We had a great visit last month with Kassandra and Skip Lawhorn, owners of Lawhorn Plumbing.
Sandy: We had a great visit last month with Kassandra and Skip Lawhorn, owners of Lawhorn Plumbing. We have invited Kassandra and Skip back again this month to talk about plumbing preventative maintenance tips for homeowners.
Kassandra: That is a great place to start. We care a lot about our customers and anything we can do to help them prevent those Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve emergency phone calls is in all of our best interests.
Skip: Sounds great. We have a plethora of maintenance tips, starting with those small handles in every cabinet location where there is a sink and the handles behind your toilets. They are called angle stops and you should turn them on and off at least once a year, to keep them moving.
Kassandra: We refer to that task as exercising the device.
Sandy: Exercising is a good thing. As soon as my Achilles heals, I will get back to exercising as well.
Skip: LOL. Next would be to check your laundry room washer connection box behind the washer about mid wall. Some folks see water on the floor and think the washer is leaking when it just might be the hose connections that are leaking.
Tom: That could save a lot of money. The hoses are cheap compared to a washer.
Skip: Exactly. P traps are another part of your plumbing system to check. We recommend using a paper towel in your hand and gently wipe that curving drain line under the sinks. About 80% of the time, any leaking might simply be caused by a loose connection. The nut that holds the plastic lines together needs a little tightening.
Kassandra: You don’t need any special tools either. Hand tightening is actually best with plastic piping.
Sandy: How often should folks check these?
Kassandra: At least once a year.
Skip: Or if you notice any moisture at the bottom of the cabinet below your sink.
Sandy: Excellent! On to the next tip.
Skip: How people use their garbage disposal is important for its longevity. Large portions of food should not generally be scraped into the sink to feed the disposal. It is designed to handle small food particles, not big pieces.
Kassandra: Things that should not go into the garbage disposal are shredded meats, pasta, rice, eggshells, coffee grounds, celery, potato peelings. They can get into the grinders and reduce their ability to perform.
Sandy: So, they gum up the works.
Skip: Yes.
Tom: Some garbage disposals have what is called an air switch.
Skip: Yes. That is the little button you press down near the sink to activate the disposal. If it is not working, first check the plug connection below the sink and then there is a small hose that connects to the button and disposal. Make sure that is secured.
Sandy: Some safety shout-outs here. Never ever, never, put your hand into the disposal from the sink drain.
Kassandra: Absolutely!! If something gets stuck in there such as a utensil, you MUST unplug the disposal from the outlet first. Then try to dislodge what ever is in there using tools, not your hands.
Tom: Since we are coming up at that time of year, what are your thoughts regarding winterizing?
Kassandra: One of the more common and overlooked winterizing steps are our hose bibs outside.
Sandy: I was under the impression that any construction done in the last 20-plus years had to have frost-free hose bibs.
Skip: Yes, but some of them are not installed correctly and do not do their job. By covering the hose bib with a small foam insulating cup, you just used a very inexpensive insurance policy.
Kassandra: It is always a good idea to walk around your home on the outside to see if and piping is exposed to the cold air. Crawl spaces are another area to check for uninsulated and exposed pipes.
Sandy: As you said, pretty cheap insurance against a burst pipe.
Sandy: Speaking of burst pipes, I am hearing a lot from people about refrigerators with ice makers or water dispensers breaking and flooding a home. Do you have any thoughts on that?
Skip: Yes. It is a good idea to pull out your refrigerator at least once a year if not more often and look at the floor below.
Kassandra: After you vacuum it!
Skip: LOL that is correct. You are looking for any slight water damage. Small leaks can cause bigger problems.
Kassandra: Cleaning the dust off the coils behind the refrigerator and around the connections will help keeping them working well.
Tom: All good points. There are a lot of people who cannot undertake some of these tasks. What services does Lawhorn Plumbing provide to assist?
Kassandra: We can do all of the above; however, we take the checkup to another level.
Skip: Going a little deeper or more technical, we would look at the wax ring on a toilet to see if it needs replacement. Your water heater is important. We can flush it out, check the anode rod in tank type water heaters and the expansion tank’s functionality.
Kassandra: We flush out the tankless heaters as well. Most folks aren’t aware this needs to be done.
Skip: We can scope out waste lines, check water pressure to make sure it is not too high or low.
Sandy: Your fixtures will be happier for that. Tell us more about you guys. How many employees do you have? What do you do for fun?
Skip: Well, we include our two daughters, 14 and 6, and with Kassandra and me, along with one employee, we are a mighty force of 5.
Kassandra: Our daughters really do help out. Our 6-year-old can solder pipe.
Tom: Now THAT is impressive. I am impressed that you include them so closely. That truly makes it a family business.
Skip: It’s not all work though. We have a camping trailer we use regularly all around Arizona going to the rivers and lakes often.
Kassandra: We also like spending time as a family watching movies and we are big on board games as well.
Sandy: That is so heartwarming. Your caring for your customers and each other is touching.
Sandy: To our readers, thanks for stopping in to read At Home With Tom and Sandy. You are in good company, and we love sharing educational, fun and important information with you. See you next month for more conversations with a local contactor. QCBN
Tom Reilly, Architect, 928-925-5692
Sandy Griffis, Executive Director, Yavapai County Contractors Association. 928-778-0040
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