How to Protect Outside Faucets in New York Winters

by Admin | Sep 19, 2018 | Plumbing Tips

Protecting Your Outdoor Faucets in 4 Easy Ways

In the Capital Region of New York, we have brutal winters. E.W. Tompkins Plumbing Heating Cooling has been around since 1921 and has worked on a lot of pipes. We want to help you keep your home safe from bursts and cracked outside faucets. When your outdoor faucets have an issue, the pipes typically burst inside the home. The last thing you want is hundreds of gallons of water all over your basement or finished basement floor. Not to mention the loss of the contents of your house. We suggest the following ideas.

Preparation

Walk around your house and be sure you know where they are. Remove your garden hoses and drain water out of them and store them away.
When you go back inside the house, head over to your main water shutoff. Somewhere near there or maybe in the ceiling you should see a shut-off valve. There should be one leading to each outside faucet. Some call them bibcocks or spigots too.
They will typically be a lever and there should be a bleed cap that allows you to bleed out any leftover water.
At this point you should shut off the water at the valve and then go outside and open the faucet at the valve and some water should come out. Grab a bucket and when you go inside, you will want to remove the bleeder cap and let more water come out into your bucket. Replace the bleeder cap and then close the outside faucet.
If you have an older home in the Capital Region, you may not have an indoor shutoff valve. You may want your plumber to retrofit your standard faucet with what is called a frost-free faucet. This allows you to keep the water on all year round. You can also purchase a faucet installation kit that can cover the faucet during our cold winters and can be removed in the warmer months.

Call the “affordable experts” at E.W. Tompkins Plumbing Heating Cooling for outside faucet protection. 518-462-6577

Why A Sewer Camera Inspection is Needed

by Admin | Sep 18, 2018 | Plumbing Tips

Why you need a Sewer Camera Video Inspection

Problem #1: Tree Roots In Plumbing Lines

This is the most frequent reason we are called out for a video camera inspection. Tree roots have clogged or broken the pipe causing backup and flooding into basements.

Using our camera technology, we can pinpoint the exact location of the roots and resolve the issue.

Either drain cleaning with our large 3-4″ root cutter can be used or Hydro-Jetting. This is where we send a high-powered spinning head with water under pressure into the sewer line. A variety of different spinning heads can be used depending on the type of obstruction. With both machines, the head spins so fast that it goes through any obstructions in the line, leaving the line itself intact.

Problem #2: Broken or Collapsed Pipes

Many older sewer lines were made with plastic or orange clay pipe and this becomes very brittle over time. It doesn’t take much shifting of the earth with the harsh Capital Region freeze and thaw cycles to cause damage.

Sometimes the problem is caused by poor installation practices when the plumbing or sewer system was originally installed, dropping a large rock on the line from an excavator bucket for example has damaged plumbing lines we’ve had to repair.

Other older homes especially those built during the 50’s or 60’s utilized a piping material called Orangeburg. This material is notorious for deteriorating and causing havoc with plumbing systems.

Our sewer video cameras will locate the collapsed parts of your line. If it is busted, you will have to have it repaired.

Problem #3: Pipe Corrosion

Liquids run through pipes and they can corrode pipes. Minerals in the water can increase corrosion. Rust is a big issue with old pipes. A camera inspection can determine your pipe’s condition.

Depending on the liquids that are running through the pipe, what material the pipe is made of and whether it’s in the wall or in the ground will all play a role in how quickly the pipe will corrode.

Problem #4 Purchasing a Home

You are about to make the biggest investment! You are purchasing a new home. Part of your home inspection should include a camera inspection of the septic or sewer line. You do not want a surprise after moving into the property. Insist that your realtor contact a reputable plumber to discuss your needs.

E.W. Tompkins Plumbing Heating Cooling has been serving the Capital Region since 1921.

Contact our Customer Care Reps at 518-462-6577 to schedule a camera inspection.

