Essential Green Plumbing Practices To Try During Quarantine

A growing number of smart people are using their time during the COVID-19 crisis to push for a greener future. We have already seen some positive changes transpire, due to the unfortunate pandemic. Global pollution levels have dropped sharply since governments started imposing mandatory quarantines on the global population. One study by NASA has found that air pollution levels have fallen 30% in the NorthEast, which appears to be due to the stay-at-home orders.

The bad news is that the environmental benefits of the stay-at-home orders are temporary. Air pollution will rise again as the economy reopens. However, a number of people are using the crisis to find new ways to lead eco-friendlier lives.

There are a number of ways to go green during the COVID-19 crisis. One option is to start using more sustainable home improvement strategies, such as green plumbing.

Green Plumbing is Becoming More Popular During the Crisis

Plumbers are professionals who install and maintain pipe systems for homes and businesses. Aside from the kinds of jobs we usually imagine plumbers undertaking, plumbers can also be involved in building design/construction, as well as the drafting process.

Plumbers can take a number of measures to promote sustainability. EcoMena has talked about the environmental footprint of plumbing materials and ways that people can use them better.

According to fixitrightplumbing.com.au, a group of veteran plumbers in Canberra, there are two main types of plumbers. They can both play an important role in improving sustainability. These are service plumbers and contract plumbers.

Service plumbers:

These are plumbers who will come to your home day or night and save you from anything from a dripping tap to a full-blown burst pipe emergency.  They can help keep waste contained, which stops it from contaminating the local environment.

Contract plumbers:

Legal awareness is part of a plumber’s job description along with technical skills. In fact, many architects work side-by-side with plumbers to keep the construction process as streamlined as possible. They understand new sustainability guidelines on plumbing, which is key to stopping climate change.

These are plumbers who get most of their work from builders and renovators. These guys specialize in new builds and tend to be booked up for months in advance.

Top Plumbing Emergencies that Hurt the Environment

Major plumbing emergencies can be devastating to the environment. You need to make sure that they are avoided, so that you minimize energy use and environmental damage.

Have your pipes gotten stuck? Here are the top 10 most common emergencies that plumbers get called in for.

1. Clogged Sinks

If your sink is stuck or slow it can be annoying, but alone, there is no reason for this to shut down your whole day. A slow drain is annoying, but it’s not necessarily an emergency. The problem is that clogs have a nasty tendency to grow in size and consequences. Eventually, this trivial problem can put a serious damper on your day-to-day.  It can harm the environment as well, since it lowers the efficiency of your plumbing system and increases your carbon footprint. Fortuantely, there are eco-friendly hacks to solve this problem.

Eco-friendly solution

You will need:

• ½ cup of vinegar
• ½ cup of baking soda
• 3 liters of hot water

You can use baking soda and vinegar to unclog your drain. Anyone can do this, even if you are on a budget. This technique can help you save time and money.

This will also disinfect your pipes. What this accomplishes is eliminating odors from food and grease build up. It doesn’t use the same toxic chemicals many other products use, which makes it a lot better for the environment. Remember that this chemical solvent will foam. That is how you can tell it is active.

2. Clogged Bathtubs and Shower Drains

Soap scum and hair buildup are the most common reasons behind this super common plumbing emergency. This is the third most common reason plumbers get called to homes. If you find that your drain is constantly getting clogged, the first thing you can do is buy a plug and start showering with cold water.

Plugs will prevent loose hair from building up in the drain, and cold water showers will minimize hair loss. There are obviously many other ways you can minimize hair loss.

Home fix

Drano and a coat hanger can be enough to get your drains unclogged. The first thing you will want to do is grab some pliers and close the loop on a wire clothes hanger. Many blogs will advise you to clean your pipes with pure Drano, but this technique will not work on thick blockage without using some kind of wire tool to remove the bulk of the clog.

3. Toilet Won’t Flush

If your toilet flushing is not working, it could be a simple pressure problem caused by blockage. One thing that can happen, is that the actual faucets in your toilet where water comes from could be blocked. There are a few other possible explanations. Another is that the blockage is occurring within the tank part of the toilet.

Home fix

1. If the problem is in the water releasing mechanism, the best way to handle it is to bend a wire –could be a coat hanger or something similar— and use this to force loose the blockage in the water-release system.
2. If the problem is in the tank, the first thing you must do is cut off the water supply to the toilet. Then wait for the level of water in the tank to drop. Finally, you must drop muriatic acid or some other caustic solution into the pipe that drains the system. This step involves manipulating a very strong acid, so you will need gloves. Muriatic acid can burn your hands or even your lungs if you breathe it in, so you must proceed with caution! The last step is to turn your water back on and flush the system.

Green Plumbing Is Becoming More Important

Plumbing problems can cause a lot of issues for the environment. However, they need to be addressed in the eco-friendliest way possible. Plumbers are necessary because the organic material that builds up in your pipe and water systems has an unfortunate tendency turn into emergencies if ignored. Luckily, there are many DIY resources nowadays that you can use to serve as your own plumber.