hardness can affect these numbers.

Signs of plumbing failure

There are a number of signs that your pipes are nearing the end of their lifespan. Leaks are the most obvious sign; not all pipes are exposed, so you might find these leaks in the form of damp baseboards or wet spots on your wall. 

Discoloured water is a sign that corrosion has started to leach metal from your pipes into your water. Low water pressure may be a sign that there are leaks. Strange noises in your pipes could mean sediment build-up. All of these things could mean your pipes are due for a replacement.

Of course, these things don’t necessarily mean you need to replace your pipes. Sediment can be readily cleaned out, and sometimes leaks can be fixed without replacing a whole section of pipes. When you notice any of these signs, call our plumbers in Winnipeg to do some diagnostic work for you. 

Fixing fixtures

Low water pressure, strange sounds, clogs – while these things can be signs of broad systemic failure, they’re more often signs that a particular fixture is in need of maintenance. It’s much less expensive to replace a toilet, or even a water heater, than it is to replace a whole section of plumbing. During our diagnostics, we’ll determine if the problem is in a fixture instead of the pipes – and if it is, we’ll fix that instead, saving you time and money.

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When Should I Drain My Pipes For Winter?

A simple question with a not-so simple answer: 

In Winnipeg, the answer can seem kind of obvious – you don’t drain your pipes. You need water, after all, and shutting off your water main and draining your pipes will make water inaccessible. The answer actually isn’t that obvious, though – you’ve got to think about winter vacations.

You see, if you’re on vacation in the winter, and for some reason your furnace fails, your pipes can freeze and explode. Insurance companies are not keen on this happening, so they almost never cover for burst pipes as a result of frozen water, especially if it happens while you are on vacation.

There’s often coverage extended if you have someone who comes to check on your house regularly, but if you want to be especially careful, you should drain your pipes before you leave for your vacation – do so the night before if you think you can go all morning without using water. Otherwise, consider draining your pipes right before you leave.

Other Pipes to Drain

You’ll also want to think about when you should drain your pipes if you’ve got a property that isn’t properly winterized. In most cases, this is if you’ve got a cabin. You’ll need to drain your pipes as soon as you’re closing up for winter.

Another factor you might not be considering is draining any fixtures outside your house/cabin – namely the spigot your hose would attach to. You’ll need to drain your hose and the spigot completely, or they may end up cracking when the water inside them expands into ice.

The right time to do this is a bit tricky – you want to do it before the weather drops below zero, but after you’ve finished any outdoor activities for the season. Watch the forecast carefully – if the temperature is going to drop below zero at night, it can be helpful to drain them, then use them again, as necessary (draining them again when you’re done).

The draining process for outdoor and indoor fixtures is the same. You turn off your water supply valve, turn the fixture on full blast, and wait until there’s no more water trickling out. From there, turn off the fixture, and you’re good to go.

Insulating Your Pipes

Of course, you can always consider insulating your pipes and fixtures in order to keep them warm all winter long. The amount of time and money this can take will vary considerably depending on the nature of the project, but for some property owners it’s quite worthwhile.

Here at Clean Line, we offer a variety of Winnipeg sewer and drain services, as well as a full suite of other plumbing services. When you need to winterize your pipes, give us a call – we can help you keep everything properly insulated, drastically reducing how often you’ll need to drain your pipes. 

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How Does A Toilet Tank Work?

Toilets are marvels of ingenuity, though the fixture is so common and widely used you wouldn’t realize it unless you thought about it. To understand the genius behind a toilet, you first need to understand toilet tanks. We’re going to take a look at those right now, as they’re where most of the magic happens. The shape of the toilet is also incredibly important, but that’s a topic for another day.

You know one part of the tank already – the handle that you use to flush the toilet. What happens when you press that handle? It’s attached to an arm or lever; when you push it down, the arm tilts. It’s attached to a chain, which starts to pull upwards. That chain, in turn, is attached to a flapper, sometimes called a flush valve seal.

Your toilet tank is full of water. When the flapper lifts, that water rushes into the toilet bowl; that pressure is what forces waste and wastewater down into your sewage pipes. Gravity will pull the flapper back into place. That alone is pretty smart, but there’s a problem – how does water fill back up?

The solution is just as ingenious! You see, there’s another item in your toilet tank, known as the float. You can guess where it gets its name – it floats on water. When the water level goes down, the float moves down as well. The float is attached to a valve, and when the float drops, the valve opens up. The valve is, in turn, attached to the water source in your home, so when it opens, water begins to flow back into the tank. The float then floats back up to its original position, which closes the valve, and the toilet is ready to be flushed again.

