Q.What is a vent, and what does it do for the plumbing system?

A. If you look on your roof, you will see pipes sticking out of the roof aprox 12" high.  For every pipe that goes down, one needs to go up.  The obvious reason we have vents is that sewer gases need to be vented outside of the dwelling.  Not so obvious is what happens if they are not included in the waste and vent design.  Imagine yourself at McDonalds drinking a soda from a straw.  If you put your thumb over the straw, you can pull liquid up from the cup. Remove the thumb and see it instantly drain out!  When liquid goes down a pipe, air needs to follow it.  Without the vent pipe, the draining liquid will try to suck air through the P-traps on the plumbing fixtures,(tub, sink, etc.) glurp, glurp!  If it manages to do so, you may know it from the "smell" coming from the now dry seal on the P-trap. Without vents, draining one fixture may cause another fixture in the house to back up, yuck! A waste and vent system should keep sewer gas out of the dwelling and drain every fixture well.  

Q. How do I add plumbing if the sewer line is higher than the fixtures?

A. A sewer ejector pump is the answer.  Kits come with the sump basin, sewer ejector pump, check-valve.  The waster line is run into the sump basin, pumped through a checkvalve into  the sewer line that grades with gravity.  A vent pipe needs to be run also, (you can't pump out without replacing the air, it's like trying to suck air out of a bottle) If you add a high water alarm, which is a good idea. It is run off of a separate electrical breaker (insurance) to let you know if the pump isn't working before it's flood time.  The check valve makes sure, that what you pump out, stays out. Otherwise the pump will keep cycling.

A. Plumbing codes call for a gap between potable water and a drain.  This usually looks like the distance between the faucet and the top of the sink or bathtub (one inch or more).  Without the "gap",  waste water could siphon back into the drinking supply.  This "does" happen in situations where a city main is shut off causing a drain-down of the system with plumbing that has been done improperly.  Sometimes it is a hose left in a mud puddle, or maybe a hose lying in bleach water.  People have died this way. The plumbing code helps protect the general public from these dangers. Current improvements include antisiphon faucets for garden hoses, the air gap for the dishwasher, proper installation of water heater T&P relief drains, and backflow preventers for irrigation systems.        

Q. Why does my water heater run out so quickly now?

A. Several things could happen.  First check the shower head volume if shower's are too quick.  A new shower head puts out about 2.5 gallons a minute.  Some older heads put out 5 gallons a minute.  Working with the shower head would double shower length in this case.  

In some cases, the dip tube on the cold water inlet has broken or worn. When this happens, it creates a short loop for the water, water at the bottom  half of the tank will not be used.

On electric  water heaters, they commonly have two heating elements that work in turns.  First the top element heats up the top of the tank, then power goes to the lower element.  If the lower element is out, only the top of the tank gets heated.  If the top element isn't working, there will be no hot water.

Sometimes the Reset button needs to be pushed  or reset. If this doesn't get the element working, use a continuity tester to determine if the element has shorted out.  Replacement of the element may be needed.
 

Q. How do I keep from being "shocked" in the shower?

A. At Rough-In time, It is important to run pipes with enough volume and pressure so that many fixtures can be used at the same time.  I usually run only two fixtures on a 1/2" line; so a standard bathroom would have a 3/4" line for cold until one fixture is taken off. A 1/2" line for the hot is fine, tub and lav.

Another nice item that is  plumbing code in many areas now,  is the pressure balanced tub and shower valves.  A single handle valve that balances the hot and cold water to try to maintain a temperature range plus or minus 2 degrees.    
    
Q. How do I remove a cast iron tub?

A. Cast iron tubs weigh about 300 pounds. They are hard to install when new and almost impossible to remove and useless to anyone but a metal salvage outfit.
1. remove the waste & overflow drain fittings. the top part is held on with screws, the bottom drain fitting, threads into a receiving female thread. Tools are sold for removing the lower drain fitting, ( a tub tool)
2. lay a plastic sheet over the tub, and put on eye protection. (the plastic sheet helps to keep the glass from flying up and cutting skin). use a sledge hammer to break the tub up, starting at the mid point, breaking the tub at least into quarters.
3. carry out in pieces.

Always install a new waste & overflow drain. If you use a tub drain with slip joint nuts, keep with the brass body ones. The lift linkage on the ABS drains don't last very long. Some local plumbing inspectors require tub drains with no slip joint fittings, (ABS glued fittings) I prefer the brass bodied ones such as the Price Pfister 19-010

Q. The outdoor unit of my heat pump puts off smoke from time to time.  Also, it looks like it is frozen sometimes. Is this normal?

