Yuck!!! What is that Smell?

YUCK!!! WHAT IS THAT SMELL?

Yuck!!! What is that Smell?

WHAT ARE YOU PUTTING DOWN THE DRAIN?

My husband is a plumber, I know what I’m allowed to put down the drain and what doesn’t belong down the drain. Recently we redid our plumbing in our kitchen, so there is zero excuse for the sink to smell. I love to cook, with cooking comes a pile of dishes, pots and pans constantly getting washed in our kitchen sink. It doesn’t matter what you like to cook, everyone uses some sort of oil or butter for cooking. I personally love Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and I know for a fact that it needs to be disposed of properly (in a container or double bagged) and thrown in the garbage. But, there will always be residue left on plates, and on pots and pans. If you’re not putting oil down your sink drain, why does it still smell? Because of all the residue left on your plates, pots and pans, you are going to get a nasty smell coming from your sink drain.

How do we stop the sink drain from smelling? You should always run cold water down your drain. Every couple of weeks or once a month, depending on how much you use your sink, you need to clean your sink drain with baking soda and vinegar. Another reason your sink drain might smell could be caused by having incorrectly installed waste lines, causing your P-Trap to not hold water to prevent sewer gasses from exiting. Finally, it could be a clogged-up vent pipe. For your kitchen sink to work the way it should, you need your drains and vents to work correctly. If you have maintain your sink drain and it still has a bad smell, contact a plumber. They will check your waste lines and vent pipes.

IF YOU KEEP YOUR SINK DRAIN CLEAN AND CLEAR, AND PROPERLY MAINTAINED, THERE SHOULDN’T BE ANY REASON FOR YOUR KITCHEN SINK DRAIN TO SMELL BAD. 

WHAT DOESN’T BELONG DOWN THE DRAIN:

·       Oil

·       Butter

·       Bones

·       Peels

·       Vegetables

·       Fruits

·       Seeds

·       Plastic

·       Metal

·       Glass

WHAT BELONGS DOWN THE DRAIN:

·       Water

·       Dirty Water

·       Dirty Soapy Water

·       …..that’s it!!!!

HOW TO MAINTAIN A GOOD SMELLING SINK?

Vinegar, Baking Soda and Lemon Juice. ½ cup of vinegar, ½ a cup of baking soda. Pour it down the drain, let it sit for 30 minutes. After squeeze 1 lemon down the drain, let it sit there for another 30 minutes. Followed by cold running water to wash everything down. Your drain will smell great.

GARBAGE DISPOSAL:

Vinegar & Baking Soda, ½ cup of vinegar and ½ cup of baking soda down garbage disposal. Let it sit there for 30 minutes, then flush out with cold water. Follow it with fresh squeezed lemon juice and ice, turn on garbage disposal.

Freeze lemon wedges in ice cube trays, place ice cubes down garbage disposal every couple of weeks if you regularly use garbage disposal.

Now you should have a GREAT smelling kitchen sink. If you need help or would love to have one of our plumbers check out your kitchen sink drain, give us a call. We are always happy to help you.

-Kevin Szabo Jr Plumbing Team

708-845-7922

categories March, March 2018
tags Kitchen Sink Drain, Sink Drain, Plumbing Maintenance, Kitchen Sink Drain Maintenance, Drain Maintenance, Sink Drain Smells Bad, Plumbing Service, Plumber in Tinley Park, Plumber in Orland Park, Plumber in Oak Forest, Plumber in Midlothian, Plumber in Homewood, Plumber in Crestwood,Plumber in Palos Park, Plumber in Palos Heights, Plumber in Frankfort, Plumber in Mokena,Plumber in New Lenox, Plumber in Lemont, Plumber in Homer Glen, Plumber in Oak Lawn, Garbage Disposal Maintenance

5 Simple Bedroom Makeover Idea

Are you the kind of person who likes to spend the maximum amount of time in your bedroom? Do you think it's time your bedroom got a makeover so that it's more comfortable, attractive and healthy to be in? For this, you needn't call in an interior decorator and spend big money. Just a few small tweaks here and there can change your room marvelously. If you're ready to make small changes that could make a big difference to your room, read on:

Bring character to your bedroom with nice wood flooring: By installing a great wood flooring such as white oak flooring to your bedroom, you'd lend a lot of character to it. However, this doesn't mean spending huge money. You can do this installing the floor yourself.

