Even if you live in a brand new home, there are areas all over the house where you may be wasting money and not even realize it.
Posted by: C.J. | November 10, 2011
Video: A Money Saving Tip
Posted in Blogs, Q&A, Video | Tags: Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, Home Repair, How-to, Leak, Marshfield, Scituate, Water Pipe
Posted by: C.J. | November 9, 2011
Plumbing 101: A Safety Warning
With energy and fuel costs continuing to rise every year, wood, pellet, coal and gas stoves continue to grow in popularity. It makes sense too; they offer an affordable alternative to traditional ways of heating the home, such as oil. For some homeowners, this may seem like a DIY job. However, that’s not always the case.
The vast majority of communities require a permit to legally install a wood or gas stove, meaning this is disqualified as a DIY project.
In many, if not almost all communities, a permit must be filed with the Building Department in order to legally install one of these stoves.
Posted in Blogs, Q&A, Safety | Tags: Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, DIY, Gas Stove, Heating, Marshfield, Safety, Scituate, Wood Stove
Posted by: C.J. | November 5, 2011
What Not To Buy Yourself
The popularity of the big box home improvement stores is both a blessing and a curse. These stores allow homeowners to affordably purchase hundreds of items that were once very expensive, or reserved for only speciality stores or contractor supply shops.
They’re also a curse because some of the items they sell are cheap, flimsy, and unreliable. I’m not saying everything they sell is like this. I’m at my home improvement store just about every weekend stocking up for various projects around the house. But, there are some items I’d never buy there. While the cost may be cheaper than what your contractor is offering you, the quality is sub par and the warranties are often different.
So, what are my Top 3 items you should never, ever purchase at a home supply store?
Posted in Blogs, Q&A, Uncategorized | Tags: Bathroom, Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, faucet, garbage disposal, Marshfield, Scituate, Toilet, water heater
Posted by: C.J. | November 2, 2011
Adding Anti-Freeze
As colder temperatures begin to settle over the South Shore and all of New England for the winter, a key component of maintaining your boiler is to add anti-freeze to the system.
This week, we replaced the anti-freeze in a unit. It’s important because it will keep the system from freezing up if any pipes are exposed to the cold. This could happen because it is located in a garage, or in a poorly insulated basement.
You should replace or refill the anti-freeze in your boiler every three to five years.
New anti-freeze should be added every three to five years to make sure you have maximum protect.
Boiler Specialists:
You may notice we spend a lot of time writing about boilers here at CJPlumbingAndHeating.com There’s a couple of reasons for that. First — it just happens to be that time of year. When it gets cold, you want to make sure your boiler is functioning at 100% efficiency.
The second reason is that C.J. Plumbing & Heating, Inc. specializes in installing, repairing, and maintaining boilers. Whether it’s hot water or steam, we’ve been doing it all for 25 years.
Related Entries:
On the Job: Maintaining Your Boiler
On the Job: Repairing a Boiler
Posted in Blogs, On the Job, Photos | Tags: anti-freeze, Boiler, Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, Frozen Pipes, Heating, Marshfield, No Heat, Scituate
Posted by: C.J. | November 1, 2011
Instant Hot Water
Residential is just half of the customer-base C.J. Plumbing & Heating serves. We also work with a long list of non-residential customers, including retail stores, businesses, schools, churches and municipal offices. We work just about everywhere!
Recently, we repaired the hot water circulation pump at East Bridgewater High School. A hot water circulation pump is a critical piece of equipment in any building where you have a sink, shower, or other fixture that requires hot water more than 100 feet from the hot water heater.
Repairing the hot water circulation pump at East Bridgewater High School
By having a hot water circulation pump, you ensure that there will instantly be hot water even though the water has had to travel a long distance from the hot water heater.
John repairing the hot water circulation pump at East Bridgewater High School
A hot water circulation pump also saves water. Imagine if you didn’t have one to make sure you always had hot water — you would have to wait for the hot water to travel the distance from the hot water heater to the fixture — all the while you would be dumping cold water wastefully down the drain.
Repairing the hot water circulation pump at East Bridgewater High School
In this case — the drive coupling broke. This part connects the motor to the pump. We were able to repair it by removing the motor to access the coupling, allowing us to make the necessary fix.
