Tennessee Knoxville garbage disposal repair with plumber

Why Is My Garbage Disposal Not Working?

Why Is My Garbage Disposal Not Working?

Tennessee Knoxville garbage disposal repair with plumberA garbage disposal unit is usually a very sturdy device. It works brutally on the garbage and gets rid of a lot of trash that you would otherwise have to collect in a container and carry it out all the way to the front yard. When you have a sturdy device, it is not expected to malfunction or stop working. But given the kind of task it does, a garbage disposal unit may malfunction at times. When your garbage disposal unit doesn’t work, it is not always the fault of the system or the company that has manufactured it. Often, it is the nature of your use and what you have subjected the unit to which causes the problem.

There are many types of problems that you may come across with your garbage disposal. The device may simply not work, in which case there may be a fault somewhere. The device may just have jammed due to some erroneous use, in which case the jam will have to be attended to. Long periods of activity and not attending to its maintenance are usually the two most common causes of garbage disposal not working.

First, you should never try and check out the garbage disposal unit yourself, not unless you are trained. You should always hire a plumber, one who is trained at fixing such units. Don’t put in your hand or try anything experimental to know more about the problem. Your garbage disposal unit may just have jammed due to periods of use and owing to the buildup of sediments. Garbage disposal units can crush a lot of stuff but that doesn’t mean you can crush anything down the unit. Glass, hair, grease, rags and similar materials that are hard to get rid of and can jam the unit are the most common causes of a malfunctioning garbage disposal system.

The entire unit going kaput is unlikely. What you should do is turn off the system and call in a technician. A technician will attend to the device, inspect it, find the problem and offer you a solution. It usually doesn’t happen that a garbage disposal unit is beyond salvaging or repairing but if that happens, then you have to replace it with a new one or another old one.

You should try and use a garbage disposal unit according to the best practices. That will avert almost all potential problems.

Green Plumbing in Knoxville

How to Lower Energy Consumption in Your Home

How to Lower Energy Consumption in Your Home

Green Plumbing in KnoxvilleWhen it comes to the most important social topics affecting our society, energy conservation is at the top of the list. The fact is that as a homeowner you have the ability to make small changes that can add up to make a big difference in the amount of overall energy usage. Reducing your energy use in your home can be done easily by focusing on your water heater. There are numerous simple ways that you can reduce the amount of energy your water heater consumes.

Here are a few simple steps that you can follow to decrease the energy usage of your water heater:

Turn Down the Thermostat

Simply dialing down the thermostat on your water heater has the ability to make a huge difference. Most water heaters are set at 140 degrees, but the fact is that your water heater can actually be set at about 20 degrees lower. This will still offer your home hot water that is comfortable and ideal. When you lower the temperature of your water heater you also lower the amount of energy that it uses. It is possible to save almost $60.00 every year by turning down the thermostat on your water heater.

Reduce Water Flow

If you simply make the effort to reduce the water flow of your facets and showers by 2.5 gallons per minute, you have the ability to cut down on your energy consumption by a large amount. This can be done by using an aerator to add air into the flow of water that allows you to keep the same temperature and water pressure without the same amount of actual water usage. Making this minor change will help you to reduce your water bills by almost half and this investment in your shower heads and faucets will pay off over time.

Look at the Exterior of Your Water Heater

It is a good idea to also take a look at the exterior of your water heater. Touch your water heater lightly to see if your water heater is hot to the touch. If your water heater is hot to the touch, you might have heat escaping through the exterior, which leads to your water heater having to continually reheat water as it cools. Investing in water heater insulation allows you to get rid of this problem and cut down on your energy consumption as a result.