Drain Your Hot Water Heater…

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I have heard over the years that it is a good idea to periodically drain your hot water tank. It is one of those things that I may have remembered to do about 3 times out of 20 years of home-ownership. Today I stumbled upon an article which sheds some light on the matter, and I am now motivated to get with the program.

Paul Bianchina is an acclaimed builder and author. His article about hot water heaters is one opf many that I plan to convey in the near future. He has competant, no nonsense, easy to read approach to homeowner maintenance issues that I think you will appreciate.

Periodic flush does a water heater good

Proactive Maintenance

Great article in Seattle Times this weekend. (Can’t believe I said that. Oh yea, it’s because it was copied from a reporter for the Denver Post.) Proactive maintenance is key to saving money as a homeowner. Something mentioned in the article is what we have recommended to homeowners for years: If you had an inspection performed when you purchased your property, find it. It is an excellent, and usually well organized, template for checking all of the elements and systems in your home. You may even find a few deficiencies that were in the report, but were forgotten in the haste of moving in and getting settled.

Avoid Freezing Pipes

When it gets cold there is nothing worse than when a frozen pipe bursts. The mess, the expense, is easily avoided with a few simple steps.

1. Protect all outdoor hose bibs . You don’t have to buy those Styrofoam covers. Simply wrapping the fixture with a thick rag will do the job just fine. Plus, you won’t have to chase your rag around the yard like those Styrofoam covers when high winds hit.

2. In some older homes you may find what is referred to as a “pet cock valve”, adjacent to an interior shutoff valve, in the garage and/or basement. The idea is to shut off the water supply to the exterior hose bib with the interior valve, then open the pet cock valve to drain any residual water from the pipe that extends from the shut off valve to the exterior hose bib. Use a small bucket to catch the water as the pipe is drained.

NOTE: Sometimes plumbing valves are broken by folks that are not sure which way they should be turned. A saying we recommend is “righty tighty, lefty loosey” i.e., clockwise (righty tighty) to close, counterclockwise (lefty loosey) to open.

3. Exposed pipes in the crawl space and attic are susceptible to freezing. While it is best to have these pipes permanently wrapped with black foam designed specifically for this purpose, it can be a difficult and tedious job, especially when it is already cold. A quick fix that should allow you to get through the cold spells for now is to loosely cover exposed pipes with any type of sheet or fabric. This will prevent frost from forming on the pipe exterior, a common prerequisite to water freezing inside pipes.

4. Running water? If you hear running water and nobody is home, investigate immediately. It could be a broken pipe. If it is, you will need to locate and shut off the main water supply to your house. It is surprising how few people know where their main shut off valve is. It is just as surprising how often plumbers place this important valve so that it is almost impossible to operate. If you have never used your shut off valve, be prepared for some degree of struggle. When the typical “gate” type valve has not been turned in a long time, it can be a bear to get it started. Using not too much force, or too big a wrench, coax that valve clockwise (righty tighty) until you feel the interior corrosion build-up break free, and continue turning until the flow stops.

In case you cannot turn the valve, or broke the valve handle as I once did, your back-up is the water meter outside your house. Aside from the creepy spiders, cacoons and such, this is often easier to turn off than your in-house shut off valve. All you usually need is a “crescent” wrench, also referred to a spanner. See the accompanying picture.

Once things are under control, call a plumber. Our favorite plumber is John Morelli of New Concepts Plumbing: 206-948-1617

Appliances: Enough is Enough!

We have owned many appliances in the course of our home-ownership lives. As agents, we have witnessed thousands of issues involving home-ownership and maintenance. However, never before have we encountered such a pesky, unrelenting, annoying issue as a dishwasher that requires more than annual service, and has never performed properly. We have had the same service folks out repeatedly, the most recent this last August. Diana announced this morning that “the lower dish drawer will not close”. I investigate. After many frustrating minutes lying on my side with a flashlight in my mouth, I cannot discern why it will not close.

For the first time I decided that enough is enough….I called the manufacturer this time. They have some spotty records pertaining to our ownership, and said that I should call the same service folks and give them a reference number with which to call the manufacturer.