Bring the outdoors inside: To get the widest possible view, it's a great idea to bring the outdoors into your room. One way of doing this is to have large windows, from floor to ceiling that will keep the room warm with sunlight streaming in and give you a wonderful view of the landscape outside. Make your layout in the room simple and easy to walk around so that the windows get all the importance. Let your bed be parallel with the window so that you can enjoy the view and turn over in bed if you find the light too strong.

A spot to sit but not in bed: You might want to sit in your bedroom to do a bit of personal reading or writing--something you can't do comfortably in bed. So, create a corner where you can have a couple of comfortable chairs and table, where you can do what you want--even if it means having a chat with your partner, getting into shoes or checking your email.

Have an interesting headboard? If you're the type that sits up in bed to read, you need an interesting and practical headboard. The Net is full of interesting designs of headboards, so why not choose among them? You could make it yourself if you're a talented woodworker or have it done professionally. Use your imagination and create a unique headboard. After all, it's your headboard that you want for a specific purpose.

A nightstand with everything you need: It makes sense to have a nightstand that accommodates everything you might need in the middle of the night. You're obviously going to need room for a jug of water, a book, your medicines, a torch and a bedside lamp. When putting your necessities together on your nightstand, don't think your nightstand must be absolutely perfect. It only needs to be perfect in having enough room for all that you want there. Finally, your nightstand has to reflect your personality, so go ahead and fill it with all your needs.

How is you room lighting? Rather than installing the lights directly over your bed, you should install them in a way that you can look up at them when you are in your bed. Direct light is pretty uncomfortable if installed overhead as compared to the soft light at face level.

Conclusion

If you like all the changes you've just made in your bedroom recently, sit back and admire your creativity. Then, get up and start enjoying your new-look bedroom.

Author Bio: Manisha Kumar is a versatile writer and editor of thebasicwoodworking.com. She loves blogging about DIY tips on woodworking and home décor. When she is not blogging, she is watching movies or cooking her favorite recipes.

Guest Contributor, Manisha Kumar

Local Plumber, Plumber in Tinley Park, Plumber in Orland Park,Plumber in Homer Glen, Plumber in New Lenox, Plumber in Frankfort IL, Plumber in Mokena,Plumber in Homewood, Plumber in Lemont, Plumber in Oak Forest, Plumber in Midlothian, Plumber in Crestwood, Plumber in Palos Park, Plumber in Palos Heights, Plumber in Oak Lawn

19 STEPS TO GETTING YOUR HOME READY FOR YOUR THANKSGIVING GUESTS

Getting Your Home Ready for Thanksgiving

Are you having family and friends over for Thanksgiving? Did you forget to include cleaning in your schedule? Let me guess, you’ve been busy looking all over for perfect recipes. That is fine, we all do that. But, somewhere between now and Thursday morning, you need to clean your house from top to bottom. It’s not easy when you have kids, a husband who thinks everything magically cleans itself, and a puppy who is too busy barking at everyone that passes by your house (yes, my puppy sits on her throne by the window and barks at anything and everything).

I completely understand where you’re coming from. After working all day, it’s hard to have any energy left to tend to your home. Nobody is judging, I’m here to help.

Just to scare you, a made you a calendar of where we are today, and how quickly Thanksgiving is approaching.

Look around, how dirty is your house?

If you only have 30 minutes to Clean.

1.       Clean your main bathroom

2.       Clean your kitchen

3.       Clean your dining room

4.       Turn a few candles on

IF YOU ONLY HAVE 2 HOURS TO CLEAN.

1.       Clean your main bathroom and a guest bathroom

2.       Clean your kitchen

3.       Clean your dining room

4.       Clean your living room

5.       Clean your fridge

6.       Turn candles on

IF YOU HAVE 6 HOURS TO CLEAN.

1. Clean all your bathrooms
2. Clean your kitchen
3. Make sure you scrub your oven, inside and out
4. Clean the inside of your fridge
5. Clean your dining room, make it inviting.
6. Clean and dust off your living room. Make sure you dust everything. Your mother-in-law sure loves to check that mantel
7. Clean the fire place
8. Clean the bar area
9. Clean the kids room
10. Clean the bed rooms
11. Clean the guest room
12. Clean your office
13. Walk around your house and dust off every curtain
14. Clean the ceiling fans
15. Clean the kids play area
16. Clean the front and back of the outside of the house
17. Add Holiday decorations
18. Add fresh cut flowers throughout the house
19. Add candles in every common area

You did everything you could. Don’t worry, it looks great.

