Salmon Plumbing Guarantee to ARRIVE ON TIME to your scheduled appointment.
In the rare instance that your plumber has been delayed due to unforeseen circumstances beyond our control, we promise to give you a MINIMUM 30-minutes notice of ANY change in arrival time and will offer to reschedule, if that’s more convenient for you
If we don’t give you at least 30 minutes notice in advance, we will happily give you a FREE Hour of Service on your plumbing job.
This offer is not to be used with any other offer.
Does not apply to quoted jobs.
Discounts will not be applied to overdue amounts.
Deposits
Deposits are not refundable however partial or total refunds of deposits may be made at the sole discretion of Salmon Plumbing.
Cancellations
Salmon Plumbing reserve the right to charge for lost time as a result of cancellations and or postponement made less than 2 business days from the scheduled appointment time.
Warranties
Salmon Plumbing offers a 6 and half year warranty as per the Queensland Building & Construction Commission (QBCC).
If you have a blocked drain or sewer it is a high priority. A damaged, broken or blocked sewerage system is a health and safety issue for your family, neighbours and the environment and needs to be attended to immediately. That is why at Salmon Plumbing we provide a prompt response and an effective solution for clogged drains.
As Spring eases us into the Australian heat, now’s probably the time to start prepping your property’s plumbing system for the summer.
The hotter months can wreak havoc on plumbing systems and lead to damage without the proper preparation.
Lucky for you, we’ve put together 4 tasks you can add to your Sunday to-do list so that you don’t have to stare down an expensive plumbing bill around Christmas time.
Kids are curious creatures. The simplest of
activities like throwing a rock or filling a bucket with sand is a natural part
of their play and necessary for their growth and development.
They love to explore and experiment, test boundaries and push all the buttons, eager to see what happens next.
So it’s vitally important we teach our kids
about plumbing. There are buttons and pipes and grates and spouts around the
home (and even in the extended community like parks) that need to be used with
care. Your child may be curious to play with these or use them as part of their
play. But it often ends in disaster resulting in an unexpected call out to a
plumber, which wasn’t part of the family’s budget for the week.
Here are some things kids need to know about plumbing to prevent an unexpected call out. Most plumbing issues caused by kids can be preventable. These tips as are also important in keeping your child safe.
Teach kids about grates and open pipes outside
The external area around your home will
have storm water grates, rain water tanks, downpipes, hose taps and overflow
relief gullies.
Down pipes and rainwater tanks are not
playground equipment to be climbed on. Any weight on downpipes can disconnect
them from gutters.
Grated drains outside like storm water pits
or over flow relief gullies (ORG) should not have their grates removed and
filled with rocks or garden debris.
Overflow relief gullies are a sewer trap
which ensures any blockages on the main sewer line, don’t back up into your
house. It’s important these stay clear so they can do as their name suggests,
overflow. Any blockages
in an ORG, can cause a backup of waste water to the fixtures in your home, like
the sink and basins.
Salmon Plumbing has tools to retrieve rocks
or foreign matter thrown down the ORG. Sometimes, the rocks can flush down the
line requiring high-pressure
drain cleaning equipment to blast the blockage away. Teach kids not to lift
grates and throw anything down an open pipe. It will cause a blockage and you
will need to call a plumber to remove it.
In the local community, there are often
creeks or waterways with open storm water pipes. It’s important to teach kids not to swim or
wade in these waters – especially in summer during heavy rainfall. Water can
travel fast down these pipes, sucking any solid matter or objects with it.
Teach kids to keep away from flooded drains at all times to prevent a fatal
accident.
Teach kids what should and shouldn’t be flushed down the toilet
Only the three P’s should be flushed down
the toilet. Poo, pee and toilet paper. No toys, no wipes, no playdough, kinetic
sand or slime. And only a few pieces of toilet paper at a time – not the whole
roll!
Sometimes the toilet can be seen as an
automatic rubbish bin, flushing away whatever you don’t want. But our sewer system
network is not designed for these items. Any plastics or broken toys should be
recycled, donated or put in the bin, not flushed down the toilet.
Teach kids to turn the tap off after every use
Overflowing taps can happen. Even adults
can be notorious for multitasking and forgetting to turn a tap off, resulting
in an unexpected flood. Teach kids to focus on the job at hand and turn the tap
off after use. This can ensure no drips, which can be a drain on your water
bill.
Tap spouts aren’t monkey bars
A tap spout is not a monkey bar. It’s
self-explanatory, but anything that juts out from the wall can often be viewed
as something to climb on or swing from to a child.
Keep fingers away from a draining bath
It’s not common, but it does happen when
little fingers get caught down the bath drain. To prevent kids getting their
fingers stuck, take them out of the bath BEFORE you pull the plug. Also, place
little kids away from the plug end of the bath, to prevent the plug being
pulled during wash time.
We love kids, and they truly make the world
a better place, but their curiosity can cause unexpected plumbing problems.
If your child has been a bit over-eager
with the plumbing in your home, and you need some items retrieved or fixed,
give Salmon Plumbing a call.
When winter rolls around, bring on the hot chips and gravy. In fact bring on all the carb-rich comfort foods like roasts, soups and casseroles. Anything to keep your belly full and hands warm while embracing all the comforts winter draws us to. Unfortunately, these foods can also cause a common kitchen sink blockage that has plumbers called every winter to fix. Here is the most common kitchen sink blockage you want to avoid this winter.
Common kitchen sink blockage
Oils and fats rinsed down the kitchen sink
drain will do more harm than good to your pipes.
In winter, when fats and oils sit in cold pipes, they congeal and form solid clumps, or as Queensland Urban Utilities likes to call them ‘Fatbergs’. These solid masses of fat will block your drains if they are not disposed of accordingly.
