Hints & Tips
Lime Scale is a hard off-white chalky deposit often found in kettles and plumbing fittings and fixtures.
Removal of lime scale varies, there are many purpose made solutions available from your hardware store or supermarket that will do the trick. However you need to be careful as there will be traces of mild acid in these solutions. This can cause permanent damage to gold fittings. Always read the labels and follow the appropriate instructions. Vinegar is a simple way to remove lime scale also, but not always as strong as some products available in the stores.
Prevention is always better than cure, so they say. Scale reducers and water softeners can make a big difference to your whole plumbing system. Not only will your fixtures and fitting retain its beautiful looks, but also the insides of pipes, boilers and tanks etc will benefit greatly. This will reduce running cost and maintenance bills also. The majority of the UK suffers from hard water and it is surprising that more people do not take the effects of lime scale more seriously. There is more interesting information on this subject at http://www.lifescience.co.uk/domestic_technical_library.htm
Central heating sludge.
Sludge in a central heating system is a by-product of corrosion and develops into this awful black substance often referred to as sludge. Sludge can have many effects on a system, with increased running cost. It is more difficult for a pump to move thick sludge rather than nice correctly lubricated water. Just adding inhibitors is not always enough and any engineer should look in detail as to why the central heating system has suffered with so much sludge. Cold spots in radiators, pump failures, thermostatic radiator valve faults and so on. I have known plumbers to install automatic air vents in systems to try and reduce the problems of poor circulation and continued air locks within. This is not the answer as this only addresses the short term remedy and not the cause. Central heating design and correct cleansing when the system is new is very important. As an example my own system is 18 years old and does not have any black oxide whatsoever. A recent drain down proved that the water in my system was as clear as the day it was put in. It can be foolhardy to accept a central heating quote and go for the cheapest; invariably it will cost you dear in the long run. Further information can be found here:
www.fernox.com/index.php?cccpage=technical
http://www.sentinel-solutions.net/en/heating/X400
Away on Holiday in the winter, what should I do?
This is an area of contention; some people advise that you should turn off all of your supplies, ie Gas Water & Electricity. But what should you do in the winter months? If we have a cold snap whilst you are away all sorts of things could go wrong. If you were to turn the water off for instance then we had a hard freezing period, you could still get burst pipes, many people forget that they have about 20 gallons of water in a typical central heating system. This can do a lot of damage to your house whilst you are away. Some people will turn the heating off or select it to work at a different schedule than it normally would when you are living in the house.
Here are some facts, if you turn the heating off whilst you are away in winter months you run a serious risk of potential water leaks through freezing if we get a cold spell. Once the house starts to get cold it will get colder and colder, this is when the danger period is. Are you saving anything, well no, as it takes an enormous amount of energy to reheat a house from cold. It is more beneficial to keep the heating ticking over as it is cheaper to maintain temperature.
It would be worthwhile to get a neighbour to keep an eye on your house and check things over for you whilst you are away to be on the safe side.
In the end it is your choice, but remember are you penny pinching or penny wise?
Beat the freeze information can be found here:
http://www.stirling.gov.uk/beat_the_freee_single_pages-2.pdf
Bargains and rip-offs
What should you pay a plumber an hour? It is a mine field out there with many customers thinking they have been ripped off. But remember that plumbers have to buy expensive equipment and generally have high operating cost. So what they charge does not all go in their pockets. The national average price for a plumber per hour is £40.00 and a link is included here to help you to evaluate charges:
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/consumer/article.html?in_article_id=403358&in_page_id=5
Plumbing Glastonbury.
Recently we had a call from a customer in Glastonbury that had fitted his own central heating pump. The customer complained of a high whining noise when the pump operated. On further inspection it was one of those misfortunes where one of the heating pump valves had not been opened fully and was still shut after fitting of the new pump. The pump was effectively operating without water to be pumped through the system. It was a simple mistake and once corrected the customer was very happy.
Toilet Flush doesn't work?
This is a
common fault with toilet cisterns and one that is easily remedied. The
cistern syphon diaphragm disintegrates over time and is usually the cause of
the problem. To carry out a repair the diaphragm or cistern syphon will
need replacing. This is a job we are involved in on a regular basis and is
not as costly as you may think. If you require a plumber in the
Glastonbury, Street, Wells or Shepton Mallet area of Somerset, please give us a
call on 0800 107 6097 for a fast and reliable response.
