We’ve all been there. Sunday afternoon, relaxing in front of the telly when wifey screams from bathroom- yup, it’s flooded. When you have some water issues in your home, you have two options:
- To hire a contractor who will ultimately come to do the repairs and;
- Fix it yourself.
The benefit of the first option is that a person will come who has expertise and knowledge in this field. However, the disadvantage of this process is that it will lead to additional charges for something that’s not necessarily the end of the world and you could probably do it yourself. Therefore, the DIY technique will play a very important role in ensuring that costs are reduced. To do these procedures yourself, it would be good to have prior experience with water systems. If you don’t have this experience, you should use quality sources of information such as the internet and and maybe some manuals. If you choose to put on your handyman belt you will definitely need a number of things to help you in this task. This article focuses on a number of things that you should have when repairing your water system. Please note that even with these equipment, you still need a number of skills to ensure that you don’t mess everything up.
Hoses
Hoses are basically conduit items that are used in water systems. There are a number of types of hoses: cryogenic hoses, flexible metal hoses, polyurethane hose and stainless hoses among others. The use of these hoses is mainly in joints where pipes cannot bend.
Rubber gasket
In plumbing a rubber gasket is a very important material. Rubber gasket basically is used for joining various parts of the piping system. When doing DIY plumbing procedures, you should ensure that you have a high quality rubber gasket in place to ensure that your joining is made perfect. You should buy high quality rubber gasket of various lengths depending on your current needs. Rubber gaskets usually come in different colors and the choice lies to you as you conduct the repairs.
Ball Valves
A valve is a very important piece of equipment that you should always have for your DIY plumbing. It is simply a valve with a spherical disc. The unit allows water to flow in a certain direction without the ability of flowing back to the source. When it malfunctions, you should ensure that you are able to repair or replace it. There are five main types of ball valves which have different us: single body, split body, three piece body, top entry and welded.
Silicone
When dealing with plumbing issues, gaps, joints and crevices are very common. This is simply because various types of pipes cannot be folded. Thus, gaps are very common in them when it comes to the joining. Therefore, in this case, silicone is very important as it ensures that the gaps are properly sealed. Silicone is usually applied to O-rings in brass taps and valves which prevent the lime from sticking to the metal.
Duct tape
A duct tape is also a very important piece of requirement that one should have when considering DIY techniques for plumbing. A duct tape is simply an adhesive product that is used in joining two parts. Basically, in plumbing, since water is directly involved, it is important to ensure that the joining product used is reliable and durable. There are a number of reasons why the duct tape should be used in plumbing. Some of these are: durability, water resistance, strength and availability. This is simply because when there is a water problem, all you need is to simply cover the area with the duct tape and prevent the water from flowing. This is a temporary measure.
Therefore, when you decide to go the DIY way, you need to ensure that you have the above pieces of equipment. However, they are not enough. You should always take your time to learn more about the required procedures. It is also important to ensure that you buy from high quality suppliers.
I am a property development student at UTS . I'm an aspiring blogger and I mostly write articles about home improvement, renovation and property market. In my free time I enjoy spending time with friends, reading and hiking.
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Neil Steggall, Partner at Wardour Capital Partners
Hi Patrick, Your article feeds into an important factor of todays life which is basically "its someone else's problem or throw it away". Now if a plumbing issue occurs whilst I'm at work, on a cost benefit basis, I will call a plumber, however if I notice a dripping tap or a poor seal on a weekend I now fix it myself. Two reasons, the satisfaction and importantly we have to stop the throw away, change it mentality of the late 20c. Thanks for a thought provoking article! Neil.
Roland Hanekroot, Founder at New Perspectives Business Coaching
Hi Patrick, what a cool idea to make sure you have these things around at home as a minimum... I shall go out to Bunnings immediately... or rather the local family owned hardware store