---

DON’T FORGET TO MAKE A LITTLE BAR AREA.

Holiday Bar Cart

• Wine, red and white
• Champagne, please chill
• Vodka
• Whiskey
• Scotch
• Rum
• Soda Water
• Tonic
• Coke/Diet Coke
• Ginger Ale
• Lemon wedges
• Cherries
• Orange Wedges
•  Ice
•  Wine Glasses
•  Champagne Flute
•  Rocks Glasses

Turn on some holiday music for ambiance.

If you have Comcast, it’s channel 741. They also have holiday music on On Demand. Or, turn on your Pandora for great Holiday tunes. Zero excuse for not having Holiday Tunes playing in the background.

If everything goes to plan, everyone will be having too much fun to notice anything you forgot or didn’t get to clean in time.

Now go enjoy yourself.

Happy Thanksgiving

-Your Local Plumber

How To Rebuild A RPZ Valve

Stop Flushing Wipes Down The Toilet

Wipes Don't Belong In The Toilet

I have a giant problem with all these baby wipe companies still putting "flushable" and "sewer and septic safe" on their packages. Let me express to you how much we love baby wipes in our household. We have a child and a puppy who love to make messes all over the house. Not only are baby wipes great when we change his diaper. They are great to clean up his face, his hands, and where ever else he loves to get peanut butter/chocolate/jelly/cheese/etc. on himself.

It's simple, you grab a wipe and clean up the mess. Toss it in the garbage and it's done. Simple as that. Well, toilet paper and paper towel companies wanted to jump in on the baby wipe success. They are doing very well for themselves. They have created several types of bathroom "flushable" wipes. The only problem is these wipes ARE flushable, but will not dissolve. 

They sit in your pipes, get stuck on other stuff and clog up your pipes. Yes, it creates more jobs for plumbers but it's ruining our sewer pipes. How is it that they are allowed to print "flushable" and "sewer/septic safe" on their packages? Some of them are even printing "biodegradable". In their terms, yes they are biodegradable, but not for another 1000 years. 

Until someone does something about these companies printing "flushable" on wipes, please stop flushing wipes down the toilet. It will cost you hundreds, even thousands of dollars to fix. You should only flush toilet paper. 

What I Love To Use Baby Wipes On:

• When I change my baby's diaper.
• After my kid eats.
• My puppy's bum.
• When my husband spills food/drinks/whatever else he is eating on his clothes.
• The table.
• The floor.
• My kitchen cabinets.
• The make up off my face.
• When I get make up on my fingers.
• After I do my hair in the bathroom(it's so easy to pick up the hair off the floor).
• Cleaning inside the car.
• Cleaning leather seats. 
• Getting deodorant off of clothing.
• Wiping down shoes. 
• Wiping down exercise equipment.
• And the million other things that I wipe down with baby wipes. 

Maybe, I should look into buying stock in baby wipe companies. Moral of the story, baby wipes are amazing, just don't flush them down the toilet. 

Kevinszabojrplumbing@yahoo.com

www.kevinszabojrplumbing.net

PREVENTING FROZEN PIPES

When water freezes it expands, it can cause hundreds, even thousands of Dollars worth of damage. Be prepared and use that extra money towards a beach vacation, away from this frigid weather. 

ALWAYS KNOW WHERE YOUR MAIN WATER SHUTOFF IS LOCATED.

   -FIND THE LOCATION OF YOUR WATER METER AND YOU WILL FIND YOUR MAIN WATER SHUTOFF(BASEMENT, CRAWL SPACE, LAUNDRY ROOM, EVEN UNDER YOUR KITCHEN SINK).

INSULATE YOUR PIPES.

   -PIPE SLEEVES, HEAT TAPE, NEWSPAPER

KEEP YOUR FAUCET OPEN.

   -LET YOUR SINK DRIP 

KEEP YOUR CABINETS OPEN WHERE YOU HAVE WATER LINES, ALLOWING HEAT TO CIRCULATE. 

WATER LINES THAT ARE ON A OUTSIDE WALL, SHOULD BE EXPOSED FROM THE INSIDE TO LET HEAT GET TO THEM. 

