Thanksgiving is a great time to give gratitude, but it can also be a recipe for a plumbing disaster is you aren’t careful! Here are four essential tips to help you focus on the holiday and not focused on finding a plumber.
Garbage Disposal Don’ts
Don’t let your Thanksgiving meal come to a grinding halt with a backed-up kitchen sink. Thanksgiving is like the Championship Game for garbage disposals, but just like the teams playing in this year’s Turkey Bowl, they have their limits!
Avoid putting the following popular Thanksgiving meal essentials down your garbage disposal:
- Fibrous vegetables: Celery, onion skins, and asparagus can cause clogs.
- Starchy foods: Mashed potatoes and pasta can swell and block pipes.
- Grease and fats: Pouring grease down the drain can lead to major clogs as it cools and solidifies.
Clean Plate Club
Often Thanksgiving dinner turns into a day of grazing and that can be a lot of dirty dishes. Help your dishwasher keep up and keep running.
- Scrape plates into the trash instead of rinsing them off in the sink.
- Use containers for leftovers rather than pouring liquids down the drain.
- Remove and rinse your dishwasher’s filter where food can often become trapped.
Don’t Doubt Your Drains
Thanksgiving activity can put your home’s plumbing system to work. One clog can put the focus on your drains and not your dinner. Before the big day take some time to check your sinks and drains.
- Check for food backing up, odd smells or water draining slowly in your kitchen sink
- Clear hair and soap scum from bathroom sinks, shower basins and bathtub drains
- Listen for gurgling sounds that indicate there is a clog in the system.
Potty Problems
The kitchen might be busier than usual during Thanksgiving, but a close second is your bathroom. Make sure your toilet is ready for the big day too.
- Limit what goes down the toilet. Remind guests to flush only toilet paper and human waste. Make sure a trashcan is easily accessible to encourage guests to toss everything else in the can.
- Have a plunger handy: Keep a plunger in the bathroom for emergencies.
- Inspect your toilet listening for leaks and making sure it flushes properly. Small issues with your toilet now can be a huge waste of your time fixing bigger problems come the holiday.
Professional Plumbing Experts in Tampa Florida
Problems with your plumbing can turn your Thanksgiving feast into a Thanksgiving failure. Avoid plumbing disasters with some plumbing preventative maintenance. And, while you want to avoid having to call a plumber on Thanksgiving a few things like: sudden water leaks, a complete lack of water supply, sewage back-ups or a broken water heater aren’t just inconvenient, they need to be addressed right away.
At Acree Plumbing, Air & Electric we can provide you with prompt, professional response to your Tampa, Florida area home no matter what time of the year. We offer service on your schedule and even on Thanksgiving with no overtime charges. When you need a plumber, we are your trusted technicians.