Now, what we’ve just described is your traditional toilet tank, but there is a lot of variation in toilet tank technology nowadays. Let’s start by looking at low-flow toilets. There are a couple of different low-flow designs, and they vary from simply having much bigger flappers (which create substantially more pressure at once), to gravity-based models.

There are also dual flush models, which often use a siphon-based flush. Rather than simply lifting a flapper, water is drawn up through a siphon, and then gravity does the rest. The stem of the device that pulls the water up into the siphon may have holes near the bottom, and if the half-flush button is pressed, these holes are opened, allowing air into the siphon and cutting off water flow. The float part of these toilets works exactly the same way as described above. You should know that this isn’t the only way to design a dual flush toilet; HowStuffWorks has an excellent page on another dual flush toilet design. 

And now you know what’s going on inside your toilet tank whenever you flush your toilet; this can be really useful information if you’re trying to DIY some toilet repair. Not all toilet repair should be done by you, of course, and that’s why there are plumbers in Winnipeg ready to help you if you need it. 

The post How Does A Toilet Tank Work? appeared first on Clean Line Plumbing.

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How To Check Your Boiler For Corrosion

As you can probably guess, corrosion is really bad for your boiler. Boilers are made almost entirely of metal, as are the pipes that lead out of them. There are a lot of different things that can cause corrosion – inevitably, over time, most metals will start to rust, although boilers are crafted with some built-in anti-corrosion measures. Nevertheless, corrosion can still happen, especially if the pH of your water is off (particularly hard water is susceptible to this, as is water that’s exposed to a lot of oxygen). 

While in this article we may not be able to tell you why your boiler is corroding, we can tell you how to check your boiler for corrosion. If you find corrosion, you can give us a call, and we can help you find the root cause.

Rust

The most obvious sign of corrosion is rust. In fact, rust is the natural consequence of iron corrosion – and colloquially, we call almost all metallic corrosion “rust”. You might see rust on all kinds of different places on your boiler, though you’ll most commonly see it near valves.

The rust won’t necessarily be visible on your boiler – it might be visible in your water! When there’s rusting on the inside of your boiler, that’s usually where it will show up, and though it’s unlikely boilers that are 15 years old or younger will see internal corrosion, it does happen. This is, of course, only relevant for boilers being used as hot water tanks – boilers being used as heating systems don’t rust air… so you’ll have to inspect your boiler regularly.

Leaks

Another common sign of corrosion is leaks. Now, if you have a leak, it might not be caused by corrosion, but either way, you’re going to want to get someone to check your boiler. This should probably go without saying, but leaks are very bad – you’re wasting money, and you’re reducing your boiler’s lifespan.

Pitting and Holes

Pitting is localized corrosion that leads to small holes. Holes are self-explanatory. As you can imagine, if you have pitting or holes, it can quickly lead to some pretty serious leaks. Should you see evidence of either of the two, it’s very likely you have corrosion.

Your Water Bill

If your water bill is suddenly skyrocketing, it’s another sign your boiler might have corrosion. As you’ve seen, most of the signs involve leaks, pits, and holes. What’s more, rust can lead to general inefficiencies, which might also increase your energy bill.

Now that you know how to check for corrosion, you need to know what to do about it. The answer is relatively straightforward – call for our plumbing services in Winnipeg. We can tell you whether or not your boiler needs to be repaired or replaced – unfortunately, with corrosion, it’s usually the latter.

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How To Test Water Quality

You don’t want to take any risks with your drinking water – if it’s contaminated with metals or microorganisms, it could lead to serious consequences for you and your family or your employees. As such, it’s completely reasonable to want to test your water quality. Before we explain how you can test water quality, there are a few things you should know:

Most of our readers are located in Winnipeg, and almost everyone in Winnipeg is hooked up to the City’s water supply. Consequently, there’s a lot of information available about water quality. The City of Winnipeg must supply regular reports on water quality. We’re quite fortunate – our City’s water is quite safe. Here’s the 2020 water quality report. 

The City’s capacity to test water quality has its limits, though. While they can test their end of the water supply, they can’t test the fixtures in your home or business. While most Winnipeg properties have high-quality water, some buildings built around or before 1950 have lead pipes. These pipes can leach lead into your water supply. The City of Winnipeg offered a water quality testing program – that program is presently suspended due to COVID-19. The program had astounding success, however, so when possible, it’s likely the City will reinstate the program.

Those of you who are getting water from sources other than the City’s may very well want to get your water tested, especially if you’re drawing your water from wells. You’ll want to test your water at least once a year, as well as anytime you notice discolouration or a change in odour. 