The service tech will be here November 13, two weeks out, between 8:30 and 11:30 AM. Great, another half day off from work. The good news about these dish-drawers is that while they tend to break down one at a time, you still have the other one to work with for two weeks while waiting for the service call. [I wonder if that was the driving force behind the 2 drawer design decision? Funny that's never mentioned as a feature in the promo materials.]

The following is the letter that I sent to the manufacturer following a rather terse session with a representative on the phone. If the company makes good on this I will tout their wares. If they don’t, you’ll hear about that as well.

__________________________________________________________

This is concerning Dish-Drawer Serial Number 88271 CAM745047.

Having talked with a company representative this morning [Ref #7489913A], I thought it prudent to follow up in writing.

While on hold with your representative, I found the “hold music and message” full of irony as the spokesperson stated something to the effect that “customer care is an integral part of business at Fisher & Paykel, that integrity is the backbone of….”

While the representative was willing to listen to my concerns and stated the next step to be taken (call the service tech….again) there was not much empathy.

I am 55 years old and have owned several homes, and thus appliances. I must conclude that my Dish-Drawers are defective. They require service more than once per year, they DO NOT clean dishes. We scrub every item that is loaded into them, knowing anything bigger than a pinhead will block the drainage system.

I respectfully request that you consult with our service company, At Your Service, Inc.: 425-814-9462.

If indeed “Integrity is the backbone of your philosophy….”, these dish-drawers should be replaced at your company’s expense.

I have owned $400 dishwashers that never required service for 10 years. This unit doesn’t clean i.e., requires thorough rinsing of every item, and is unacceptably unreliable.

I ask, how many times should service be required for the average appliance? I do not know, as I am not in the appliance business. I am in the home selling business. I contend that you are indeed in the appliance business and thus are acutely aware that annual service should not be required for ANY appliance. And certainly, one for which a premium is paid, one should reasonably expect that it be capable of performing its function, which this unit does not, never has.

I am looking forward to your reply, anticipating, and hoping, that your own statement regarding integrity holds true.

You may review this statement for reference on my blog at http://redmondrealestateblog.com where I will track the progress.

What’s Hot In The Kitchen: The Latest From Forbes.com

Have you been considering a kitchen remodel? Even if you already have a Viking Range and a Sub-Zero, there are new items that fall into the “to die for” kitchen appliance category. Lucy Maher at Forbes.com does a nice job of presenting the latest technologies for the kitchen. Wait ’til you see the kitchen sink/dishwasher, or the refer/oven. Very cool stuff.

Avoiding Bathroom Floor Troubles

If you’re a homeowner, it is likely that you have had to remove and reset a toilet of two, OR hired someone to do it. It’s a fairly easy, but messy, inexpensive task. However, a common problem with toilet installations is that some people and plumbers and re-modelers like to caulk the toilet flange to the floor. It doesn’t matter if the floor is vinyl, tile or wood, this is not a good idea. If the wax seal is broken, you want to know immediately by evidence of water running out onto the floor. If your toilet is caulked down, you’ll never see the water, and it will be forced down through the rough plumbing hole in the floor, into the sub-floor, and into the crawl space if it’s on the first floor. If it’s on the second floor, into the floor cavity and first floor ceiling sheetrock. Not good…..

I just spent an hour under a small one bath house we recently sold to a client. I wanted to see for myself what our Buyer’s inspector spotted as "rotted subfloor area adjacent to plumbing at bath/laundry room areas". The inspector wrote that he thought the problem may have been caused by water leaking past the rubber boot on the plumbing vent at the roof, and following the exterior of the vent pipe all the way down to the rotted floor area. While this may have been a contributing cause, it was evident from close visual inspection that most of the leakage came from the toilet. While we were under the house, I offered a bet to the repair contractor that was with me that we would find a toilet that had been caulked to the floor above. (Neither of us had been inside the house yet.) Sure enough, the toilet was caulked down. The only evidence a water problem was some slight discoloring of the caulk.

To avoid an expensive and needless repair, check your toilets. If they are caulked to the floor, remove the caulk. It’s a tedious task, but it’s a lot better than what could happen in the event there is a leak, and you are not aware of it.