Choosing the Best Toilet Tissue for Your Septic System

Many homeowners have a “set it and forget it” attitude to their septic systems as long as they seem to be functioning correctly. It’s an easy mindset to get into, especially since modern septic systems are quite long-lived when they receive proper maintenance and regular pumpings. Before letting your septic system turn into an “out of sight, out of mind” feature of your home’s function, though, it is important to realize that your toilet tissue choice might have a much larger impact on its health than you estimated.

Toilet tissue that does not break down properly, that is too thick and takes a long time to anaerobically degrade, or that contains heavy dyes and artificial components can be damaging to your home septic system. In fact, sometimes it can even float above the rest, which ensures that future additions clump together, making it harder to remove as it accumulates. If left unattended for too long, it can cause system issues, but even when you take care of it, an untimely choice of toilet tissue can increase the cost of your regular tank maintenance by several times.

In theory, finding the best toilet tissue for your septic system should be easy, because there are plenty of brands that are marked as safe for septic tanks. In practice, though, there are several septic-safe brands that still take longer to break down than you would probably prefer, and since maintenance is only done every couple of years, it’s a good idea to know how to get the best results. Still, starting with something labeled as “septic safe” is a great way to go, because it helps to narrow down your choices.

From there, you want to stay away from anything that is heavily quilted or plushy, because the extra density and thickness of the material that gives it the texture and the strength that it advertises is the same thing that makes it take longer to break down. Sticking to white tissue also helps, because it ensures that you are steering away from dyes and other artificial additives that can affect the speed at which it biodegrades.

There are still a lot of great choices left, especially when you look past the major national brands and consider your own local, regional companies too. Avoiding the few overly processed, heavy brands of toilet tissue won’t be hard, and once you are in a routine where you understand what works best, it gets easier. Just remember: saving money on your tissue won’t do a lot of good if it costs you a repair later.

To learn more about septic system maintenance in Santa Cruz and how you can keep yours in top shape, click here.

Gunk from a Broken Grease Trap

The built-up mass of grease and other solid waste from an unmaintained grease trap can eventually harden into an obstruction that threatens your whole waste water system. Regular cleanings prevent this and bring a bring of other benefits....read more

5 Reasons Why Restaurants Need Grease Trap Maintenance

Running a restaurant can be a lot of work, because you have to keep up with a wide variety of tasks and maintenance concerns while also managing a staff and keeping customers happy. It can be easy to lose sight of some long-term maintenance concerns in that environment, but that makes it even more important that you don’t.

The Reasons

Here are five good reasons why you should stay on top of your restaurant kitchen’s grease trap maintenance.

• Reduced bacterial content in food
• The law requires it
• Buildup causes other maintenance problems
• Cleaning lengthens the life of your wastewater system
• It is great for the environment

When you let your grease traps get too dirty, you run the risk of getting in trouble because of the local health code, but more importantly, your customers might get sick. This can hurt your business in a variety of ways, not the least of which is the liability if you are found to have any violations.

Clean grease traps, on the other hand, demonstrate a professional competence that goes beyond just good business. The practice of keeping everything well-maintained saves money, lengthens the life of all your equipment, and helps your restaurant demonstrate that it is environmentally friendly. With all of those benefits, there is no good reason to run the risks that come with dirty grease traps, especially since planning a maintenance schedule that includes those regular cleanings can get them taken care of quite easily.

To learn more about grease interceptor maintenance in Santa Cruz, you can visit this site.

Away We Go

Septic tank trucks pump the solid waste and unprocessed toilet tissue out of your septic tank and dispose of it according to local and state regulations to keep everything working smoothly....read more

Easy Ways To Keep Your Shower Drain Hair Free

Basic tips to help keep your shower from clogging due to excess hair buildup in the drain.

Clogged shower drains are a regular problem for many people, regardless of whether they own their own homes or rent. One of the main reasons for this is because people tend to forget about cleaning drains and ensuring that they are debris free when they do other regular household cleaning tasks. There are a few ways to incorporate drain cleaning into your regular housework schedule, though, and once you are in a routine, it is easier to keep things going.

The first thing to think about is which drain cleaner to use when you do need to totally clear the debris in a pipe. It's important to be sure about what you are putting into your pipes, because some heavy-duty drain cleaners and decloggers use chemicals that can cause unnecessary wear on your pipes if they are used frequently. Try to avoid picking a product with a heavily acid-based list of active ingredients, and steer yourself toward enzymatic cleaners if possible. Those heavy decloggers are great if you have a standing water problem, but you don't want to overdo them.

You'll only need to use a little drain cleaner about once a month to keep things clean. In-between those cleanings, there are a few other steps you can take. For starters, make sure that you are regularly lifting and cleaning any traps, stoppers, or other removable items. Debris can get caught on these and build up, so it is important to check them every time you clean your shower. It can also be helpful to install a hair trap if your shower or bathtub is compatible with local offerings. Otherwise, you will want to use a bent wire or hair catching brush to reach down into the drain and retrieve any built-up hair every time you are cleaning the shower and checking the stoppers. This will help prevent longer hairs from forming clogs, and that will keep you from needing to use those heavy drain decloggers, too.

Hair is going to build up in and around your shower's drain, it's a fact of life. Even if you install a trap, it still needs to be regularly cleared, because the flow of water will take any loose hair down to it eventually. Once you get into a solid routine, though, cleaning your drain gets easier and easier, because a regularly cleaned and maintained drain never has the opportunity to build up enough hair to really cause a problem. To learn more about shower drain cleaning and repiping services in San Marcos, you can visit this website.

Dual-Flush Toilets Are Water-Wise

Innovations in plumbing involve using water well and conserving as much of it as possible. Enter the dual-flush toilet. With two flush options, it allows for waste disposal without squandering water.

Everyone Should Know These Signs of a Gas Leak

Gas leaks are a serious issue that can become dangerous if they are not take care of as soon as they are discovered. Here are the basic signs of a gas leak that anyone should know about:

• A foul odor, like rotten eggs.
• Discolored, dead vegetation directly over or around pipelines outdoors.
• Whistling and/or hissing sounds near the pipeline.

The smell is the easiest and most detectable method of identifying gas leaks, and the rotten egg odor is distinctly different from the rotten smell that backed-up drains can make. Outdoors, whistling and hissing might be easier to detect than the smell, due to the wind dissipating the odor.

What to do

If you detect a natural gas leak in your home, leave the area immediately and contact 911 and/or your local energy company. Authorities recommend that you do not attempt to shut off your own gas or trip any breakers, as unintended sparks can ignite the gas leak. The best thing to do is to turn off any running appliances and make a brisk exit before calling for help. While waiting, make sure that you do not smoke or do anything else that might ignite the gas. Wait to re-enter the home until after an expert has checked things over and declared the area safe.

When you know what to look for, gas leaks can be taken care of quickly and safely, and they can mostly be prevented with regular inspection and maintenance of your home’s natural gas lines and all the appliances connected to them. To find out a vendor for gas line repair in Carlsbad, visit this website.