Thanksgiving, one of the busiest days of the year is drawing closer, and so are the long-standing traditions associated with it. Like every year, if you’re planning a huge gathering this time, you’re probably concerned about preparing the perfectly roasted turkey and famous lumpy mashed potatoes. But don’t ignore the plumbing disasters you’ve been facing in the past years.
Preparing a perfect dinner is certain to cause plumbing issues. And even if you managed to avoid them, the real tragedy occurs when the dinner ends and food goes into disposal. Some people take Murphy’s Law seriously that claims that when something can go wrong, it will go wrong. But others, perhaps the more sensible ones, take the challenge and prevent any problems from occurring. Following are some proactive steps that can help to keep your plumbing disasters to a minimum:
For Garbage Disposals
Prepare Your Garbage Disposal
It’s not uncommon for garbage disposals to go through a rigorous test on the Thanksgiving Day. To please our friends, we prepare plenty of meals. Before the day arrives, clean the garbage disposal thoroughly so that it’s ready for the challenge. Besides this, to remove any sludge and improve the functioning of the blades, put some rock salt and ice in the garbage disposal and run it multiple times.
Don’t Treat Your Garbage Disposal like a Garbage Can
How often do we stuff the garbage disposal with unwanted veggie scraps, grease or egg shells? To be honest, it isn’t a good idea to throw everything in there. Some people overestimate the capability of their garbage disposals, and put many items that shouldn’t be put into it in the first place. These items include grease, oils, fats, stringy vegetables, egg shells, coffee grounds, coffee grounds, bones, potato peels, fruit pits and seeds, vegetable pits and seeds, and pasta and rice. To keep it healthy, do not put all this stuff in your garbage disposal.
In addition, stringy food items get stuck in the motor blades, causing it to break. Other items such as grease, carbohydrate-rich foods, and coffee grounds make your pipes sticky and prevent rapid flow of water. Not putting these items into the garbage disposal will serve as an insurance for it, preventing it from breaking.
Running Water down the Drain
Once the food items have been crushed by the blades, wash the food scraps down the disposal by turning on the sink every time. In case you mistakenly drop some grease in the sink, running hot water down the drain will help to melt the grease and prevent any future clogs by washing the oil down the pipes.
Learn How to Use the Disposal
Of course there is a right and a wrong way to use the garbage disposal. It is pretty common for people to put food in the sink without hitting the switch, which not only leads to jammed impellers, but also cause motor frying. Before adding scraps, make sure you turn on the water, then the disposal. Also, keep the water running for a while after the disposal has finished crushing the scraps so that all the debris is washed away.
Hence, remember the sequence: water, power, scraps, and water.
Dealing with the Clogged Disposal
Since the dishwasher and disposal have a single drain, common sense says if one of them gets plugged, the other one is plugged too. Thus, if your garbage disposal gets clogged, turn off the dishwasher.
For Showers
When your guests stay overnight, your shower drain may be under threat and lead to another plumbing disaster on Thanksgiving Day. When many people shower in a row, hair, soap dirt and grime builds up in the pipe, blocking everything that comes next. As a result, a never leaving puddle stays at the bottom of your bathtub. Therefore, request your guests to allow for 15 to 30-minute breaks between showers. Vinegar and baking soda may also be used to treat the shower.
In addition, hair are evidently the nastiest things ever born for a shower drain. They build up quite rapidly and quickly create blockages in the drain. To prevent hair from entering the pipes, you can use a hair catcher or strainers. Different types of hair catchers are available to suit your drain. Capture an image of your drain and take it with you when going for the purchase.
For Preventing Clogged Toilet
You aren’t much thankful on thanksgiving when your toilet gets clogged after the rich feast. No matter what the reason might be, clogged toilets are undoubtedly one of the most embarrassing mishaps for the culprit. Your toilet pipes aren’t capable of handling trash. Cotton balls, flushable wipes and feminine products can easily result in a clog. Thus, needless to say, you should have an easily accessible trash can in the toilet. Request at least your family to stop flushing toilet paper for the night and flush multiple times to prevent any chances of clogging.
Another great strategy is to place a plunger close to the toilet so that anyone who senses a clog can immediately fix it then and there. On the other hand, if people it isn’t fixed and other people kept on using the toilet, the clog will only worsen.
Make sure you keep your toilet as clean as possible. The dirty it is, the higher the chances of a clog. Cleaning chemicals are quite effective in breaking down the sticky build up in pipes, ensuring smooth running for longer. Keep inspecting your toilet and as soon as you identify that something is about to break, get it fixed as quickly as possible.
Conculsion
To sum up, make sure you fix any prevailing plumbing issues before the big day. Plus, when the day arrives, avoid an extra Thanksgiving drama by following the above mentioned steps. Rather than talking to a plumber on the Thanksgiving Day, you should spend your time in gossips and chit chats with family and friends, enjoying delicious foods and watching football.