Plumbing is a big part of daily life. If you want to maintain a healthy and safe living space, it’s important to pay careful attention to any and all plumbing safety matters. Fortunately, these seven tips can make achieving and maintaining optimal plumbing safety easier and more realistic for everyone. These tips can be especially helpful to “amateurs” who are planning on handling basic plumbing tasks all by themselves. Being in tune with vital plumbing safety topics can help protect you from all kinds of plumbing accidents.
One – Exercise Caution Prior to Opening Any Drains
You may want to do away with a cleanout or split up parts of a drain. If you’re about to do either of those things, you should contemplate whether anything that may be inside of the drain may drain toward you. Drains generally do not have to deal with pressure. Drain clogs, though, can contribute to substantial pressure. That pressure is the result of clog weight and gravity. If you want to protect yourself from nasty sewage, you should exercise caution any time you open drains, period.
Two – Prioritize Eye Protection
It’s critical to put safety glasses on any time you tackle plumbing jobs. It’s especially critical to do so any time you do something that could hurt your vision and eyes in general. Drain snaking is an example of a plumbing project that can sometimes be detrimental to eyes. The right glasses can safeguard you from drain grime and sewage getting inside of your delicate eyes as well.
Three – Take Note of the Location of Your Shutoff Valve
If you want your plumbing upkeep duties to go off without a hitch, you should take note of your shutoff valve’s specific location. This valve enables people to switch off their water. If you’re able to use this valve, it will help you steer clear of disastrous floods. Are you planning to switch off a faucet? Switch off your main shutoff valve water, too. If you take the time to do this, you’ll prevent pipe pressure accumulation. That’s how you’ll potentially keep unpleasant leaks at bay.
Four – Be in Tune With Electricity and Electrical Hazards
Plumbing system matters go far beyond kitchen plumbing alone. Pipes actually travel all throughout living spaces. That means that leaks can sometimes push water closer to electrical wires. You should do anything you can to keep electricity and water far away from one another. If you’re going to be taking on any plumbing job that involves electricity and water, you should seriously contemplate switching off your water or power beforehand. Simple precautions may safeguard you from all kinds of hazards. Getting rid of standing water can help keep electrical shocks out of sight and out of mind.
Five – Prioritize Hand Protection
It’s not only important to make protecting your eyes a top priority. It’s actually just as important to prioritize the safety of your hands. You should make a point to invest in work gloves that are both waterproof and thick. These kinds of gloves will safeguard your hands from many different dangers. They’ll help them remain perfectly dry, too.
If you’re going to be using a machine that’s designed to clean drains, you should get your hands on special gloves that have additional defense features in place. Be on the lookout for gloves that are equipped with interior steel staples.
Six – Just Say No to Aggressive Chemical Use
It’s critical to just say no to the use of chemicals that are particularly aggressive. It’s particularly critical to dodge them any time you clean drains. Why is it so important to refrain from using chemicals that are anything but gentle and mild? These types of chemicals can do a number on your pipes, first of all. Beyond that, they can jeopardize health for individuals who get to your pipes.
People sometimes rent machines that specialize in drain cleaning work. If you’re part of that category, then you should definitely resist the urge to use aggressive chemicals. If you rent this kind of machine and use aggressive chemicals, the rental company may present you with an additional charge. They do this any time they suspect that various chemicals have been close to their cables.
Seven – Don’t Do Anything That Relates to Gas
Never ever forget that it’s better to be safe than sorry as far as plumbing work goes. Know your limitations as an amateur who is completely devoid of extensive training and experience. If you want to be wise and prudent, you shouldn’t tackle any plumbing jobs that relate to gas in any way, shape or form. The hazards that are linked to gas are severe. If you happen to detect the odor of gas any time you work on a plumbing project, you should discontinue your efforts without a millisecond of delay. Then, turn off the supply in your residential property and reach out to your gas company to set up an appointment with the on-call emergency professional.
It can help you greatly to put together an emergency contacts list. This list should include other contacts that go beyond your gas company. See to it that the list has the telephone numbers of your utility companies. See to it that it has the telephone number for your local poison control center as well.
A Bit of Preparation Can Go a Truly Long Way
Getting ready for an upcoming plumbing project calls for more preparation than just rounding up the right protective supplies and putting together an in-depth contacts list. If you want to prepare like a champion for plumbing safety and success, then you should pay close attention to code requirements. These codes safeguard your home. They safeguard the public, too. If you’re not well-versed in local plumbing codes and how they work, you can request a paper that explains them from your nearby building codes division. Failure to make a vacuum breaker part of your water supply can bring on drinking water contamination.