Do you know all of these interesting plumbing facts?
If you have a leaky faucet that drips twice per minute, you’ll waste over a gallon of water in a week.
The flushing toilet was invented by John Harrington in 1596, which is where we get the nickname “the John.” We also call the toilet “the crapper” because of Thomas Crapper, who widely increased the popularity of it.
Ever hear the myth that when you flush a toilet in the Southern Hemisphere, the water flows the opposite direction? It’s not true. It’s possible for the water to flow either direction in either hemisphere.
The word “plumber” comes from the Latin word “plumbum,” which means “lead.”
There are two different types of plungers – a toilet plunger and a sink/shower plunger. Toilet plungers narrow at the bottom to fit into the toilet while sink/shower plungers are flat.
In 1939, Al Moen invented the single-handle faucet that can control hot and cold water in just one turn.
Insulating your home’s pipes can reduce the amount of heat lost as your water travels from your heater to your faucet. You’ll run less water waiting for it to warm up and save money on your utility bills.

Before you go on a trip, make sure you do these things to keep your home safe:
Shut Down Your Hot Water Heater
If you have a traditional tank water heater that runs on electricity or natural gas, it’s likely to be among the highest energy consuming appliances in your home. But you might not realize this if you’ve never shut your water heater down for a week, and come home to significantly lower utility bills.
As long as there’s no risk of freezing, there’s nothing wrong with shutting off your water heater for a few days. You can either use the main shutoff handle on your water heater itself, or shut it off at your main circuit panel if that’s more accessible. Some water heaters have a “vacation” setting on the temperature control dial. Alternatively, you can just turn the temperature dial to its lowest setting.
If you’re making this part of your vacation routine for the first time, leave yourself a note to turn the power back on as soon as you get home. It will take a little while to heat up a full tank of cool water.
Shut Off Your Water Supply
When it comes to home repair headaches, broken plumbing pipes are especially costly because of the huge mess they create. If you’re not home to notice the deluge and take action, you might suffer catastrophic property damage. But if you completely shut off the water supply to your home, you can prevent plumbing-related water damage altogether.
If you don’t know exactly where your main shut-off valve is, you should locate it today. Because even if you’re at home when a pipe breaks, the best way to minimize damage is to go directly to the valve and shut off the flow of water at the source.

Many plumbing issues may seem like small problems you can ignore, but they can actually cause more damage than you might think! Take care of these small issues before its too late.

Leaky Faucet
Does your bathroom or kitchen faucet leak after you’ve turned it off? You might think that small trickle of leaking water is really no big deal, but it actually adds up faster than you might expect, to a loss of as much as 3,000 gallons a year. Not only can this increase your water bill, but it also wastes this precious resource!

You can repair it, or replace it with a new eco-friendly low-flow model.

Leaky Toilet Base

Toilet base leaks can also be majorly damaging. A damp floor can easily turn into a very pricy proposition; left unchecked, the moisture will rot your flooring and even make its way down to damage your subfloor eventually. Repairing the leak could be as simple as tightening the bolts that hold the base of the toilet in place.

High Water Pressure
Does your shower come down extremely hard? This is due to overly high water pressure, which wastes precious water, and also is extremely hard on your plumbing system, causing it to wear out too quickly.

When your sink or toilet has a big leak, you know to call a plumber. But with other plumbing issues, it might not be quite so obvious if you need to call in the professionals. If you have any of these issues in your home, call Millennium Plumbing ASAP so we can come out and assess the problem.
Low water pressure throughout the house: Several factors can cause this problem: obstructions (rust or debris) in the water lines, which can start at the meter and run all the way to the faucet aerators; low water pressure from the city supply or a well; or even poor supply-line design. A good plumber knows how to analyze the problem.
No hot water: It’s obvious what happened, but unless the hot water tank is leaking, it may take a while to find out why. If the tank is electric, it could be a bad heating element, a tripped circuit breaker or blown fuse, a faulty thermostat, or a bad overload switch. On gas heaters, thermocouple burners and igniters can fail.
Sewer line stoppage: If you’ve tried all the tricks you know to get your sewer line to drain properly, yet backups continue, you probably have a bad plug in the line that runs out to the main sewer. (Tree roots are often the cause.) Rather than rent one of the big sewer rodding machines that you may break — or that may damage your sewer — call a plumber or drain-cleaning service. If they get in trouble, they’ll make the repairs.

Saving water is helpful not only for your wallet, but also the planet. Don’t watch your water bill skyrocket this spring! Try using some of these water-saving tips, and encourage your family to do the same. Water is a precious resource, and we need to conserve it!
Turn off the tap when you brush your teeth – this can save 6 liters of water per minute.
Always use full loads in your washing machine and dishwasher – this cuts out unnecessary washes in between.
Fix leaky faucets. This can help you save a lot of unnecessary water.
Water your garden with a watering can rather than a hose. Mulching your plants (with bark chips, heavy compost or straw) and watering in the early morning and late afternoon will reduce evaporation and also save water.

Fill a jug with tap water and place this in your fridge. This will mean you do not have to leave the cold tap running for the water to run cold before you fill your glass.
Invest in water-efficient goods when you need to replace household products. You can now buy water-efficient showerheads, taps, toilets, washing machines, dishwashers and many other water-saving products.

