Plumbing discussions and local services.
ben_brown
Discussion activity
Topics and replies this member has contributed.
RE: When your basement smells like rotten eggs: weird facts about wastewater mishaps
Not saying you’re wrong, but I’ve had the “just pour water down the drain” trick backfire on me before. Maybe in newer houses, but my old place had a cracked vent pipe behind the wall, and no amount of water fixed that....
RE: When your bathroom sink ends up off-center
I totally get what you mean about the sink feeling like it’s in a weird spot - had a similar situation when we redid our guest bath. Looked fine in the plans, but once it was in, you basically had to lean sideways to was...
RE: Dripping taps driving me nuts - why is it never a quick fix?
I hear you on the universal parts - sometimes they seem like a good deal, but I’ve had mixed luck too. One time I thought I’d nailed it with a “fits all” washer, but it never quite sealed right and I ended up replacing t...
RE: my shower's gone rogue and sprays everywhere but down
I hear you on the “eco” cleaner thing - tried one that claimed to be gentle, but it basically turned my faucet handle gummy. I’m all for giving stuff a second chance before tossing, especially with how pricey replacement...
RE: When your bathroom sink ends up off-center
I hear you on the flex tailpieces - those things are a mixed bag. I tried one under my old sink and it worked for a while, but then it started to droop and I got a slow leak. Ended up just going with rigid PVC and some c...
RE: How strong do you like your bidet spray?
I gotta agree with that, but I’ll admit, I was a little skeptical at first. Figured, hey, it’s just water, how much damage could it really do? Turns out, plenty... My first “budget” bidet started dripping after about a m...
RE: my shower's gone rogue and sprays everywhere but down
Honestly, I was pretty skeptical too. The first one I tried was awful - just kind of dribbled and felt like standing in the rain under a tree. But the second one (think it was a Waterpik?) surprised me. Still not as powe...
RE: My Pipes Burst at 2 AM - Ever Had a Midnight Plumbing Nightmare?
I get the panic thing - when our kitchen pipe burst last year, I just stood there for a second, totally blank. My wife was yelling about towels and I was just staring at the mess. Ended up shutting off the wrong valve fi...
RE: What if your street flooded because drains were clogged?
I hear you on the “drain kit” - I’ve got a similar setup, but mine’s more like whatever I can grab in a panic. I’ll admit, I’m not always as proactive as I should be. Sometimes I think, “Eh, how bad could it get?” and th...
RE: anyone tried sustainable plumbing upgrades at home?
Greywater setups aren't as intimidating as they seem, honestly. I rigged up a simple system last summer - just diverted water from the washing machine out to the garden beds. Didn't mess with sinks or showers because tha...
RE: Help, my basement drain's backing up again...
Yeah, that's a good point. Had something similar happen at my place a couple years back. Basement drain kept backing up every time we had heavy rain, and I was convinced it was something wrong with my pipes. Spent way to...