plugged toilet
By Bob Baker Plumbing • • 0 Comments

Plumbing Mashed Potatoes

What do plumbing and mashed potatoes have in common?

Baker cleans impossible drains

This residential drain was so packed and plugged with every imaginable paper product it resembled mashed potatoes. With the use of the flex shaft we beat this mess into a puree and opened the drain line. In the video above you can first hand with our high powered camera. What we see here is 35′ of backed up piping and some poorly graded plumbing. These combine to make a difficult situation a bit more difficult but nothing that Baker Plumbing can’t handle.

Tools of the trade

I remember using flat steel push cables and other such ancient devices. Today’s plumbing are far more capable, effective and yes more expensive. In this particular job we used our compressed Airgun, AirGun link my personal favorite for clearing toilets, then we switched to our reliable Super Vee cable snake Drain snake link . Both of these proved ineffective due to the amount of debris in the drain line.

Bring in the Heavy Artillery

The next move was to bring in the big guns. Today we choose the Ridgid Flexshaft Ridgid Flexshaft link and the Ridgid mini-camera Best cameras made This combination proved to be the deciding factor. Using them as a team we worked our way through the debris ensuring our effective disruption of the blockage, as we went. This proved the undoing of the blockage and the return to service that this family desperately needed.

The Finale

While it took some doing we were successful in clearly the line of all the debris. With the use of the latest in plumbing tools and technology we are able to prove to the client and ourselves that the work was not only complete but lasting. Isn’t that the most important thing? Lasting work done by your local Calgary Plumber, Baker Plumbing.

Episode 1 Drain Gate

Episode 2

Episode 3

By Baker Plumbing and Heating | Calgary Plumbing • Tips and Tricks • • • 0 Comments

The Must Haves for Plumbing Tools

You may not run into plumbing issues very often, but when you do they can be a real hassle. Fortunately, most of them can actually be fixed yourself fairly easily. All it takes is a bit of knowledge and a few simple tools and you’ll soon be on your way to performing your own plumbing repairs and avoiding the potentially high costs of hiring a professional plumber.

Plunger
Arguably the most popular plumbing tool that most people have is the plunger. By using the application of force and vacuum, plungers can be used to help unclog all sorts of drains, including but not limited to toilets that most people may associate them with. Bear in mind that plungers can come in a variety of styles and sizes so you know what kind to purchase for different types of plumbing. What all plungers have in common is the general design: a rubber cup attached to what is usually a wooden shaft that serves as a handle. Sink plungers generally look like a ball that has simply been cut in half while toilet plungers are somewhat mushroom-shaped. They even make one now that looks like an accordion which is very effective

Pipe Wrench
While perhaps not as commonly owned, the pipe wrench is the classic plumbing tool that comes to mind for most people when they think of “plumbing”. Widely considered a must-have for any plumber, pipe wrenches allow gripping around objects of a wide variety of shapes and sizes thanks to its adjustable design. As the name suggests, they are usually used on pipes, whether securing or removing them.
Pliers – While normal pliers can be used for plumbing repairs and even be interchangeably used with wrenches in certain situations, plumbing pliers are usually highly adjustable and have an irregular clamp shape. Such a design allows for better gripping on rounded objects such as piping, naturally.

Drain Snake
Possibly the least known plumbing tool and maybe even the most intimidating, drain snakes are fairly straightforward to operate and can be very useful in solving what may appear to be major plumbing issues without enlisting professional assistance. Thanks to its rigid yet flexible design with an auger at the end, drain snakes can remove tougher clogs when plungers can’t get the job done. They can be pushed and navigated through piping with relative ease to otherwise hard-to-reach places. Like plungers, drain snakes can be useful in a variety of situations ranging from toilets to bath tub drains. While they tend to be the most expensive tool on this list, they can arguably also prove to be the best investment.

Teflon Tape or Ribbon Dope
Also called thread seal tape or plumber’s tape, teflon tape is used to secure pipe leakages. They are commonly applied on the pipe’s threading to provide an effective sealing surface when connecting piping together. Think of it as the duct tape of the plumbing world.

As you can see, investing in just a few tools and learning how to use them can save you on potential costs and headaches that may come with hiring a plumber. With a little practice, many common household plumbing mishaps can quickly and easily resolved on your own.

Of course there may come time when a plumbing issue becomes either too time consuming or too dangerous to fix on your own. In the event you do require a plumber’s services call us at 403-279-7554 or book online.