The Government of Manitoba has created a comprehensive guide to water testing, but we’ll provide a brief summary here:

Contact an approved water testing lab (like ALS) – some labs require notice before you deliver a sample. They’ll provide you with a sample bottle.

Find a frequently used faucet near your water source.

Remove the screen from the tap.

Sterilize the end of the tap with a flame or disinfectant.

Run cold water for 3-5 minutes.

Carefully remove the cap from the sample bottle. Consider using sterile gloves to avoid contamination.

Fill the bottle to the fill line, and place the cap back on, being careful not to let the bottle touch anything but the water.

Bring the water sample to the lab within the suggested time frame.

The primary purpose of this test is to detect bacteria, though labs may also be able to detect the presence of other substances, such as metals, in your water source. You may be told to boil water until such a time as your water source can be cleaned.

You might find that you have lead pipes, or that you want to be hooked up to the City’s water source to avoid well contamination. In either case, we’re here for you. We’re plumbing contractors in Winnipeg who know the City, its surroundings, and its water sources well – we can ensure you’ve got a clean supply of water.  

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How To Tell If There’s Sediment In Your Water Heater

Like most other complex appliances, water heaters benefit from regular maintenance. One of the more common issues with water heaters is an accumulation of sediment in the tank. There’s sediment dissolved in almost all water – the measurement for how much sediment is dissolved in water is called water hardness.

Because Winnipeg’s water hardness falls within the moderately hard range, it’s likely you’ll see some sediment build-up in your tank. This is, in part, because the heating process encourages sediment to pool at the bottom of your tank. Sediment in your tank can lower your water heater’s lifespan and efficiency.

Sometimes, you may hear popping or banging noises inside your hot water tank. That’s a good sign that there’s sediment in there. Discoloured spots on your hot water tank are another telltale sign. Sediment deposits can create hot spots which overheat and damage the tank.

There are a number of less obvious signs that your tank is full of sediment. The most common of these is, unfortunately, a sudden spike in your power bill. You might also find your water is taking a longer time to heat up (a real pain when you’re looking forward to a hot shower at the end of a long day) or, worse yet, that there’s no hot water at all. Of course, all of these things can be symptoms of a bigger problem than water sediment, but sediment is usually an excellent first place to look.

Why? Sediment, you see, is very easy to deal with. All you have to do is flush your hot water tank. There are a couple of ways you can go about this. The most cost-effective way is to take the DIY approach – the process is simple enough that the Government of Alberta created their own guide to water tank flushing.

The second option is to give us a call. This is a particularly good option for those who aren’t confident or experienced in DIY projects – using our services eliminates the worry that you might damage your heater when trying to flush it. We can also assess the damage that any sediment build-up has caused to your hot water tank. Should we find sediment wasn’t the problem, we can then proceed to find and fix the real problem. We offer hot water tank repair in Winnipeg, and we provide 24/7 emergency service if you need your tank fixed now.

Sediment build-up is, of course, only a problem if you have a hot water heater with a tank. Tankless heaters aren’t subject to the same problems, so if you have any of the above symptoms with a tankless heater, give us a call right away – it’s not going to be as easy to fix as flushing a tank.

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What Determines Sewer Replacement Cost?

Sewer replacement is not a simple process. The biggest problem? Sewers are underground, so getting to them in order to do the replacing is tricky. What’s more, your plumbing team will have to evaluate what parts of the sewer are broken, what can be repaired and what can be replaced, what caused the damage in the first place, and what the most effective method of gaining access to the sewer is.

That’s a lot. And all of those factors can affect the cost of sewer replacement.

First, let’s talk about accessibility. While sewers are found underground (and always a bit tricky to access), getting underground is more difficult in some places than others. Imagine a sewer line in a yard with no trees, versus a sewer line in a yard full of trees, versus a sewer line running under a parking lot. The more obstructed the line is, the more replacement is going to cost.

Next, we can talk about the type and extent of damage. When you only have a small section of sewer that’s been damaged, you’ll only have to replace that section – you might even get away with minor repairs. On the flip side, if you’ve got an old sewer system that’s corroded or damaged in multiple places, you might have to replace the whole sewer line which, of course, will be a heck of a lot more expensive. 

The technique that will be used to replace the sewer is another important factor, and it’s intimately tied to the type of damage and age of your sewer line. For some sewer problems, trenchless techniques can be used. As the name implies, these techniques don’t require full trenches to be dug; the structure of the old pipe is instead used as a support for new piping that’s blown in. As you can imagine, not having to use machinery to excavate your yard is going to save you a lot of time and a lot of money. In circumstances where the full sewer line needs to be dug up, you can expect a higher bill.

