Unfortunately, some shady plumbing companies keep secrets from their customers in an effort to scam them for extra cash. This unethical behavior is what gives us professionals a bad rep.
The truth is, honest plumbers like ourselves would rather give practical, money-saving advice than see you burn a hole in your wallet for something that could be quickly fixed.
Whether you own or rent a home or just trying your hand at plumbing jobs, we have some helpful plumbing tips straight from the experts.
1. Mask Up for Messy Jobs
Have any extra disposable masks on hand? Keep some around in the bathroom and kitchen area for the next time you have to tackle unpleasant smells in your home.
Sensitivity to smells and cleaning chemicals can lead to headaches or even migraines. Wear a mask especially when working around sewage. You’ll avoid breathing in harsh chemicals and unwanted smells, making your cleaning experience more enjoyable overall.
Take an additional preventative step in your health by wearing protective eye gear when cleaning. Shielding your eyes during sewage jobs lowers your chances of touching your nose or eyes and lowers the chances of getting sick later down the line.
2. Plan Plumbing Ahead
Oftentimes, people looking for a plumber would run into a disaster at the worst possible moment. Whether that’s right before leaving the house, when you have guests over, or during the holidays. Plumbing issues are a pain on their own.– That’s why the best prevention is preparation!
Do a quick run-through of your home before planning any events, so you can get repairs sorted out ahead of time. Putting in service requests can be tricky depending on the time of year. Always leave room for the unexpected and schedule ahead for a smoother process.
3. Take Notes & Ask Questions
Whether this is your first or 100th plumbing job, never make the mistake of patching up plumbing issues without understanding the source of the problem.
Begin by taking notes. Measurements, specific tools, and any jargon you aren’t familiar with – jot down what you think might be helpful. You’ll find this to be the case if you need to buy equipment or get a second opinion.
Don’t be intimidated by what you don’t know. A good plumber will be patient answering your questions and do their best to explain problems and solutions to you.
4. Invest in High-Quality Tools
No matter what job you’re doing, keeping a great working set of tools on hand is always a good idea. Quality tools won’t break in the middle of your projects, and you can count on them for years.
Quality tool maintenance is just as important as a quality tool. Keeping your tools clean, well oiled and properly stored will go a long way.
Checking humidity levels for your tool storage room also helps keep your tools in tact. Steel rusts when the humidity is at 80% and iron rusts when the humidity is just at 50%.
5. To Tip or Not to Tip?
Tipping 20% for services at 20% is pretty standard, according to AARP. But how does that translate for plumbing?
Keeping the value of time and expertise in mind, the average plumbing tip is “about the cost of lunch,” or around $20 dollars for an average hour of work. More time, more money. It makes sense to tip higher for a longer and more extraneous job.
However, some plumbers report tips only hitting the $100 mark after two days of work.
Tips aren’t expected, but welcomed! If you feel like you received great service or just want to send along an extra thank you, tipping your plumbers indicates customer satisfaction and a job well done.
Hire CJ Plumbing & Heating for Professional Help
At CJ Plumbing & Heating, we pride ourselves for being a family-owned and operated plumbing company with over 30 years of experience throughout Chicagoland – Deerfield, Evanston, Lake Forest, Mundelein, Riverwoods, Skokie, Wilmette, and much more.
We are fully licensed, bonded, insured, and COVID-19 compliant. Our customers are also informed of every step throughout the plumbing process and receive documented procedure reports when the job is finished.
Contact us today and get a free quote!
