How Family Size Affects Your Plumbing

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Having a large family has many benefits and many challenges. One of the potential challenges of having several people under one roof is that you need to ensure that your plumbing system can handle the demands of normal living. If you know which parts of your system to inspect, you’ll be able to identify problem areas that could lead to damage to your home or inconvenience to your family.

Sourcing Hot Water

If you have a larger family, you’ll have more people needing hot water more often. This could lead to a lot of waste if each individual has to wait for the hot water to travel from the water heater to the plumbing fixture. To solve this problem, you may want to consider smaller water heaters in each bathroom. These units store enough water for someone to wash their hands, ensuring instant hot water is available while minimizing waste.

Collecting Sewage

Another big challenge that comes with having a big family is figuring out how to manage a large amount of waste. This is especially true if your home has a septic tank. To ensure that the septic tank can operate correctly, it’s important to schedule periodic septic tank maintenance, even if there are no signs of trouble. It’s also important to make sure that you don’t put items down the drain that could damage the pipes. These items include eggshells, coffee grounds, oils and fats, and other harsh food items. It’s best to rely on a professional to care for your septic system every few years to get rid of any debris that has accumulated.

Maintaining Flow

Most homes, even small homes, have multiple water access points. If you utilize all of these access points at the same time, your water pressure will be affected. This problem is even more pronounced when you have a large family living in a large home. That’s why it’s vital to have a plumber inspect your home’s water supply line to ensure that it’s adequate for your needs. If you find that your water pressure just doesn’t cut it, it could be due to an undersized supply line.

Clearing Clogged Drains

Multiple showers from multiple family members mean multiple strands of lost hair. Over time, this hair can build up in your home’s drain and cause a clog. If possible, you’ll want to try and collect lost hair before it goes down the drain using a drain strainer in the shower. If you do notice a clog, though, it’s best to use a plumbing snake to remove the clog instead of using a chemical drain cleaner.

Explaining to Everyone

To help maintain your home’s plumbing system, everyone in your family needs to do their part. That’s why it’s important to lay out some basic ground rules that everyone can follow to maintain the proper operation of the plumbing system at all times. Whether it’s turning the water off while brushing teeth, limiting what is sent down the drain, or collecting lost hair after a shower, everyone can contribute to helping make your home a more enjoyable place to live.

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Brooke Chaplan

Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening.

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