IF YOU HAVE WATER LINES OR YOUR WATER HEATER IS IN THE GARAGE, KEEP IT CLOSED AND INSULATED. 

IF YOUR PIPES FREEZE, USE A HAND DRIER, ELECTRIC SPACE HEATER, HEAT LAMP, TO TRY TO THAW OUT PIPES. 

   -DON'T LEAVE UNATTENDED

APPLY HEAT TO PIPES UNTIL WATER PRESSURE IS RESTORED.

IF YOU CAN'T THAW OUT THE PIPES, CALL A LICENSED PLUMBER.

For Future Protection

• Pipes can be relocated by a professional plumber
• Add insulation to your attic, basement, crawl space, and garage
• For more information contact a licensed plumber

Just remember, our Chicago Summer days are right around the corner. 

Things Every Woman Should Know How To Repair Around Their Home

It's 2014, men should still be gentlemen and fix whatever needs to be fixed and handle any other home repair that needs to be done. In general, women can handle most home repair tasks without asking their husbands, or significant others to do it for them. I know for a fact that they can do a lot more than we ever give them credit for. Some women  know how to fix stuff better than we do, but leave the home repair up to us just because they know they can.  My significant other always tackles any home repair issue without asking for help because she enjoys the feeling and knows how to do it.  It honestly makes me proud. We always want to be there, but in case we aren't we want our women to know how to do these things.

Things Every Woman Should Know How To Repair

• Fix a leaky faucet
• Plunge a toilet
• Fix the belt on a vacuum
• Change a light fixture
• Tighten the shower head 
• Change the filter in the furnace
• Light the pilot on the water heater
• Reset a circuit breaker
• Change a tire(I know this is not home repair, but more people should know how to do this)
• Install or repair a door knob or lock
• Patch a hole in the wall
• Take apart the sink p-trap

Tools you should always have at home

• Power drill
• Hammer
• Screw driver set
• Wrench
• Channel locks
• Scissors
• Pliers
• Level
• Measuring Tape
• Flash light
• Staple gun
• Wood saw

Foot Note: There is a lot of men out there that don't know how to do any home repair and have to have a woman show them. This post isn't meant as an insult towards women in any way shape or form.







Please visit our website www.kevinszabojrplumbing.net



If you have any issues or concerns call or email


Kevin Szabo Jr 
(708)845-7922
kevinszabojrplumbing@yahoo.com

Indoor Spring Cleaning and Maintenance

We all clean our homes on a regular bases. After having all our windows closed through out most of Fall and Winter we have to go the extra mile to clean and maintain everything. All that dust that builds up from having everything closed. Certain stuff not being used over Winter, we have to make sure it's working properly.

The first thing you have to do, is open every single window. Let that fresh air in. Now turn some music on and let's go down the list.

• Clean or replace your furnace filters
• Test your air conditioning system(don't wait till it gets too hot to see if it's working). 
• Check caulking around all windows and doors. Improper caulking allows for moisture to get inside your walls and can cause mold. 
• Replace screens on your windows if they are torn or broken.
• Clean your windows, inside and outside.
• Test your smoke and fire detector, replace batteries if needed. Dust the inside and outside. 
• Check your fire extinguisher.
• Clean your ceiling fan with a wet rag.
• Rotate your ceiling fan so it's spinning counter clock wise for Summer. 
• Clean out your fridge and freezer. Place a new box of baking soda in the back to maintain freshness. 
• Check for pest problems, you might look into calling someone to spray before the warmer months. 
• Organize your closets, put away Winter clothes and bring out the Spring and Summer clothes. 
• Clean your walls, sponge and water, or a wet rag. Dust builds up on your walls, especially during Fall and Winter. 
• Dust and reorganize your book shelves. Move your books around, place some vertically, and some horizontally.
• Wipe down all your lightbulbs. 
• Wash your shower curtain. Replace the inside liner. You can buy the inside liner for a buck or two. They tent to get moldy quickly. 
• Clean your bathroom walls, having your fan on during and after showers isn't enough. Mold grows, you have to prevent it.
• Soak your shower head in vinegar and lemon for half an hour or longer if you please. Minerals tend to build up in it. 
• Vacuum mattress and box spring.
• Dust off all vents.
• Clean out the dryer ducts.

