Showing posts with label fix a leak. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fix a leak. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Important Facts to Consider during Fix a Leak Week!



Did you know that if you use less water for cleaning you’ll save energy and protect the environment?

Drops need Energy! Be aware!

To understand how water and energy work together, it’s important to ask this question: Have you ever picked up a gallon of water or milk from the fridge? It’s a bit heavy, right? The same happens when a lot of energy is used to carry every gallon of water you use from a drinking water source to a treatment plant that makes it safe to drink.

After water leaves the treatment plant, more energy is needed to carry it through water pipes to your house. Imagine the journey it has taken—and just how tired you would be after carrying that much water all day! Exhausting, right?

When you open the faucet to get “hot water”, it takes energy to warm it up before it comes out of your faucet. The energy it takes to treat and deliver the water that just 10 houses use in a year could power your home’s refrigerator for more than two years! 

Showering Tips, do’s & don’ts!

The shower is a place where we can clean up, cool off, wake up, or relax after a long day. But it’s also a place where we waste a lot of water and energy! Please consider these  facts to save water and energy:
  • The average shower lasts eight minutes. Since a standard showerhead has a water flow of 2.2 gallons per minute, each shower uses 18 gallons of water!
  • If water drips from the faucet after you turn it off, it could be a leak. Call an  Expert Plumbing company such as Benjaming Franklin Pulmbing! 
  • One of the best places to save both water and energy at home is in your shower.
  • Make sure to turn off the faucet all the way after you  take a shower.
  • WaterSense has a special label for showerheads that use less water but still provide a great spray of water when you shower. Try it WaterSense labeled showerhead.
  • Every shower, you’ll save enough electricity to power a 60-watt light bulb for eight hours.
  • Every year, you’ll save the amount of water it takes to wash more than 70 loads of laundry.
  • Ever y Drop Counts! Don’t leave the water on when you brush your teeth.
  • Follow U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program with some tips for how you and your family can “shower better.”
Important Facts you might not know!

·     Water is also used to cool the power plants that generate the electricity we use every day. So, every time your television, computer, or lights use energy, water is being used up too. In fact, it takes 3,000 to 6,000 gallons of water to power one light bulb left on 12 hours a day for a year. Turn out the lights and save both water and energy!

  • WaterSense labeled showerheads use less water but still have power. Estimate how much water they save by recalculating numbers 6 through 9 above using a shower flow of 2.0 gallons per minute. Check out how much water you can save by looking for WaterSense when shopping for a showerhead.

  • There are more than 300 million people in the United States. If each person reduced his or her shower time by one minute, we could save a combined 165 billion gallons each year!

  • Energy we use at home is measured in something called kilowatt hours, or kWh. On average, your home’s television uses 26 kWh of electricity per month. If your family uses WaterSense labeled showerheads, you save more than 370 kWh of electricity per year. With the energy, you’re saving, you could watch 14 months of television!

  • Across the United States, we use more than one trillion gallons of water each year just for showering. Never fear! You and your family can still save water and energy. 
    Leaks account for approximately 1 trillion gallons of water wasted in the United States each year. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) WaterSense, program promotes its annual Fix a Leak Week as part of its efforts to encourage Americans to use water efficiently. The average home can waste more than 10,000 gallons of water per year-more than enough to fill a backyard swimming pool. By finding and fixing running toilets, leaky faucets, and dripping showerheads, a family can save as much as 10 percent on its utility bills and save water for future generations.

     If you've already determined, you have leaks and you have found that DIY is not enough for water and energy savings solutions it might be time to replace your leaking fixtures as well as having a plumbing fixture evaluation. If you consult with a plumbing professional, and look for the WaterSense label when considering a new toilet, faucet, or showerhead, you could increase your home's water efficiency.


Remember, Leaks Can Run, but They Can't Hide
Save The Date!!! Fix a Leak Week Event - March 20 through 26, 2017


    

    Our professionals team and our highly skilled plumbers are professionally trained and have the skills, tools, and experience to exceed your expectations. For your Treasure Coast and North Palm Beach emergency plumbing need contact our emergency plumbers, at Benjamin Franklin Plumbing.

     We are available 24 hours, 7 days a week to solve all your plumbing issues at your convenience. you can also visit us online at: http://www.benfranklinplumber.com/wp/maintenance-service-plans/ for all your plumbing needs.