Related Blogs:
On the Job: Maintaining your boiler.
Video: How old is my hot water heater?
Posted in Blogs, On the Job, Photos | Tags: Boiler, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, east bridgewater high school, hot water, Marshfield, Plumbing, Repair, Scituate
Posted by: C.J. | October 29, 2011
A Greener Restroom
Saving water means saving money. You save money on your water bill, and you save money on your sewer bill. At home, we are sometimes able to control the amount of water we use. We install high-efficiency shower heads. We have 1.6 gallon per flush toilets installed. We only run the dishwasher when it is full.
Business don’t always have this luxury. More often than not, their water usage is directly connected to the amount of foot traffic. This is particularly true in office buildings, restaurants and retail stores with public rest rooms.
One way for these businesses to save money is by installing waterless urinals in their men’s rooms.
A waterless urinal is a great investment for high traffic businesses, like restaurants.
Instead of a bowl filled with water, a waterless urinal has a drain with a filter connected to it. The filter helps to eliminate any odors, and the business owner saves 100% of water and sewer costs generated by the unit.
The best part is you can convert your traditional urinal to a waterless urinal without performing a big renovation. C.J. Plumbing & Heating, Inc. are experts at performing waterless urinal conversations, and are able to quickly and affordably make your restroom more environmentally friendly without disrupting your business operation.
Related Blogs:
- Video: Why are my water pipes discolored?
- On the Job: Big damage by a small leak.
Posted in Blogs, Going Green, On the Job, Photos | Tags: Bathroom, Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, Marshfield, Plumbing, Restroom, Scituate, Toilet, Waterless Urinal
Posted by: C.J. | October 27, 2011
A Leaky Toilet
Have you ever been in bed late at night trying to fall asleep when you inexplicably hear the sound of water? You listen for a little bit, but by the time you drag yourself out of bed to investigate, it’s stopped. That sound is your toilet tank filling up.
Over time, the flapper that keeps the water in the tank until you push the handle to flush will eventually fail to keep a tight seal. This will allow the water to slowly leak out of the tank. Once the water gets to a certain point, the floater will trigger the fill valve to refill the tank so there is enough water for the next use. This small leak can cause your tank to refill itself several times a day, or more!
Your toilet may be leaking gallons of water every day.
Depending on when your toilet was made, it uses between 1.6 gallons (newer toilets), 3.0 gallons (older toilets), or 5.0 gallons (really old toilets) per flush.
Do the math. That’s a lot of wasted water. And that wasted water will drive up your water bill, your sewer bill, and even your electric bill (if you are on a well).
Another problem to watch out for comes from the fill valve. It’s possible that the fill valve is pumping too much water into the tank. That means that every flush is sending extra water down the drain, also costing you money.
Do the math. It's not rocket science to figure out wasted water costs you money! (The above formula, however, is rocket science. It's used to determine velocity caused by boost. At least that's why I'm told.)
Many people think this is an easy DIY job where you can get the necessary parts at one of those big box stores. However, just like any mechanical system, there are multiple moving parts that need to work in sync in order for your toilet to operate efficiently. That’s why it’s important to always hire a licensed plumber.
Posted in Blogs, On the Job, Photos | Tags: Bathroom, Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, Home Repair, How-to, Marshfield, Plumbing, Scituate, Toilet
Posted by: C.J. | October 24, 2011
Maintaining Your Boiler
We spent some time on Monday servicing a boiler that we installed in a customer’s home back in 2003. A boiler, like your water heater, is something that you really don’t think about until it stops working. However, with a little bit of annual maintenance, your boiler should last two to three DECADES.
We installed this boiler about eight years ago.
This boiler is about eight years old, and still running strong. On this job, we replaced the safety control switch. To ensure the boiler continues to function properly, we also examined all of its systems to make sure the other parts were in good shape, which they were.
Annual service will help your boiler function for 20 to 30 years.
Proper maintenance on a boiler is very important because it can be a big investment to replace one. In fact, it can run between $2,000 and $5,000, or more! However, you should make sure the person you hire is a licensed plumber. That’s because they are very complicated systems.