If it seems like your in need of a Plumber, Electrician, Heating and AC Repairman, or a General Handyman give them a call. Don't wait to the last second. Trust us, you'll be glad that you took care of things before they got bad. 

If you have any questions or concerns, email or call me.

Kevin Szabo Jr 

Plumbing and Sewer

(708)845-7922

kevinszabojrplumbing@yahoo.com

Cowboy Plumbers

Is He A Licensed Plumber?

When you search "cowboy plumber" you wont get a definition or exact description of what they look like. The last thing you want is to pay hundreds of dollars, or even worse, thousands of dollars to a cowboy plumber. A cowboy plumber is a unlicensed plumber, who doesn't fully know what they are doing. They are in a rush to just get the job done, instead of trying to do it right. Most cowboy plumbers don't know all the plumbing codes, so the last thing on their mind is following plumbing codes and rules.

Anybody can advertise that they are a plumber. Newspapers, yellow book, business listing sites, business marketing sites, don't go out of their way to find out if these so called plumbers are actually licensed plumbers. It is your job to ask the plumber to see their plumbing license.

We know at times when you are dealing with an emergency you just want to fix the problem right away. We don't blame you. You just need to do a little research before hiring a plumber. Make sure he is licensed, bonded, and insured. Look up the company's name online. Look for reviews. Ask friends and family members for a plumber that they have previously used.

After doing some quick research, have your licensed plumber come out and check your problem. Have him explain to you what the problem is and what they can do to solve it. You are the customer. As the customer, you should ask as many questions as you'd like. At the end of the day, nobody can make you do anything you don't want to do. Make sure you are making the right decision by choosing the right plumber.

Here are some plumbing nightmares. Some are quite funny.

If you need help or just have a few plumbing questions, give me a call or email me

Kevin Szabo Jr

(708)845-7922

kevinszabojrplumbing@yahoo.com

Emergency 24 Hour Service

Holiday Plumbing Emergencies

During the holidays plumbing emergencies still happen. More than you think. We tend to do more than usual during the holidays. I love having my family and friends over, having a wonderful time together. We just forget to be as cautious as we usually are when we are enjoying our selves.
We have to remember to let loose a little but continue being conscious over our home appliances, plumbing and electrical.





When we tend to forget to take care of our home, use up more electric than usual or just abuse our plumbing:

-Family and friends gather at your home.


-Guests spending nights

-More children than you are usually use to(and we all know kids love flushing things down the toilet)

-Dishwasher being used more often

-Water constantly running

-Garbage Disposal overexposed

-Too many lights on

Solution

-When having guests spend the night, let them know nicely that there should be at least a ten minute wait in between showers.

-Clean your dishes well before placing them in the dishwasher.

-Take turns doing the dishes, this way you wont always have to load the dishwasher.

-Run water while you are using your garbage disposal
    *You need to remember that garbage disposals aren't meant to take everything. Stringy or fibrous    vegetables will clog the drain. Starchy foods will swell and also clog the drain. Never drain grease, oils, or fats(use an old coffee can to dispose).

-Put a little dish soap with cold water down the garbage disposal to keep it clean.

-If nobody is in the room, turn off all the lights.

-Put your Christmas lights on a timer, it will save you lots of money.

-Lock the bathroom doors, so small children don't abuse the toilet.

 -If you are lucky enough to have a fire place, use it so you could turn down the heat.


Be Safe, Be Healthy, and Enjoy Your Holidays

Kevin Szabo Jr Plumbing and Sewer

Five Things Every Home Owner Needs To Know And Have In Their Home

Keeping Up With Your Home

It is a second job keeping up with your home and making sure everything always functions correctly. Five things that every household needs to have and know how to do in your house. Hopefully most of you already have these things in your home. If not, get on it already. Trust me, better safe than sorry.

1. Flashlights, not just one. You need a few throughout your home, especially if you have several people in your home. Remember to have extra batteries.

2. You need to know where the circuit breaker is and how it works. Also if and when you lose power in certain parts of the house while you are using more than one appliance for example the coffee maker, and the blow drier you need to know why. Call an electrician.

3. Plungers, you need to own a toilet plunger and a sink plunger.

4. Check for drafts in your house, fix them. It will save you money.

5. Disposing your burnt fire ashes. Place them in a old tin can.

http://www.wikihow.com/Dispose-of-Burnt-Firewood-and-Ash-Safely