The company you work with is, of course, another major factor. This is a bit of a balancing act. You don’t want to simply find the least expensive company and go with them – this is sewer replacement, and you want it done right. On the other hand, you don’t want to go with a company just because they’re more expensive – that makes little sense. Check out this guide on how to find professional plumbers to get a good idea of what to look for in your search. 

We hope you’ll consider us. We’ve dealt with our share of sewer installations, replacements, and repairs – because we’ve been handling sewer backup in Winnipeg for as long as we have, we definitely have the expertise to handle whatever issues you may have. 

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Where Are My Water & Gas Shut-Off Valves?

There are two very important pipes running fluids into your home: your water line, and your gas service line. There are a wide array of reasons why you might need to shut either of lines off to stop the flow of gas or water – water shut-off is, of course, much more common than shutting off the gas. This brief guide will explain how to locate the shut-offs for each; it’s a good idea to label them once you’ve found them. You should also take a picture of them so you know where to find them in the future:

Gas Shut-Off

First things first – if you think there’s a natural gas leak in or around your home, don’t spend time trying to find the shut-off valve. Get out of your house, walk upwind of the leak, and call 911 – follow the link above for more information.

There are two types of gas shut-off valves for residences: street-side and house-side. The street-side valve is typically located right before your gas meter. You shouldn’t touch this valve; it’s for Manitoba Hydro’s use, and they don’t like it very much when you tinker with it.

Your house-side valve is usually located near where the natural gas line first enters the house. Follow that line; the first valve you see will be the shut-off valve, while subsequent valves provide shut-offs for appliances like your furnace. 

Depending on what type of system you have, you may see the gas line run into a circular or cylindrical device called a pressure regulator. This indicates that you have a high-pressure gas system. You’ll almost always find this device near a natural gas appliance like a water heater, and the house-side shut-off valve will be located before the pressure regulator.

Water Shut-Off

The process for finding your main water shut-off is very similar; find where the water line enters into your home, and follow it. The main shut-off is typically located right after your water meter. You might also see a shut-off before the water meter; that is the City’s shut-off valve, and you shouldn’t use it.

You should know that for a lot of simple DIY plumbing, you won’t need to shut off your main valve. Instead, you can shut off the supply valves leading to the fixture you’re working on. For example, if you’re replacing the cartridge in a kitchen faucet’s handle, you only need to shut off the water to the kitchen sink.

When there’s a plumbing emergency, it’s important to know where the main water shut-off is; these situations are less life-threatening than gas leaks, so shutting off the water is in your best interests. Label the main shut-off, and take a picture for reference. Once the water is shut off, give us a call: we offer emergency plumbing in Winnipeg 24/7. 

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Understanding Plumbing Systems In Commercial Buildings

The basics of commercial plumbing and residential plumbing aren’t actually that different – fluid dynamics don’t really care about your building’s occupancy. The difference between the two, then, is chiefly the size and scope of your plumbing system. You will, of course, still use pipes to do one of two things: bring clean water in, or bring wastewater out. Where this water goes and what it’s composed of, however, can vary a bit.

Let’s start with the sheer scale of commercial plumbing. A storefront probably won’t need a much bigger system than your average house. A mall, on the other hand, is going to have a lot of fixtures and pipes leading to and from it. Those pipes and fixtures will also be used much more frequently than in a residential scenario. You might have hundreds of people using your fixtures everyday. 

That means routine maintenance and inspections are going to be much more useful – and you’ll want them to happen much more frequently. You may also need to opt for higher capacity pipes, made out of more durable materials.

You’ll also want to consider the various different functions of plumbing in a commercial application. Have a soda machine (or multiple soda machines)? You’re going to need to hook them up to a water supply in order to get carbonated water. Want to pass your fire inspection? You may need fire sprinklers which, of course, need to be hooked up to your water supply.

In other words, commercial systems don’t just exceed residential systems in capacity – they also exceed them in complexity. Urinals, water fountains, disposal of hazardous chemicals – all of these things can require their own specific security measures and pipes. You might also have complex plumbing-related heating systems, like boilers.

Commercial systems are also more concerned with saving money than most residential systems will be. That’s, in part, because low-flow fixtures and energy-efficient boilers tend to cost more money up front, but save money over long-term periods of use. Given that commercial systems see much more use than residential systems, the cost-benefit analysis tends to weigh in favour of high-efficiency fixtures for commercial enterprises.

The scale and complexity of commercial plumbing mean that it’s essential to find a contractor who specializes in commercial plumbing services. You want to take a holistic approach to commercial plumbing systems, finding ways in which you can decrease costs over time while still providing the security and reliability that are essential to commercial enterprises.