If the evening meal has resulted in leftover fats and oils, or gravy that no one has licked off the plate, there are a few ways to dispose of these to prevent blockage.
Allow the fats to cool and solidify then scrape them into the bin.
When rinsing roasting trays or plates with oil slicks or excess sauces and gravy, immediately turn the hot water tap on to ‘flush’ away the oils from the trap.
For extra measure, boil the kettle and pour boiling hot water down the kitchen sink to ensure the breakdown of the fats and oils.
A small squirt of dishwashing liquid down the drain and a full bowl of water drained down the sink will disperse the oils in the pipes, which will prevent blockage.
DIY tricks on clearing your blocked sink
There are a few DIY tricks that can break
up a blocked kitchen sink.
Sprinkle bi-carb soda and pour hot vinegar (microwave for 1 minute) down the drain.
Use a household plunger to loosen the blockage
Undo the sink trap and pour the water into the sink with the plugin. Ensure the trap is free of food blockages.
Pour a household drain cleaner down the sink. These are readily available from your local hardware or grocery store. Do try the natural remedies before going down the chemical aisle.
If none of these remedies removes the blockage, it’s time to call your plumber. A drain cleaning machine or an electric eel may need to be used to blast away the blockage. Salmon Plumbing is experienced in types of blockages. Contact the team to get your kitchen sink unblocked today.
One of the most common – and most unpleasant – home repairs everyone will endure at one time or another is a clogged drain. When left unattended, a clogged drain can cause nasty odours and even flood your home. The good news is that in many instances you can unblock the drain yourself and at little to no expense. One of the first and easiest solutions is to use hot water.
1. The Boiling Water Method
One of the simplest methods of unblocking drains, this method works best for light or small blocks, and it should only be used on metal pipes (if you have PVC pipes, the hot water may melt or soften the joints in your pipes, resulting in unwanted leaks).
The best way to do this is to take a kettle of boiling water and pour it down the sink. Give it a moment or two and then run water from the tap to see if the clog has been removed.
2. The Vinegar and Bicarb Soda Method
The next easiest method of unblocking drains is using something to dissolve the clog. Before buying a commercial drain cleaning product, try making your own with vinegar and bicarb soda.
Take half a cup of bicarb soda and dump it directly into the drain and as far down as you can. Then add half a cup of vinegar to the mix. This will result in a fizzing effect which will help eradicate any grease that may be blocking your drain.
3. The Plunging Method
For this solution, you’ll need a cup plunger and, depending on where the clog is, some duct tape.
If the clog is in the sink or bathtub, take a strip of duct tape and stick it over top of the overflow drain (this prevents the air or water from escaping and sends it instead towards the unwanted clog). Fill the sink with a bit of water and then use the cup plunger to apply steady pulses until you think the clog is removed or when you feel the pressure changing inside of the pipe.
When To Call a Plumber
There is a wide selection of chemical products on the market which are supposed to help unblock drains. But they may be unfriendly to the environment, and can be hazardous to use. They can even make your clogged drain issue even worse.
If none of the above methods helps you remove the clog, it’s a good idea to call the Salmon Plumbing team in Brisbane. Our team of fully qualified and insured plumbers have the equipment necessary to assess the issue and to take care of the clog for you as quickly as possible.
As a homeowner or tenant, there are few sights more terrifying than a sink or toilet beginning to back up as the water level inside it rises. But while water rising and overflowing into the room is the common result, the causes of the problem are more varied. Let’s look at some common causes of blocked drains and pipes, and some of the warning signs to look out for.
Warning Signs
By knowing the early warning signs that a drain or waste pipe is on its way to becoming blocked, you should be able to get on top of the problem early and call a plumber before it gets worse. As always, a little prevention is better than a lot of cure!
A sink that drains a lot slower than usual is usually a sign that something might be amiss further down the line. Similarly, gurgling noises that weren’t there before, or knocks and thuds after a lot of water is drained after washing dishes or when the dishwasher or washing machine is draining, are also early warnings to listen out for. An abnormally draining toilet where the water rises first (where it didn’t do this before) or any “washing back” of flushed material is also a warning sign.
Causes of Blocked Drains and Pipes
The two most common causes of blocked drains in Brisbane are tree roots and collapsed drains. In many of the older areas of Brisbane a lot of the drain lines are old earthenware, or clay pipes. Some of these pipes can be up to 80 years old.
Foreign objects flushed down the toilet can also be the cause of blockages. While toilet paper is obviously dissolvable and fine to go down toilets, there is a far wider range of things being flushed than that. The most common foreign object to cause blockages is the wet wipes, that are growing in popularity as an alternative or as a supplement to toilet paper in residential and office bathrooms.
Because of their high durability and materials used in them, wet wipes do not dissolve or disintegrate over time, even when wet. That means that when flushed, they clump together at bends and joints in the drain and slowly build up into a dam-like blockage. Other things like sanitary items can also cause problems if they are used and flushed in conjunction with wet-wipes.
In Queensland, an estimated 120 tonnes of wet wipes and debris are removed from sewage systems each year. In Sydney, local councils have been forced to spend over $8 million fixing blockages of this nature.
In the kitchen, food scraps and other solids mixed with grease and oil (which solidify at lower temperatures or when mixed with other substances) are a main culprits of blockages. Kitchen pipes are often much smaller in diameter than other pipes, which means that much smaller amounts of material are needed to cause problems.
Preventing Rather than Fixing A Blockage
If you have seen a slow draining sink or toilet, or have been hearing noises in the pipes, like gurgling or knocking, then you would be well served by calling a plumber to check things out and take a look before a minor cost becomes a major bill. Our friendly, experienced team of professionals at Salmon Plumbing in Brisbane are on hand to inspect your pipes to ensure that they have a clean bill of health!