Follow these tips and you’ll be a super water saver!

Are you prepared for a plumbing emergency? You may not be a plumbing professional, but there are a few things you should know about your home so that if a problem does occur, you know how to handle it before a plumber can arrive.

You should always know where to go when an issue arises. Do you know how to stop a potential flood? Locate the main shut-off valve for the home water supply. If its in a dark, hidden, tough-to-read place, keep any tools you’ll need for a shut-off nearby. There’s nothing like scrambling for the right tools while your kitchen is steadily flooding!

It’s also important to know how to shut off appliances. Investigate how to shut off water to sinks, toilets, washing machines, and other appliances that use water, such as a refrigerator’s ice maker. If there is a problem, knowing the location of the shut-off valve will avoid a lot of headaches.

One last thing. Find the location of the house’s main sewer valve. It provides access to correct a clogged sewer line, and knowing where it is will help the plumber fix the problem faster!

Make sure you find all these shut-off valve locations today, so you know where they are in the future! And if you do find yourself in a plumbing emergency, contact us anytime!

Somehow, there are lots of myths about toilets are going around, and we’re here to set it straight.
Myth 1 – Toilet water drains clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere
Fact – Contrary to popular belief, the water does not drain in the opposite direction. The Coriolis force (caused by the Earth’s rotation) has a very small impact on the water in your toilet bowl. Instead, the direction of the water is more influenced by the jets in the toilet.

Myth 2- I can throw any trash in the toilet
Fact- The toilet should never be used as a trashcan. Only toilet paper should be flushed down the toilet. Even small things like hair or cotton swabs can cause huge clogs in the sewage system later down the line.

Myth 3 – Cat litter is flushable
Fact – Don’t do it! Cat feces contain toxoplasma gondii, a parasite that is harmful to humans. Modern wastewater treatment is effective at removing the parasite, though it can pose a greater problem in countries without these modern systems.

Myth 4 – Flushing your goldfish is OK
Fact – When your goldfish is dead, its ok to flush it down the toilet. But if its still alive, it can make its way through the sewer system, rapidly grow and reproduce at alarming rates. Yikes.

If you have a clogged or slow drain, your first instinct might be to reach for the bottle of liquid drain cleaner. But did you know these products can be damage for both your home and your health?

Most liquid drain cleaners create a chemical reaction inside your drain pipe to dissolve the clog. This chemical reaction, however, typically generates heat, which can cause irreversible damage to the pipe itself. This is especially true if it doesn’t not entirely remove the clog, causing the chemicals to remain trapped, causing more damage to the pipes.

If your pipes are made of plastic, the high heat could melt and deform the pipes. Metal pipes are more resilient, but the chemicals can still weaken the metal and cause cracks and leaks more quickly.

Liquid drain cleaners’ powerful chemicals can also cause damage to you! Just the fumes that are released can be irritating to eyes, ears, throat, and lungs. Some drain cleaners may also cause burning of the skin, as well as damage to the eyes if any of the chemicals get in your eyes.

If your clog is anything but a hairball or grease buildup, chemical drain cleaners will only cause more damage than help your pipes. Instead of resorting to the bottle of chemicals, call a plumber, who can determine what the clog is made of and remove it safely.

When the temperature gets colder, your pipes might be in danger! Frozen pipes can be a common problem if it stays below freezing for most of the winter. Instead of having to deal with the hassle of frozen pipes, follow these tips to keep your water moving all winter long!

Watch your water pressure. The first sign of a frozen pipe is restricted water flow. If you do notice a change, contact Millennium Plumbing ASAP!

At night, when the temperature is coldest, let a small amount of cold water trickle from your faucets. The moving water will not freeze, so your pipes will not be in danger.

Keep the temperature in your home above 55° to prevent pipes from freezing and open cabinet doors under sinks and faucets and near exterior walls to help circulate warm air and keep pipes warmer.

Disconnect outdoor hoses and drain outdoor pipes before winter to prevent damage. If a hose is left connected during cold weather ice can form.

After you disconnect the hose, install an exterior insulated faucet jacket. This will protect the outdoor faucets and the connecting lines running into your home.

Follow these tips for a winter without plumbing issues!

A broken garbage disposal can really put a damper on your day. Sometimes it’s a quick fix, other times you need to install a whole new appliance. Here are some common issues, and whether or not you need to replace your garbage disposal.

Won’t turn on.
There could be a short in the wiring between the switch and the disposal, in which case replacing the wiring should be a quick fix for the problem. However, it’s also possible that you have a burned out motor. The motor comprises a large part of the disposal system, and replacing it is often not worth the cost. If your disposal motor isn’t functioning properly, you’re almost certainly better off just installing an entirely new system.

Destroyed Impeller
The impeller is the part of the disposal that is responsible for chopping up the food waste you put into the chamber. The impeller is not a set of sharp blades, as many people think, but a series of blunt propeller-like protuberances that chop things up by brute force. This puts a lot of stress on the part, and often part of it will break off. While it’s definitely possible to just replace part of the impeller, if the part is in poor enough condition you might want to consider replacing the entire system. Talk to a plumber to see what they think about your specific case.