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Eliminate Hard Water With A Water Softener

It’s right there in the title – you can eliminate hard water with a water softener! Great news, right? Well, it is if you know what hard water is, or you have hard water and you want to soften it. Let’s expand on all of that – tell you how water softeners work, and then you’ll be as excited as we are!

Water hardness is, in its simplest form, a way of describing how many minerals are dissolved in your water. The Government of Canada has an excellent description of the water hardness scale: 0 to <60 mg/L is soft, 60 to <120 mg/L is medium hard, 120 to < 180 mg/L is hard, and 180 mg/L and above is very hard.

You want some mineral content in your water because your body needs minerals in order to complete its natural processes. That means that medium hard water is actually a pretty good place to be – in fact, that’s where Winnipeg’s water hardness lands (82.4 mg/L). 

The main problem with water hardness has little or nothing to do with health – sources of potable water don’t have enough minerals that you’d risk toxicity, or they wouldn’t be considered potable. Rather, hard water can cause plumbing problems as excess minerals can build up in your pipes. What’s more, hard water can make it difficult to use soap and detergent, with which it reacts less effectively than with soft water.

How, then, can you make your water soft? With a water softener, of course! How do they work? Chemistry!

Basically, the minerals found most often within hard water are magnesium and calcium. Water softeners are filled with a plastic resin that’s full of sodium ions. When the hard water passes through the softener, the magnesium and calcium stick to the resin, and the sodium is released. This process does add some sodium to your water, but you won’t find it tastes salty.

There can be some concern about using sodium softeners for people who have to monitor their sodium intake. For those people, getting a potassium-based softener can work. Either way, you’ll need to refresh your system by adding sodium (or potassium) to the softener every once and while.

A lot of our readers live in Winnipeg, and almost everyone in Winnipeg is hooked up to the city’s water. The people who fall in that category basically don’t have to worry about hard water – Winnipeg has struck an excellent balance between mineral content and softness. Those who aren’t connected to the city’s water, on the other hand, may well want water softening – well water, in particular, can be pretty hard.

We offer residential plumbing services in Winnipeg and the surrounding area. Looking to find and install the right water softener for your needs? Get in touch with us. 

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Tank vs Tankless Water Heaters

Water heaters come in all sorts of different shapes and sizes. Even traditional tank water heaters can have a variety of different fuel sources, capacities, and energy-efficient parts. Few water heaters are exactly alike. The new kid on the block is the tankless water heater, which is more energy-efficient because it heats water on demand. 

The energy-efficient nature of tankless heaters comes from two places. First, because water is only heated on demand, you won’t be spending money heating water that will go unused. That leads us to the second efficiency. Hot water in a tank will necessarily lose heat over time from standby heat loss. Tankless heaters eliminate this problem.

By the sounds of it, tankless heaters are the way to go, right? Well, not necessarily – we’ve only played you the highlight reel so far. Heating water on demand also means that if your demand spikes, the tankless heater is going to have to work that much harder. In fact, these tankless heaters sometimes can’t keep up with your hot water demands. Want to run your dishwasher and washing machine at the same time as you take a hot shower? Unless you’ve got multiple tankless heaters, you’re out of luck.

Another disadvantage of tankless heaters is that they’re typically more expensive to purchase and install than their tank-based cousins. That’s in part because the technology is relatively new – as time goes on, we may see those prices  drop. Nonetheless, if you’re buying a tankless heater to be economically savvy, it might be worth waiting awhile. As it stands right now, it’s unlikely you’d recoup the additional costs in energy savings when compared to a high-efficiency, tank-based heater.

Now, this isn’t to say that tankless heaters don’t come with some other perks. They can save you a lot of space, so they’re great for smaller homes (which are the ones least likely to overload them with demand, anyway). What’s more, because tankless heaters heat on demand, you won’t run out of hot water – as long as you’re not going over capacity, you could take a hot shower for several hours.

Another quick note on heaters and efficiency – and this one applies for tank and tankless – the kind of fuel you use is really relevant. The most efficient kind? Electric. The most economically efficient kind? Natural gas – for now. That’s because even though electric heaters are more efficient, electricity costs a lot more. Should this change, so will the calculations.

So, should you buy a tank or tankless hot water heater? As a quick summary, if you want on-demand hot water, have a low demand for hot water, have limited space, or want to be environmentally-conscious, get a tankless. In almost every other case, tank heaters are appropriate. 

One last quick note: if you already have a tankless system, installing a new tankless heater is less expensive than it would be if you were replacing a tank system. There are plumbing companies in Winnipeg that can help you select and install the best water heater for your specific needs.

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