Archive for the ‘Plumbing Services’ Category

“I still have my feet on the ground, I just wear better shoes.”

Saturday, September 4th, 2010

All plumbers know that apart from looking after our hands, our feet are equally as important. No feet, no action!
Last week, as the major players on the Australian political scene were making their final pitch to the electorate as the federal election drew closer, I was out doing some canvassing of my own.
I was busy pitching to the smart Real estate property managers of Bondi Beach the benefits of having a great plumbing team like The Lone Drainer and Pronto, look after their emergency plumbing repairs and the benefits of using Vaporooter sewer root control.
As I walked down Gould street I came across the Running Company Bondi. The owner Chris Chapman had a smile as big as Bondi and it was only minutes before he had me on his walking treadmill, filming my walking/running gait with some simple, but powerful video tools.
Buying shoes from someone who actually knows about running shoes makes a huge difference. Chris’ advice was so professional and made so much sense. Chris had me on his treadmill in each different shoe I tried on, to check how my feet were landing with his video equipment. Buying running shoes from a runner and shoe expert makes a lot of sense and since suffering a bad lower leg injury about 14 years ago I’ve suffered with knee and hip pain whenever I run. So when Chris showed me the running analysis he uses I realized why.
As with advice on emergency plumbing repairs, if you’re wearing the wrong pair of trainers you could be setting yourself up for all sorts of problems in a few weeks, months or years from now. It seems most sales people at the big chain stores just don’t know this stuff, which is why it’s important to get checked now before you get injured. If you suffer from any sort of knee pain or shin splints when you run, or want to prevent future problems I highly recommend you spare an hour of your time and come along to meet Chris at The Running Company Bondi.
The importance of getting the right advice about plumbing repairs or your trainers is self evident. Oh, I made a decision about my new runners pretty quickly.

Two weeks later we are still without a new Government.

We live in very interesting times and you have to keep moving forward or consider the alternative…

Emergency plumber howls at the moon.

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

Blocked drains in Sydney happen everyday and all the plumbers on our team love getting out there to help people clear their blocked drain, clean up any mess from an overflowing sewer and get on with their lives.

We track the most common cause of blocked drains and apart from the very unusual, like a small puppy as seen on a previous post http://thelonedrainerandpronto.com.au/blog/plumber-rescues-puppy/   there are only a few reasons why drains get blocked.

Hair, make sure to remove it from hand basins, shower grates and drains 

Sand and soil usually gets washed into the sewer from low lying surcharge gullies and stormwater.

Foreign objects like dental floss, toilet deodorisers , kids toys or even underwear will block up sewer pipes very quickly.

The most common cause of blocked drains in Australia is tree roots, they grow into the pipes for many different reasons, but todays theory has been raised by a colleague who believes the full moon causes trees to do “something different” every month, search for more water or just “flex their muscles”, thus causing more sewer blockages.

It is a very interesting theory and we have been tracking it for about 18 months.

Every month, two or three days either side of the full moon we have a 10-15% spike in requests for help on blocked drains caused by tree roots. This month the full moon fell on July 26th 2010, and it was no exception.

Of course this only a theory, but we will keep tracking it!

If you see or hear of emergency plumbers and blocked drain specialists acting and  looking a little weird around the full moon………….let me know!

Draining the Coffee makers lane

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

Our Venetian correspondent is at it again.                                                                                                                                                                                   As you have seen in previous posts Holy S - - T ! A Gondoliers impression and The latest sewer notes and history of Venice
Gio the Venetian Gondolier knows how much our readers love to see how waste water and sewer is moved around Venice.
Hey mate!
I’m so proud to be on the site that I decided to send you more stuff about Venice,
Here is first of all a picture of my lane ” calle del Caffettier” ( the coffee maker lane) while a draining is on the go.

As you see on the first pic our local plumber has the drain hose on the left side of the lane with all the pipe going over the bridge.

Venice pumping waste

Venice pumping waste

Then you see how the pipe goes to the canal where the drain boat is waiting with the plumbers mate.

