FAQS

There can be a variety of things that causes pipe corrosion. Nearly all cases are linked to the quality of water, including:

• Water temperature
• Water pressure
• Speed of the water in the pipes
• pH levels in the water
• Oxygen levels in the water
• Miscellaneous chemicals in the water

If you suspect that there is a leak somewhere in your home, there’s an easy way you can check. Head outside to your water meter and write down the level. Tell your household not to use the water for up to three hours, then go back and check the meter again (we recommend writing down the level right before bed and then again first thing in the morning).

If there has been a change to the level at all, you most likely have a leak. At this point, you need a plumber, so call Bison Plumbing to have it checked immediately!

Absolutely! Leaks are only going to get worse over time. Water damage ruins so much in our homes, leaks have the potential to cause serious damage. Leak repairs offer a number of benefits, including:

• Eliminating loss of water
• Minimizing potential risks due to leaks
• Less likely to need emergency repairs
• Reducing water treatment and pressurization

Of course! Water leaking out of your pipes will eventually cause enough corrosion that even the smallest of leaks will grow and cause horrible damage to your home. Only the best plumber can spot these leaks and fix them before your beloved home falls victim to leaks.

Many faucets, new or old, can be cleaned with a fresh, damp cloth and disinfected with an FDA-approved solution (check the back of the solution you use to see if it can be used on metals). If you installed new faucets, you can check if the manufacturer has any cleaning tips for tougher stains. You will also want to avoid using rough cleaning materials, like green scour pads, as these can scratch surfaces and the metal finish of your faucet.

Even the smallest little drop coming form the faucet isn’t something to ignore. In fact, it takes over 15,000 drops to equal a single gallon. Let’s put it this way… If you have a faucet leaking 10 times per minute, that’s well over 14,000 drips per day, or nearly 350 gallons per year from a single faucet. Multiply that by three faucets and it’s over 1,000 gallons!

If the faucet is reparable and the finish is salvageable, then faucet repair is the way to go. However, if your faucet is too badly corroded or too old to find any parts, replacing the faucet is the way to go (and mostly cheaper).

One of the most common forms of pipe corrosion are corroded O-rings, gaskets, valve seats, or O-rings that cause leaky faucets. Together, these are what hold back water until you open the faucet. So, if one of these is corroded, you have an annoying, dripping faucet on your hands!

To stop a leaky faucet on your own, shut the water off and open the faucet to drain the water. Next, use a screw driver to remove the faucet handle. If it has a nut holding the internal parts in place, see if it’s loose. This might be the issue causing the faucet to leak! If it still leaks, remove the nut and remove the faucet (only attempt this if you know how to reassemble the faucet). Don’t take apart the cartridge inside if there is one.

From here, you should inspect all components of your faucet. You should see a variety of materials: O-rings, washers, springs, etc. Figure out what you need to replace. If you cannot figure out what the issue is, and whether your local hardware store cannot help you solve it, call Bison Plumbing for our local plumbing services to get it fixed soon!

You should avoid putting anything down the toilet other than what’s supposed to go down there. Avoid things like:

• Paper products other than toilet paper including facial tissues, paper towels, baby wipes, and other paper-based products.
• Toiletries (Q-tips, cotton balls, dental floss, etc.)
• Sanitary products or diapers
• Any kind of food or food solids
• Plastic
• Hair
• Cat litter
• & Everything your kids can put down the toilet!

One example might be that your toilet might be leaking without you noticing. So, here’s how to tell… put a couple drops of red food coloring into the toilet tank and avoid using the toilet for at least a half-hour. Come back and check if any of the food coloring leaked into the bowl. If it has, call Bison Plumbing for toilet repair as soon as you can!

This can be because of a number of different occurrences:

• Inside of the tank of your toilet, there is a softball-sized ball floating at the top, also called the float. It indicates how high the toilet will fill after it flushes. If the float is broken or cracked, water will travel inside and the float won’t be able to sit on the water. The toilet will overfill and water will leak into the overflow tube, allowing a cycle of filling and draining that will cause your water bill to skyrocket.
• Repairing the float involves bending the metal arm it is attached to so the float rests on the water’s surface. With new toilets, floats generally ride up and down in a plastic tube. While float arms are generally outdated in newer toilet tanks, the ball within the plastic tube can get stuck on debris and will need to be moved around to remove the obstacle.
• If your float arm is not the issue, then there might be something wrong with the chain connected to the handle. If the chain is long, it might get trapped under the flap and allow water to travel through. If the chain is short, it may not allow the flap to seal effectively. You may need to shorten an elongated chain or replace it entirely.
• If none of the above is what is causing the issue, you may have a leak in the flapper valve. Flapper valves are located at the bottom of the tank and are generally unchallenging to replace.

Sink backups connected to your dishwasher can generally mean that there is food backed up in your sink disposal. Your dishwasher drain and sink disposal are connected underneath; so, when one clogs, so does the other.

To refrain from such backups happening, make sure the sink disposal is clear of food particles before using the dishwasher. Do this by running cold water for 15 - 20 seconds with the disposal on. One trick is to run the disposal with ice cubes and cold water to help the disposal catch any pesky particles and send them down the drain.