ST. LUCIE (772) 236-6080
PALM BEACH(561) 316-9007
INDIAN RIVER (772) 617-0370

References

WaterSense: Meets EPA Critera WaterSense An EPA Partnership Program. (2008, Mayo 08). WaterSense: Meets EPA Critera WaterSense An EPA Partnership Program. Retrieved from https://www3.epa.gov/watersense/our_water/learn_more.html#tabs-6


Monday, February 13, 2017

The Benjamin Franklin Plumbing Team from Florida’s Treasure Coast is Ready for the “Fix a Leak” Week Event!


Do you know what the "Fix a Leak Week project" is? 

It’s an annual event hosted by the EPA to chase down household leaks. This project will take place March 20 through 26, 2017, and it’s the ideal opportunity to hunt down the drips inside and outside your home. Household leaks can waste more than 1 trillion gallons of water annually nationwide, so be prepare to chase those leaks at home and save valuable water and money all year long.

The main purpose of this event is to teach you and your family how to find and fix household leaks. What you can expect from this event? From WaterSense demonstrations, family fun runs to leak detection contests and insights about how to be handy around the house when addressing these issues.

There are common types of leaks found in the home, such as worn toilet flappers, dripping faucets, and other leaking valves. These types of leaks are often easily correctable, requiring only a few tools and hardware that can pay for themselves in water savings.

First, you need to determine whether you're wasting water, the next step will be identifying the source of the leak. Here are some recommendations to follow carefully to identify if your home is addressing any leaks.
  • Check your water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter changes at all, you probably have a leak.
  • Look at your water usage periodically, such as January or February months. If a family of four exceeds 12,000 gallons per month, there are serious leaks.
  • Add some drops of food coloring in the toilet tank, if any color shows up in the bowl after 10 minutes, you have a leak.
  • Examine faucet gaskets and pipe fittings for any water on the outside of the pipe to check for surface leaks.
  • The Regional Water Providers Consortium has a video on detecting household leaks that you may find helpful.
Toilets 
Flappers are inexpensive rubber parts that can build up minerals or decay over time, and that is one of the most common reason toilets will leak. Replacing them can be a quick and easy fix for your water woes. To fix this leak, consult your local hardware store, or licensed plumber.

Bring the old flapper to the hardware store for comparison to make sure you buy a new flapper that fits your toilet model. You can also check the owner's manual, if you have it, or the manufacturer's website for the appropriate replacement part number for the flapper.


Faucet

Old and worn faucet washers and gaskets frequently cause leaks in faucets. Many tutorials are available online for how to fix a wide variety of faucets. Here are a couple of examples:

  • The Do-It-Yourself Network has a handy reference on faucet repairs
  •  YouTube has numerous video tutorials on how to fix a dripping faucet 
Showerheads
Some leaky showerheads can be fixed by making sure there is a tight connection between the showerhead and the pipe stem and by using pipe tape to secure it. Pipe tape, also called Teflon tape, is available at most hardware stores, is easy to apply, and can help tame unruly leaks. For more complicated valve leaks in showers that drip when not in use, contact an experienced handyperson or licensed plumber.
     Outdoors
     If you have an in–ground irrigation system, check it each spring before use to make sure it wasn’t damaged. Or hire an irrigation professional certified to inspect it for you. They will not only help you detect and correct leaks in the system, but also maximize its efficiency.

     Finally, check your garden hose for leaks at its connection to the spigot. If it leaks while you run your hose, replace the nylon or rubber hose washer, and ensure a tight connection to the spigot using pipe tape and a wrench.

     Have you done all that you can to try to eliminate leaks from your home but still can't nip that drip in the bud?

     If you've already determined you have leaks and you find these step-by-step solutions aren't enough to stop them, it might be time to replace your leaking fixtures. If you consult with a plumbing professional, and look for the WaterSense label when considering a new toilet, faucet, or showerhead, you could increase your home's water efficiency.


     Our professional team and our highly skilled plumbers are expertly trained and experienced to exceed your expectations. For your Treasure Coast and North Palm Beach emergency plumbing needs contact our emergency plumbers, Benjamin Franklin Plumbing. 


   We are available 24 hours, 7 days a week to solve all your plumbing issues at your convenience. you can also visit us online at: http://www.benfranklinplumber.com/wp/leakdetections   for all your plumbing needs.


ST. LUCIE (772) 236-6080
PALM BEACH(561) 316-9007
INDIAN RIVER (772) 617-0370