Mon 1 Nov 2010

Hi! Welcome to Plumbing Services London.

Posted by John under Plumbing Services London
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I have had a number of experiences of hiring a professional plumber in the past, both good and bad, so if you need plumbing services in London then this site should be very useful for you.

Hopefully you found this site when you typed in Plumbing Services London because I am a typical London homeowner who has a fairly old house which seems to be constantly in some state of repair or another.

If it is not the boiler, it is the central heating. Once I get these fixed the lighting seems to go, or the drains get blocked (I hate blocked drains).

I started off years ago when I was still young and idealistic by trying to fix a lot of these problems myself (except for the ones involving gas, you need a corgi registered plumber or gas fitter for this and it is a very dangerous job to try and do yourself and even I knew not to mess with this).

The thing is I always seemed to make things worse and when I finally did have to admit defeat (something I hate doing) I always felt a real failure when my wife looked in the yellow pages and called out “the professionals” as she liked to call them. Of course, by the time they came in and fixed the job (usually within an hour and fairly cheaply too) I had forgotten my embarrassment – I was just glad the hot water was back on and I would be able to have a nice hot shower in the morning.

Well it got so bad that it started becoming a running joke and my in laws even got in on the act by gently enquiring if I was available for simple jobs and then telling me that they weren’t urgent, I could take all week fixing a tap if I wanted to.

I finally threw in the towel and now I am the first one on the phone to a professional plumbing service if I think it is required. But there are certain lessons I have learnt over the years about what makes a good plumber and what makes a bad plumber and I have put together some tips to help you choose the right one.

Firstly, it is important to remember that a plumber does not just come in and fix your taps or your shower – they should be highly skilled professionals (with many years of experience and qualifications behind them) and they will come in and sort out everything from your central heating repair, your boiler maintenance, your blocked drains and sewage problems as well as the more mundane tasks.

If your plumber is going to be working with gas (e.g. on the boiler) then you need to make sure they are corgi registered and registered on the gas safe register. It is vital to assess a plumb ers safety certificates.

London Plumbing Services can range from:

- central heating installation and repair
- air conditioning
- boiler installation and boiler repairs – i.e. complete boiler services
- heating
- hot water heating systems
- heating engineers
- plumbing maintenance
- boiler breakdowns
- drainage
- electrics – Some plumbing service companies also deal with electricity and can perform jobs such as lightning installations, some rewiring, fixing burglar alarms et (make sure they are NNICEIC qualified though which means they are qualified engineers)
Air Conditioning installation and air conditioning maintenance

Things to look out for:
- Do they offer a 24 hour emergency callout service? An emergency plumber can come in very handy, I have found that a boiler breakdown will always occur at the most inconvenient time.
- Do they offer a full installations service
- Is the work guaranteed?
- Factor in VAT into prices
- Get quotations before work is carried out
- Is your plumber an expert in the specific work you need doing (e.g. blocked drains or domestic plumbing)
- Do they have lots of testimonials from happy customers?
- Do they charge hourly rates or a fixed fee?
- Are all of a companies plumbers qualified engineers?
- Do they cover the whole of the london area, or at least your local area (e.g. east london, west london, north london or even more specifically Hackney, Greenwich etc)?
- Are they members of the Guild of Master Craftsmen

- Are they members of the Association of Plumbing & Central Heating Contractors

- Have they got membership of the plumbing certification scheme?

Plumbing Services London is designed as a useful resource for Londeners with those unexpected plumbing problems including all plumbing services and if you follow my tips, borne from bitter experience :) you will be in a good position to find the best plumber.

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Mon 1 Nov 2010

Gravity & Pressure – How Your Home Plumbing System Works

Posted by John under How Your Home Plumbing System Works
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Plumbing works on a couple of basic laws of nature. Gravity ensures that waste water is carried out of the house safely and high pressure ensures that water can enter the system.

Not many people know that the plumbing in your house is broken into 2 distinct parts which are kept separate at all times.

The first system deals with the incoming water and the second system is the waste water and drainage – and never the two shall meet!

