Thursday, February 11, 2016

3 Basic Facts of Frozen Pipes

Baby, It’s Cold Outside!

If it’s cold enough to freeze outside, your plumbing is vulnerable. As a Middle Tennessee homeowner, it’s important to know what to do to protect your plumbing. At Steve Mull Plumbing, we care about the safety and comfort of your family. Once you learn the basics, preventing your pipes from damage that can be caused by extreme winter weather is generally a matter of implementing a few new habits. Check out these 3 Basic Facts of Frozen Pipes below, and remember, should you experience winter plumbing issues, Steve Mull Plumbing is here for you.

3 Basic Facts of Frozen Pipes

Frozen water expands.

That’s why you so often see pipes that burst when the temperatures drop, causing you incredible inconvenience and repair costs. Open cabinet doors beneath sinks to allow warmer room air to reach plumbing behind them. Also, always Insulate or bury pipes in non-heated areas of your home.

Running water requires a much lower temperature to freeze.

Always leave your taps throughout the house open slightly, allowing a slow trickle to run during times of extreme temperatures - especially overnight.

Using a propane torch to unthaw frozen pipes often melts soldered joints as well.

Talk about a mess! Never attempt to use anything stronger than a hair dryer to help assist your frozen plumbing. Better yet, call a reliable plumbing professional.

24-7 Emergency Service

Plumbing issues are never convenient, especially frozen pipes. But at Steve Mull Plumbing, we are available for all of your plumbing emergencies around the clock, 24-7. Need speedy professional assistance with your frozen or bursting pipes? Just pick up the phone. We’ll be right over. Remember, you can count on Steve Mull Plumbing for all of your professional plumbing and contracting needs. Call anytime at (615) 449-5019. We look forward to serving you!

Middle Tennessee's Leading Commercial and Residential Plumbing Contractor!

STEVE MULL PLUMBING | 302 S. Maple St, Lebanon, TN | 615-449-5019

Thursday, January 21, 2016

Backflow Prevention Protects Your Family from Contaminated Water

Mild Tennessee Winters

Here in Middle Tennessee, our winters tend to be much milder than our neighbors in more northern states. We seldom experience the season long, deep freeze typical of those areas. Occasional ustings of snow tend to disappear with the morning sun. Instead of sitting around in stacked snowbanks, the moisture we experience from winter storms tends to melt into the earth, almost at once.

Saturation and Flooding

This can quickly cause the ground to become oversaturated, sometimes leading to flooded drains. Unfortunately, this opens the door to backflow, a serious water contamination issue. The good news is that Steve Mull Plumbing specializes in backflow prevention for your water supply.

Backflow Prevention Installations

During times of extreme saturation and flooding, flow reversal can cause contaminated water to be delivered through your water supply. Backflow prevention installations are a great way to eliminate the risk of flow reversal. As for that dangerous, contaminated water delivered to your family for drinking and bathing? With the installation of backflow prevention in your water supply, you - and they - are safe!

Contact Steve Mull Plumbing

Interested in learning more about having backflow prevention installed to protect your family? Call Steve Mull Plumbing today! They are available for all of your plumbing emergencies around the clock, 24-7. Need speedy professional assistance with your frozen or bursting pipes? Just pick up the phone. They’ll be right over. Remember, you can count on Steve Mull Plumbing for all of your professional plumbing and contracting needs. Call anytime at (615) 449-5019.

Middle Tennessee's Leading Commercial and Residential Plumbing Contractor!

STEVE MULL PLUMBING | 302 S. Maple St, Lebanon, TN | 615-449-5019

Wednesday, January 13, 2016

The Royal Works: Tales of Medieval Plumbing

The Garderobe

The people of the Medieval era did not have the luxury of plumbing as we know it. They relied primarily on chamber pots and outhouses. Those of great wealth and nobility lived in large, opulent manors or castles. In these types of residences, the outhouse was elevated to something called the “Garderobe." The Garderobe, which translates as “wardrobe” in french, was a rather fancy potty chamber. In case you were wondering where the name came from, we have a quaint little piece of trivia for you! Royal residents took to the practice of storing clothing, and later dressing in them, as the lingering smell within the chamber helped deter fleas, moths, and other textile loving insects from devouring their fine garments. Gives a whole new meaning to the words “royal chamber” doesn’t it?

Moat Magic

Ever dream of living in a castle? You’ll probably want to think twice. The reality was far less romantic than the fantasy we’ve come to imagine. The moat surrounding medieval era castles did double duty. First, it served as a line of defense against hostile intruders. Second, the moat also provided a handy sewer for castle occupants. It’s not hard to imagine how this served to fortify the success of the moats defensive function as well.

Grimacing Gargoyles (no wonder!)

