Foul Odors from Drains
Q. I am getting a foul odor from my basement bathroom and my floor drain in my laundry room. We rarely use the basement bath and we’ve never used the floor drain in the laundry room. It is quite an odoriferous emanation. What can we do?
A. Foul odors are prevented from entering your house by installing a ‘trap’ to plumbing fixture drains. Traps are designed to hold a water barrier to seal out unwanted odors. If this water barrier evaporates, then odors will enter the house through the drain. To stop the odors, pour a bucket of water down each drain to fill the trap. If the drain is rarely used (e.g., floor drain), then try using some vegetable oil so as to avoid future evaporation. This should solve this stinky problem!
Frozen Pipes
Q. We live in northern Illinois and as you know, the winters can be brutal. For winter prep, we always turn off all our faucets leading outside. Unfortunately, the water pipe leading outside is freezing. What can we do!!
A. Turning the outside water off is not enough. If you have hoses are attachments connected, those should also be disconnected so as to allow all the water to drain from the outside faucet.
Mineral Deposits
Q. We’ve got a weird white crusty buildup on our shower heads. The showerheads were quite expensive. Is there anything we can do other than replace them?
A. The buildup you are referring to are mineral deposits from your water. To remove these deposits from your showerhead is quite easy. Take a ziplock bag and pour a cup of CLR or white vinegar into it. Completely immerse the showerhead into the bag and duct tape or tie it into place while you sleep. After 8 hours, remove the bag and use a toothbrush to gently scrub off the remaining. If this does not fully remedy the issue, you may be able to remove and clean the aerators as well.
Clogged Drains
Q. Our kitchen and bathroom drains are taking much longer to drain than they have in the past. We’ve poured drain cleaner but it only clears it up for very short periods of time. What can we do next??
A. If you have tried to pour chemicals down the drain and they are not clearing the clog, call Stoudt Plumbing and we’ll be there to fully clear your drain. Sometimes it’s as simple as clogged hair and debris in your pipes. In more severe cases, it may be sewer or septic lines that require the use of heavy duty tools to bore through the pipes to unclog years of debris and root growth.
Contact us for your plumbing needs! (815) 228-2236
Communities Served: Illinois, Lasalle County, Grundy County, Will County, Ottawa, Streator, Lasalle, Peru, Utica, Serena, Seneca, Marseilles, Morris, Minooka, Joliet, Naperville, Aurora
Services: New & Clogged Water Lines, Drains, Sump Pumps, Tank and Tankless Water Heater Systems, Sewer & Septic Lines, Natural and LP Gas Line Piping, Power Drain Roding, Water Softener Systems, Sulfur Removal Systems, Washing Machines & Dryers, Dishwashers, Garbage Disposals, Faucets, Toilets, Low Water-Pressure Problems, Copper, PVC, CPVC, and PEX Repiping, Radiant Heating