Combination Water Filtration and Water Softener Units

by Admin | Sep 7, 2018 | Plumbing Tips

E.W. TOMPKINS PLUMBING HEATING COOLING CAN INSTALL WATER SOFTENER/WATER FILTRATION COMBINATION UNITS

Combination Units are specialized systems that offer to soften and filter in one unit, not the usual two separate systems. The benefits of this type of system are many: it saves on space, is cost-effective both in the initial purchase and in maintenance costs, and uses less water and salt to operate.

E.W. Tompkins can come out to your home, secure a sample of your household water and then send it off for testing. We are not testing for bacteria. In the laboratory, we utilize tests for hardness and for traces of other minerals. We then can suggest a specific unit that meets your needs. Combination units can save you money and space.

Contact E.W. Tompkins at 518-462-6577.

How to Take a Water Sample

by Admin | Sep 6, 2018 | Plumbing Tips

E.W. Tompkins Takes Water Samples for Testing

We frequently take water samples for customers who want filtration systems and water softerners. It takes less than 2 weeks to obtain results that can help you make an educated decision on equipment that will give you better quality water and help maintain your house pipes.

The lab we use does not test for bacteria. That should be tested by a local health department. For testing for hardness or something else besides bacteria it is best to use a container that is plastic and has not had a liquid beverage in it before. We come with a plastic bottle so it does not break in transit. Another example of a container might be a plastic water bottle that was full of spring water. Poland Springs is one brand. Do not use a container that might have had a beverage like Gatorade in it.

We suggest heading over to a faucet that does not have an aerator on it. The reason for this is because the aerator can “stir” up the water.

If you do not need a “dirty sample”, let the cold water run for 2 minutes and then load the container all the way up to the top not allowing any air at the top.

Sometimes if you have a complaint about odor, it is good to tell the tester if the odor occurs with the cold or the hot water. If you have colored water, it is good to note if it comes out in color and then changes or if it comes out no color and then changes color. You may want to take a “dirty sample” also of the water that comes first out of the faucet without running it. This dirty water will tell the laboratory more about what minerals exist.

We will ask how many people live in the house, how many bathrooms are in the house and if you have specialty rain shower heads or deep jacuzzi style soaking tubs. We like to obtain information on the flow rate of the city or well water into the home. We may decide to measure how long it takes to fill up a 5 gallon pail at your outside faucet.

At E.W. Tompkins Plumbing Heating Cooling, we can take a sample and discuss results prior to talking about filtration systems and water softeners. Please call us at 518-462-6577 to discuss a sample collection.

Could I Have Hard Water

by Admin | Aug 28, 2018 | Plumbing Tips

Could you have hard water in your home and what should you do ?

Calcium, magnesium and iron are some of the common minerals in well water. Did you know that over 80% of homes in America have hard water ? In the Capital Region, plenty of homes have conditions that can create stains on clothing, create odors and then impact water systems.

Sometimes you and your kids might notice that your shampoos and soaps do not give you a lot of lather. Or do you notice that your shower heads are developing scale on then. Or you have white spots on your shower doors. The way you determine if you have water “hardness” is to have your water tested. The test determines grains per gallon of calcium and magnesium. The higher the hardness, the more it impacts your home. The solution to this problem is to purchase and install a water softener system. Not only will it keep your clothing cleaner, but it will protect your pipes and you may not have to buy so much soap and shampoo!

0 – 1.0 Grains – Soft Water

1.1 – 3.5 Grains – Slightly Hard

3.5 to 7.0 Grains – Moderate Hard

7.1 – 10.5 – Grains – Hard

10.6 – or more Grains – Very Hard

Contact E.W. Tompkins Plumbing Heating Cooling and we can test your water for hardness and suggest a system that might work for your home. There are also opportunities to put on a whole house filtration system while the other is being installed.

Plumbing Heating Cooling in Albany Area since 1921

(518) 462-6577