Venetian drain boat collecting waste

Venetian drain boat collecting waste

Then a picture of our proud fire patrol just after the draining of a boat that sunk because the owner did not drain the rain out…. shame!

Venice fire team to the rescue

Venice fire team to the rescue

That is all my friend.

See the statue of our Lady on the top of the wall near my house? Isn’t it a corner of paradise?

A special piece of Venice

A special piece of Venice

Yes it is Gio. Thanks for sharing it with us!

An ounce of prevention will keep your drains running

Saturday, May 29th, 2010

Today pleasure was to meet   Dr “Elliot”… This man is incredibly organised.

We were called to his home to run our drain cleaning equipment, the world famous “Rattlesnake”  high pressure water drain cleaner, through his house drains downstream to the sewer boundary trap at the rear of his property, adjacent to the swimming pool. 

He has had blocked drains in the past and declared he didn’t want the inconvenience of a blocked sewer pipe during the upcoming holidays when his extended family would be visiting and his old sewer line would be put under pressure.

The thought of having his beautifully manicured garden dug up or even disturbed, inspired this house proud professional to maintain one of his homes main arteries.

He compared our house visit to check his drains, just like a patient having a  health check  with their Doctor, especially as we get a little older. Pipes and people! 

Dr Elliott knew where all the access points to his sewer were located, how to test his sewer and all the symptoms of a blocked drain. It was a pleasure to work with such a professional

An ounce of prevention will keep your drains running. Oh, and if pain persists………… see your Doctor

7 easy ways to extend the life of your Water Heater

Saturday, May 22nd, 2010

As  we head into winter, and your heading home for a shower after work or rugby or netball training

Have you ever turned on a hot water tap and the water was cold?

There are many plumbing fixtures around your home, the bath or hand basin, kitchen sink, of course the toilet.

Some homes, offices and small business  have multiple toilets, showers and basins.

As we move into the cooler months the average hot water heater becomes more important at all these plumbing fixtures.

Its easy to take this often ignored asset to your home or office for granted. Some simple actions will prolong the life of your storage water heater.

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Carrying Out a CCTV Survey of Sewer Pipes when Clearing Blocked Drains

Saturday, May 15th, 2010

The Importance of Carrying Out a CCTV Survey of Sewer Pipes when Clearing Blocked Drains

There is once again water all over the floor from a blocked drain, and you need to grab the phone book and look up plumbing services Sydney and find plumbers that can come out and unblock the drain once again. You can save yourself repeated repairs and repeated calls for service by simply having a plumbing service carry out a CCTV survey of sewer pipes, so that when there is a problem it will be easy to clear the blocked drain. The CCTV survey can tell you what caused the initial problem with drain blockage.

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Toilet Paper or Bidet?

Saturday, May 8th, 2010

The Harsh Reality of Using Toilet Paper Rather Than Washing with a Bidet

Having travelled Europe extensively, one gets used to a bidet. Coming back to Australia made some of the queried group bemoan the loss of the bidets they got so used to. The question as to whether or not it was environmentally responsible to throw tissue paper in the toilet or in the trash was raised.

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Plumbing Products – Bio-Clean and Vaprooter

Saturday, May 1st, 2010

Plumbing Products Have Come a Long Way: A Look at Some Products and Their Benefits

Sir John Harrington, the godson of Queen Elizabeth I made a new invention for his godmother. Sir John created the flush toilet and built it for his godmother. This all took place in 1596, according to history records.

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How do Tree Roots Get in Sewer Pipes And what Damage Can They Cause?

Saturday, April 17th, 2010

Homes that are connected to a municipal or mains sewer system have their largest problems with plumbing when tree roots have grown into pipes. In days gone by, one of the plumbing services would be called in to clear a blockage in the pipe, getting rid of those tree roots, but the tree roots would regrow and block up the sewer up again.

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How to Prolong the Life of Your Mains Pressure Hot Water Heater

Saturday, April 10th, 2010

The lifespan of a water heater is about eight to twelve years, depending on whether it is inside or out, near the ocean, or you carryout simple maintenance procedures. Modern tanks are lined with steel, and this lining can break down over time. Here are some tips to prolong the life of your mains pressure hot water heater.

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