If the problem persists, plug your sink, fill it with cold water and ice cubes, run the disposal, and unplug the sink. The constant flow from the water should help force out whatever is backed up. If this still doesn’t work, give Bison a call! Sink backups are just another common issue we can handle!

There are plenty of solid foods that should never go down your disposal. Plus, drain cleaners can only do so much when there is something obstructing the disposal. You should avoid putting down:

• Coffee grounds
• Tea leaves
• Cooked rice or pasta
• Vegetable skins (potato, onion, carrot, squash, etc.)
• Bone fragments
• Eggshells
• Banana peels
• Animal fat, grease, or oil
• Popcorn kernels
• Fruit pits and seeds
• Stringy vegetables like celery or asparagus

Wait! Don’t waste your money just yet. There are some things that cause interruptions in your sink disposal that mean you just need some quick drain repairs to get it fixed.

First, turn off the disposal, unplug it from the power, and see if something is jamming it. You may have accidentally sent something plastic or metal down there without your knowledge. If there isn’t anything jamming it, plug the disposal back in and try a manual reset. Finally, check the breaker switch in your breaker box. If nothing works, then call us at Bison!

The horsepower for a sump pump is determined by the drainage connected to the sump, the depth of the surrounding groundwater, the depth of the basement, and a few other factors (most homes use a 1/3 HP pump).

Don’t believe everything you read or hear! When tankless water heaters were first installed several decades ago, their mediocre technology and poorly tested materials kept making it difficult for homeowners to save a buck. Since then, due to the advancements in plumbing technologies, tankless water heaters are very long-lasting (up to 20 years). This is much longer than traditional tank water heaters!

An overflowing toilet is usually caused by a leak in your tank’s fill valve or deterioration of the shaft or wire that sets the fill level. Whatever the cause, call Bison for the solution!

Most likely your water lines are not properly secured, meaning there are some spots where they rub up against your floor joists. If you call Bison we can make sure your pipes are properly secured and install pipe hangers between your pipes and the joists to eliminate the noises.

Sump pumps are almost always reliable, except when there is a power outage. During a storm when pumps are the most used, a power outage will make your pump unusable. Consider a battery backup or a standby generator. These emergency systems will kick in a few moments after a power outage, making a storm less of a worry for you going forward.

If you live around water, or your home has a significant amount of water flowing toward it during a storm, you will definitely need to have a sump pump. Sump pumps will prevent any rooms or areas in the home from being damaged during a storm or in places where water is in excess.

Tankless water heaters are unlike traditional water heaters in a lot of ways. One of the best benefits of this type of water heater is that they never run out of hot water. While traditional tank heaters have a limited capacity (usually up to 60 gallons), tankless water heaters heat water as you need it, meaning you never have to wait for water to heat back up.

Yes, there are. Every home is built differently. So, to get a rough estimate of size you need (how many gallons per minute you use), think about how much water you use on a daily basis. How long does your family take their showers? Do you use the dishwasher or washing machine often, or even at the same time? Call Bison so we can determine the amount of water your household uses. Then, we can install a tankless water heater that meets the needs of your household.

The short answer: yes, you can. While the technology of tankless water heaters are much more advanced than traditional tanks, they are still affected by hard water and buildup. If your home uses hard water, you should have a water softening treatment regardless of what kind of water heater you have installed in your home.

Ultimately, the best way to fix a relief valve leak is to call Bison to replace it! This is because the high pressure coming from your water heater can cause your relief valve to leak. There are two main reasons for this:

• Water pressure from the main water line is high.
• Water expansion due to heat causing pressure buildup.

Due to the dropping temperatures outside, and in the ground, water coming into your home during the winter is going to be very cold. This makes hot water in your tank lose more heat when it mixes with the incoming cold water. In addition, you may have sediment buildup in your tank that might inhibit the performance of your water heater.

Generally, tankless water heaters work for most homes. Only a handful of cases will deem tankless water heaters unreliable (ask our local plumbers here at Bison), and most installations will work in homes where traditional tank heaters are more costly or unreliable. Plus, tankless water heaters are much smaller than tank ones (most brands being around the size of a briefcase). They also require about 120V, 60Hz, and three amps of power (generally found in most homes).

A standard gas tank water heater is going to last you a little over 10 years. Electrical tank water heaters last a little longer — anywhere from 10 to 15 year lifespans. As stated above tankless water heaters will last you even longer than that — up to 20 years (and maybe a few more depending on its quality)! If your land uses hard water, these lifespans might alter a bit. Due to the excess sediment buildup, you may not be able to keep your water heater as long as those connected to conventional water lines.

That being said, think about having your water heater replaced if you notice any of the following signs:

• Rust-colored water
• Lack of hot water or considerably long wait times
• Flooding or moisture around the heater

Rancid water is caused by combinations of sulfur, hydrogen, and bacteria that builds up over time. Bacteria and sulfur are naturally present in water appliances regardless, and over time, these elements make you sick. When your magnesium anode rod in the water heater tank reacts with the bacteria and sulfur, it makes enough hydrogen to produce an odor. There are a lot of things to remedy this situation. From replacing the magnesium anode rod to purifying the water in your water heater, our Bison plumbers can solve this problem in no time!