Freshwater – A high pressure situation:
Your incoming water needs to take quite a journey. It needs to go up to the higher floors and also needs to be able to navigate around corners and perform all sorts of all nifty tricks. So how can water do all this? Enter your pressure system which “forces” the water around the system so it is ready and waiting for you to turn on the tap and take your shower or wash the dog etc.

This is important to realise as if there is a plumbing emergency then one of the first things you will need to do is turn of the water pressure – this will save you a lot of headaches and messup up carpets – the pressure valve is normally found near the meter downstairs somewhere. Mine is in the kitchen but this can vary greatly so knowing where your valve is, and how to turn it off, is a useful thing to know.

Cold water is cold water – it comes in, you turn on the tap and you use it. Hot water is a different proposition though – how does it heat up. Well your boiler of course. A pipe goes into your heater with cold water and another hot water pipe then comes out of the heater with all that lovely hot water for your radiators and relaxing baths. Often I will need to turn my hot water up when the winter closes in and I do this by turning up a setting on my boiler.

Waste Water – Do We All Know The Gravity Of This?
While freshwater needs pressure to help it move, wastewater is always higher than the drains it will flow into and so good old gravity can pick up the slack and do the job for us here. The water from your toilet, basins etc will flow down the pipes into the sewer or septic tanks and all is good. Drainage also relies on a trap for each outlet which prevents gas from the sewer coming back up the drains. These can sometimes get blocked and this is quite a common cause of plumbing problems

As you can see, plumbing is a fairly simple concept to understand but is not easy to fix because of all of the interconnected parts. I hope you found these tips to be useful.

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Mon 1 Nov 2010

Why We Love Plumbing Snakes At Plumbing Services London

Posted by John under Useful Plumbing Tools
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Yes, we admit it, plumbing services London loves a good Plumbing Snake and this article goes some way to explaining why:

By: John Kirzno

A plumbing snake is a very useful item to have around the home because it can clear a number of different things out of a home’s pipes. When a drain becomes clogged, it will not remove water from the pipes properly. In the end, this can lead to major problems, as a backed up drainage system can cause water and other materials to end up on your floor. Often times, these blockages will be the result of a sold piece of debris that was not broken down enough to pass through the drainage system. A snake, however, can help you to remove this debris quickly and easily, which will allow you to use your drainage system as you did previously.

Many articles of debris are particularly difficult to reach when unclogging a drain, as they end up pretty far down the pipe. As a result, you will have to put the snake a fair ways down the drain in order to get the required results. These snakes are meant to reach up to 50 feet down, which is good news if you end up in this position. These snakes are made from sturdy enough metal that they can force large pieces of debris out of the drainage system without breaking. This is one of the only tools you will need when unclogging a drain, as the next step would be to call a plumber.

There are a number of different plumbing snakes available. The first type is a hand wound snake that works well in most homes. For more advanced jobs, a drum-loaded snake might be necessary, as these snakes can break debris down more efficiently. Some snakes rotate and work out the debris that way, as the constant movement is enough to move almost anything out of the pipes. Professional plumbers will often use snakes with a camera, as this allows them to see what the obstruction is and what can be done to remove it. The type of snake that you need will be highly dependent on the size of the job that you wish to undertake.

Make sure that you clean your snake thoroughly after it has been used. There is a great deal of bacteria in your pipes that can make you sick if you leave it laying around afterward. Many people choose to use a bleach solution on the snake, as this will not only kill bacteria, but also odor. You might have to remove some objects by hand before soaking the snake, so make sure that you have rubber gloves for this part of the process. Soak the snake for at least 24 hours to make sure that all of the bacteria have been killed. Rinse it off with a hose after soaking to ensure that everything has been removed.

A plumbing snake is a great way to save on a plumber’s bill because it allows you to fix many household problems yourself. These items can be inexpensive, so make sure that you look into one if you have had problems with your pipes in the past.

Triangle Affordable Plumbing offers quality plumbing services at prices you can afford. If you are looking for a reliable plumber service, our Plumbers Raleigh service can help you. We have what it takes to get the job done fast and effectively. Our Plumbing Cary services are also available, serving all residents of Cary. Visit our website to find out how we can help you save on plumbing services.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Kirzno

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