A.  If the “smoke” is white or very light gray, then yes!

The reason is because of the way heat pumps work.  In the winter, the outdoor coil gets cooler than the outside air in order to extract heat from the air.  In fact, it can get as much as twenty degrees cooler than the outside air during normal operation. In this way it absorbs heat from the outside air, then the compressor "Pumps" it to the indoor coil. If the outdoor air is 45 degrees, then the heat pump coil can be 25 degrees. Any moisture in the outside air condenses on the outside coil when the air passes over it, and freezes instantly. The heat pump has a special “defrost” circuit that warms the outside coil and melts the ice off every 90 minutes.The defrost circuit is active whenever the outdoor coil is colder than 32 degrees. When this “defrost” occurs, it can look as though smoke is pouring off of it.

As long as it thaws periodically, the thin frost buildup does not adversely affect normal heat pump operation. However during freezing rains, the defrost circuit may not be able to thaw the coil often enough. In that case you can often turn the heat pump off and thaw the coil yourself with water from a bucket or garden hose.

Q. Why does my house or business seem to have plenty of cooling capacity, but it tends to feel clammy?

A. An oversized air conditioner makes your house feel clammy. A unit that’s too big can’t dehumidify the air effectively because it runs for only short periods at a time. The indoor coil never gets cold enough to do its job of removing moisture from the air. An oversized unit will leave your home cold and clammy, especially in South Carolina’s humid climate. It can also mean that you will have higher electric bills and possibly a noisy system.

Q. How do I know where to buy the right size air conditioner?

A. Follow these tips for buying the right size air conditioner.

Don’t use a contractor who wants to size your unit solely on the square footage of your house or building. Contractors should calculate how much cooling home or business needs according to guidelines such as the Air Conditioning Contractors of America’s manual J. To gather the information necessary, a contactor should spend about an hour poking around your house, taking measurements in each room, and asking questions. He or she needs ot measure floors, ceilings and walls – including all the windows, - and check insulation in the attic, walls, and crawlspaces. Some other factors that go into the cooling load formula include indoor and outdoor temperatures, direction orientation, number of occupants, shading, siding, and roof color.

Insist on getting a copy of the cooling load calculations (or computer printout). These can be useful in comparing bids from contractors.  Question the contractor if the calculations do not include at least all the items mentioned above, or if they require and explanation.

Don’t be tempted by the lowest bid. Be willing to pay for the time the contractor must spend to do the job right.

 Check for duct leaks. Be sure air flow is not restricted by ducts that are disconnected, crushed, or too small for the system. Ideally, the contractor should use diagnostic equipment to find leaks and then fix them with quality duct sealants (NOT DUCT TAPE!). It doesn’t make a lot of sense to buy a larger air conditioner to cool your attic or crawlspace!

Q. What is happening with refrigerant in air conditioning systems?

A. There have been many reports regarding air conditioner refrigerants and their effect on the earth’s ozone layer.Refrigerant is the cooling agent used in air conditioning systems.Most all of the air conditioner and heat pump products sold today utilize one refrigerant known as R22, which is from the family of refrigerants called HCFCs. HCFCs have been used for decades in a safe and efficient manner; but government regulation will eventually phase them out of use.The United States congress, acting in response to an international treaty called the Montreal Protocol, provided new direction and authority to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).As a result, the EPA, through the Clean Air Act, is regulating the productions and use of refrigerants in air conditioning systems.  These changes will eventually eliminate air conditioning refrigerants containing chlorine due to the concern about ozone depletion.

Q. Should I hesitate to buy a new air conditioner or heat pump because of refrigerant phase-outs?

A. EPA regulations call for the eventual phase out of R22, which is the refrigerant used in current air conditioner and heat pump equipment. Products that use HCFC refrigerants, such as R22, must stop being produced by the year 2010. All production of R22 refrigerant will stop by 2020. Therefore, there is no need to hesitate buying current air conditioning or heat pump equipment. The air conditioning industry has worked closely with the EPA to coordinate the eventual HCFC phase-out so that consumers can have confidence that the products they purchase today will be capable of supplying their home or office heating and cooling needs for the full expected life-span of the air conditioner or heat pump. Sufficient quantity of R22 refrigerant will continue to be produced for any service needs that may arise until 2020. After 2020, recycled refrigerants will be available, for many years, which will safely fulfill all service need for products that use #R22.

Q. When replacing the outdoor unit of an air conditioner or Heat Pump, should the indoor unit also be replaced?

A. All air conditioner and heat pump outdoor units are specifically designed to work with matched indoor units for optimum efficiency and performance. The result of this matched system is a coordinated, top-performance team that ensues the dependability and high efficiency today’s applications require.

Air conditioner and heat pump outdoor units may “work” with indoor units other than those for which they have been specifically designed…however, the result is a definite compromise in system performance.

If an air conditioner or heat pump outdoor unit is ten years old and needs to be replaced, the indoor unit is just as old and has been subjected to the same amount of wear and tear. Replacing both units means you won’t have to replace the indoor unit in a short time…you’ll have years of service from both units. A new unit also gives you a new product warranty.

At first glance, replacing only an air conditioner or heat pump outdoor unit may appear to be a bargain. But when you consider the lower cooling and heating efficiencies, decreased reliability and the high cost of ownership that results, it’s not such a bargain after all!