We love our pets. We love when our plumbing works. We don’t love when our pets prevent our plumbing from working. It doesn’t sound like a common problem… but you’d be surprised. Nearly one-third of all U.S. homeowners have either a cat or a dog. That means pet-related plumbing problems are surprisingly common concerns for nearly one-third of all households. So! How can you keep your plumbing safe from (and for) Fido and Fluffy?
Easily! Check out these five useful tips to help you pet-proof your home’s plumbing. Incorporating these best practices will help keep both your pups and your pipes safe from one another long term. You can go on enjoying both without worrying about how one might ruin the other!
Cover up exposed pipes.
Pet-proofing your home isn’t all that different from child-proofing it. Most of the same basic principles apply; it’s all about hiding the dangerous stuff. First and foremost, cover up any exposed pipes or wiring. You could either purchase basic pipe covers or take a DIY approach.
It doesn’t matter how you do it, just that you do. Simple covers will help make sure your dog can’t chew through your pipes. It’s easy, it’s fast, and it really helps.
Install pressure balancing valves.
If someone flushes a toilet while you’re showering, does your hot water scald you all of a sudden? If it does, that’s probably because your home doesn’t have pressure balancing valves. That’s a problem. Without pressure balancing valves, hot water could jet out of any of your faucets all of a sudden, scalding whoever happens to be using that water.
Sudden bursts of hot water might sound like a minor annoyance for you, but they’re a major problem for pets. Luckily, you can install pressure balancing valves cheaply and easily.
Always use drain guards.
Do you know what the leading cause of clogged shower drains is? Hair. Not necessarily human hair, either. Dogs and cats can let loose a lot of fluff while you’re bathing them. Luckily, you can install drain guards cheaply and easily. You’ll be amazed at how much a couple of drain guards help prevent clogged drains.
Keep your toilet lid closed.
We never recommend the use of chemical drain cleaners, because they’re acidic. They might dissolve your clogs alright, but they’ll usually dissolve your pipes at the same time. Pipes aren’t the only thing chemical drain cleaners can damage, either. If your pet ingests chemical drain cleaner, it’ll be a big problem. If you use a chemical drain cleaner in your toilet, keep the toilet’s lid closed while it does its thing.
You do not want your pet ingesting toxic leftover chemical residue from your toilet bowl water. Luckily, this is pretty easy to prevent. First, just keep your toilet lids closed at all times–even if you don’t use chemical drain cleaners. This will help keep them from learning that they can drink out of the toilet. Second, take the time to top off their water bowl at least twice a day. If they always have water, they’ll never need to look for it elsewhere.
Make sure your dog isn’t digging too deep in the yard.
Some sewer lines might only be a foot and a half deep under your yard. If your dog loves digging, make sure they’re never in the backyard unsupervised. Dogs can easily dig their way down (and through!) sewer line pipes, rupturing the pipes in the process.
If your family’s dog, cat, gerbil, parrot, lion, or other beloved pet caused a plumbing issue, don’t fret! Instead, call up the pros at Mike Diamond. We’re happy to fix the existing issue. We’re also happy to equip you with the knowledge to keep it from happening again. We want to keep you and your pets happy!