Everybody knows it: it’s ‘conventional wisdom,’ passed down generation to generation. It applies to anything and everything and unfortunately, in many cases, it’s oversimplified or just plain wrong.
The conventional wisdom in plumbing is no different; there are many myths. Freshen your drains with lemon? Run water with the garbage disposal? Good ideas? Find out as we explore the top 10 plumbing myths that cost you money. The first few myths are outlined below along with some real alternatives:
- Myth #1: Putting lemons in your disposal to make it smell Fresh is a good idea.When life gives you lemons, don’t put them down your disposal! You might succeed in briefly creating a fresher aroma, but the citric acid from lemons corrodes the metal inside your disposal.
The Better Alternative: Use ice to polish your disposal up inside, which works just like a rock tumbler polishing rocks;it’s noisy, but it works. Power-wash the scum causing the odor from the dram without miningyour disposal.
- Myth #2: “In tank” cleaners will keep your toilet sparkling and smelling like roses. Spending money on “in tank” cleaners marketed to make your chores easier and decrease the time you spend scrubbing your toilet is one cost you can cut. These products bleach smelly build-up white, but don’t get rid of it. Eventually, the build-up can ruin your toilet.
The Better Alternative: Use vinegar down the overflow tube. Vinegar removes smelly build-up that can damage the flow of your toilet for a fraction of the cost.
- Myth #3: Lifetime warranties on bad products are really useful. When you buy something cheap and it breaks, don’t expect to get it replaced with the latest and greatest product on the market. What you buy is what you’re stuck with. Plus, you’ll be spending time and money to keep reinstalling it.
The Better Alternative: Buy good quality products the first time around and avoid trading in junk for junk.
- Myth #4: Running water while using the garbage disposal helps the waste travel smoothly.Sure, it seems like the perfect combo: letting the faucet run while using the garbage disposal to help wash waste down the drain. It’s something we’ve all done. And inevitably, we’ve all had to reach our hands down the drain to unblock whatever leftovers got jammed in the pipes. Following waste with water doesn’t help if the blockage has already happened before the water shows up.
The Better Alternative: Fill the sink basin with a 4:1 ratio of water to waste so that the waste is separated and flows with ease down the drain.
We’ll be following up with more plumbing myths with better alternatives that actually work shortly on the blog. If you ever have plumbing questions or needs, you can always contact us for help – we’d be glad to give you the truth and nothing but the truth when it comes to plumbing!