At C.J. Plumbing, we specialize in hot water and steam boilers, and have been installing and servicing them for more than 25 years. There are many steps along the way where someone who is less experienced or not licensed can make a mistake.
A look behind the panel of a boiler.
Also, by having an annual inspection of your boiler, you’ll be able to identify and repair any problems that arise. This will keep your boiler running at maximum efficiency, which will ultimately save you money in the long run.
Posted in Blogs, On the Job, Photos, Uncategorized | Tags: Annual Maintenence, Boiler, Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, Heating, Marshfield, Plumbing, Repair, Scituate
Posted by: C.J. | October 24, 2011
How old is my water heater?
There are many things in your home that it is important to keep track of the age and use of. Some are easy to remember (like getting the oil changed in your car or truck), but others may not be top of mind. Chief among these is your home’s water heater.
If your water heater was installed before you moved into your home, or if you just forgot to make note of the date, this video will help you determine when it was manufactured.
This is important because it will help you ensure the water heater is being properly maintained, and it will help determine when it may stop working. That will allow you to take preventative action and have it replaced before you find your family without hot water while rushing around to get ready for work and school!
To begin with, locate the label which contains the serial number or model number.
On this water heater, the first four digits of the serial number are 9906. This means the water heater was made in June of 1999. Depending on the manufacturer, the date could also come at the end of the serial number or it could be part of the model number, so take a moment to look at all of them if it’s not readily obvious.
Make sure you know the date of your home's water heater. It will save you the headache of ice cold showers on a freezing cold day.
The average water heater will last about six years. In some cases, like the one above that we recently removed from a customer’s home, it will last a lot longer (12 years)! Sometimes, the water heater will fail within six years. However, in the majority of cases, it will still be covered by the manufacturer’s warranty.
Posted in Blogs, Q&A, Video | Tags: Bridgewater, Brockton, CJ Plumbing, Home Repair, hot water heater, How-to, Marshfield, Plumbing, Repair, Scituate
Posted by: C.J. | October 20, 2011
Plumbing 101: Permits
Today we are introducing a new feature on the CJPlumbingAndHeating.com blog called Plumbing 101. The answers to these questions will help you be able to tell if you are receiving the best service possible. If you have a question, leave it in the comments section below and maybe we will answer it in a future column!
Question: Who is responsible for making sure a permit is filed for my job? Why is a permit required?
Answer: Permits are very important, but can sometimes be confusing. It is the responsibility of the plumber to go to your community’s Building Department to file a permit. This is not something that you, the homeowner, can do because you must be a licensed plumber to file the permit. There is always a fee associated with the permit, but this fee will vary from community to community.
A permit is required to ensure an acceptable quality of workmanship. Ultimately, this means that the work which has been performed is up to code. Depending on the scope of work, multiple inspections may be required.
The permit and inspection process is designed to protect the homeowner in the event of damage or malfunction caused by shoddy workmanship. Insurance companies can even reject a claim for damage caused by non-permitted work, such as a fire caused by a water heater that was illegally and improperly installed.
The cost of the permit can double if the inspector discovers the work was started before the permit was filed. The inspector has the authority to make a plumber remove all work which was started before the permit was filed, even if the work meets and exceeds code. It is up to the inspector’s discretion.
After the plumber has filed the permit and the work has been performed, it is up to the plumber to schedule the inspection with the Building Department. The plumber is required to be present when the inspector examines his work.
If the inspector is unhappy with the quality of workmanship or does not feel the work is up to code, the inspector can require the plumber to make improvements before signing off on the job.
If the plumber you have hired to do a big job is unable to file for or produce a permit, that should be a red flag that he may not be properly licensed.
Other facts about permits:
A permit becomes invalid if the work is not started within 90 days of the permit being granted. However, once the work begins, the permit does not expire.
While a homeowner can not file for a permit, a homeowner can cancel a permit by submitting a letter to the building inspector.
In extreme cases, a home or building can actually be condemned until illegal work has been corrected.
Posted in Blogs, Q&A, Safety, Uncategorized | Tags: Bridgewater, Brockton, Construction, Home Repair, How-to, Marshfield, Plumbing, Remodel, Safety, Scituate