The Garderobes we discussed earlier were built within the castle walls, or extended above the moat. Yep - for exactly the reason you’re thinking. A “sluice”, which is basically a gated water slide, whisked the royal waste away into the moat. Many castles in the day chose to erect eerily grimacing gargoyles on the castle exterior. Ever notice a gargoyle functioning as a water fountain? Castle gargoyles were often fed by the sluice leading from the Garderobes, dispensing human wastes into the moat through their gaping concrete mouths.

Need help with medieval plumbing in your home?

Just call Steve Mull Plumbing! We offer around the clock, clock, 24-7 service for all of your plumbing emergencies. No job is too big or small, from updating ancient plumbing systems to fixing frozen pipes. Just pick up the phone, and one of our experienced plumbing technicians will be right over. Count on Steve Mull Plumbing for all of your plumbing and contracting needs. Call anytime at (615) 449-5019. We look forward to serving you!

Middle Tennessee's Leading Commercial and Residential Plumbing Contractor!

STEVE MULL PLUMBING | 302 S. Maple St, Lebanon, TN | 615-449-5019

Thursday, December 17, 2015

3 Easy Ways to Prevent Frozen Pipes

Your Pipes At Risk

It’s getting colder every day, and you know what that means for your pipes. It’s time to be on the lookout for their number one winter enemy: those cruel cold snaps. When the temperatures plunge below freezing, your pipes are at risk.

A Very Bad Morning

Frozen water in your pipes is a pretty inconvenient thing to wake up to in the morning. And just to up the ante a little more, how about those frozen pipes that burst at the seams as the freezing water expands within them? Facing the costs of plumbing cleanup, repairs and replacement costs will definitely make for a pretty bad morning. Especially when you consider that their bursting was most likely preventable.

Protect Your Pipes

Most homeowners are aware of the big three basics when it comes to protecting your pipes from the cold. But we thought it might be a good idea to remind you. After all, better safe than sorry!

3 Easy Ways to Prevent Frozen Pipes

1) RUN A COLD WATER DRIP

In times of extremely low temperatures, turn on your faucets to allow a slight trickle of cold water to run through the pipes. The movement of the water through the pipes will help prevent them from freezing.

2) OPEN CABINET DOORS

Allowing pipes to be exposed to warmer air in the room will help keep the metal and the water within from dropping to temperatures below freezing.

3) DO NOT TURN THE THERMOSTAT DOWN OVER NIGHT or WHILE AWAY

Many people have developed the discipline of setting their thermostats to a lower temperature overnight or while away from home for an extended period of time to save on high winter heating costs. If this is you, be sure to discontinue this practice during times of extreme cold, as it will cause your pipes to be more vulnerable to freezing. As a general rule of thumb, set your thermostat no lower than 55° F during extreme cold waves.

24-7 Emergency Service

Middle Tennessee's Leading Commercial and Residential Plumbing Contractor!

STEVE MULL PLUMBING | 302 S. Maple St, Lebanon, TN | 615-449-5019

Thursday, December 3, 2015

We Won Best Plumber of Wilson County!

The Best

Plumbing problems are the worst...unless you’ve got the best! The best plumber, that is. After all, when you have a problem with your plumbing, you can’t afford to wait. You also can’t afford to call a plumber without the professional training and expertise you need to fix your problem quickly and correctly. At Steve Mull Plumbing, we take great pride in our team of expert plumbing technicians. We think they’re the best around. It’s humbling but exciting to know our customers agree!

Ongoing Training

Our goal is to provide you with quality, dependable service at an affordable price, every time. We want you to know you can count on us for all your professional plumbing and contracting needs. That’s why we make it a priority to provide extensive and ongoing training for our team, in order to stay current with ever-changing plumbing codes and technology.

24-7 Emergency Service

Plumbing issues are never convenient. Frozen pipes, mysterious leaks, non-flushing toilets, and especially, clogged sewer lines, are no fun to have to deal with. But at Steve Mull Plumbing, we are available for all of your plumbing emergencies around the clock, 24-7. Call any time - and then relax. Just leave the rest to us!

We Appreciate You!

Knowing you trust and rely upon us means a lot. We are thankful to have served so many wonderful customers over our more than 30 years in business. With the support of you and our outstanding team, we hope to enjoy many, many more serving the good people of Wilson County and Middle Tennessee.

Contact Steve Mull Plumbing

For all of your professional plumbing and contracting needs, give us a call at Steve Mull Plumbing at (615) 449-5019. We look forward to serving you!

Middle Tennessee's Leading Commercial and Residential Plumbing Contractor!

STEVE MULL PLUMBING | 302 S. Maple St, Lebanon, TN | 615-449-5019