As a homeowner, do you know if your sewer system has a backwater valve installed? Usually, when you flush the toilet or drain the tub, all that water goes down the sewer line that’s connected to your home and eventually out to sea. But there’s always a chance that your system could get…(Read More)
Older houses often have clay drain piping installed beneath a concrete slab floor. These systems can go decades without problems, but when problems occur usually the best thing to do is to replace the old clay pipe. Why Replace Clay Drain Pipes? Root Infiltration Clay pipe is usually found in sections ranging from 12 inches…(Read More)
The keys to a successful preventative maintenance of sewer and drainage systems are regular attention and, pre-emptive steps to deal with problems, and proper construction. Effective maintenance yields multiple benefits: increased performance of the system, lower costs of operation, and a longer lifespan. A properly maintained system will carry outflows more efficiently, giving it…(Read More)
Problems with drain and sewer pipes can take a number of forms, and be solved in a number of ways, but in some cases the only remaining solution is replacement. Arriving at the need to replace piping is usually a process of ruling out less invasive options. In most cases, the decision to replace piping…(Read More)
Sump pumps are often a last line of defence against basement flooding, and for that reason their reliability is key. A sump pump will need to predictably detect rising water levels in the sump well, and start in response. A primary pump, attached to AC mains power will generally be all that is needed, but…(Read More)
Building up to Code Making sure that a home’s drainage system is ready for and will meet Ontario Building Code standards for its materials and construction is a complex task that requires professional expertise of the sort Master Drain can offer. To meet these Code requirements, numerous construction materials and methods need to be…(Read More)
As when dealing with bathroom clogs, clearing clogs in kitchen sinks and laundry tubs is a matter of taking a staged approach: first try the simplest and easiest approaches. If those don’t solve the problem, move on to more complicated and ultimately effective techniques. Snaking is often unnecessary when other methods have been successfully…(Read More)
Snaking bathroom plumbing fixtures is a very effective way of clearing blockages that are not far from the fixture itself, and in fact the vast majority of blockages are in this category. Typically, bathrooms have three standard fixtures: a tub/shower, a basin, and a toilet. Each of these three is capable of developing a…(Read More)
The City of Toronto has decided to give support to an assortment of plumbing projects that it considers highly important. In particular, the City offers partial rebates for certain measures that provide protection against basement flooding…(Read More)
Knowing where to dig When working on drainage systems, it’s important to save time by eliminating random digging. Knowing where to dig has always been a problem, whether is was digging to find water for a well, or to find buried treasure. Dowsing, the pseudoscience of finding underground objects by divination, has a long…(Read More)