Aspects of Pittsburgh Commercial Plumbing Explored
There are two things that set Pittsburgh commercial plumbing apart from other areas of the country. The first one is the hard water in Pittsburgh, and the surrounding area are well known for. Hard water means that it’s laden with dissolved minerals, primarily calcium.
There can be and usually is others, but calcium tends to be the most prevalent. Then the other item that differentiates Pittsburgh commercial plumbing from other warmer areas of the country, such as cities in the south, is the freezing temperatures that come around to the Greater Pittsburgh area every winter.
The potential for freezing water pipes always has to be taken into account in a plumbing job in Pittsburgh. When water pipes freeze, the expanding water creates cracks, and those cracks become leaks when the water thaws.
That covers the differences in general. This is because there are a lot of commonalities that plumbers in Pittsburgh also share with fellow tradesmen and women elsewhere.
No matter where they do the work, the work they do often goes unnoticed. Yes, people see a faucet when they reach out to use it.
They also take it for granted that when they flush a toilet, everything will go down the drain. But it’s the work Pittsburgh plumbers do inside of walls, underground, and in ceilings that the faucet users and toilet flushers are generally unaware of.
This for sure holds true in commercial settings where Pittsburgh plumbers play a crucial role in keeping business doors open.
New Developments in Sewer Line Repair in Pittsburgh
If you can’t recall the last time that sewer line repair came up in a polite conversation, that’s okay. It’s perfectly understandable because the truth is people really don’t like to talk about it, that is until they need it.
It’s an odd thing, too, because virtually everyone relies on functioning sewer lines. So the latest developments in sewer line repair in Pittsburgh should be common knowledge, but they aren’t.
The most important of them is trenchless sewer line repair. It’s a new way of repairing both residential and commercial sewer lines that quite literally does away with the trench.
The big problem with digging trenches has always been that anything in the way as they are being excavated ends up being destroyed. Sure, people do their best to perhaps dig up and transplant trees, bushes, and shrubs, but as far as driveways, patios, and sidewalks go, there’s just no way of saving them.
So prior to the advent of trenchless sewer line repair in Pittsburgh, it was just commonly accepted that the surface damage would quite often make up a sizable percentage of the total cost.
New driveways, patios, and sidewalks had to be installed when the underground work was done. Trenchless sewer line repair does away with all that by leaving the existing damaged sewer line intact by inserting a durable new inner lining.
There’s more than one way of accomplishing that, but the same goal is achieved. That is minimal damage above ground while creating a new functioning sewer line.
How Much Can Be Said About Commercial Toilets in Pittsburgh?
The answer to this question is actually quite a lot. But here again, the topic of toilets is just not going to come up in polite conversation. So it’s up to you to educate yourself about all the new developments in commercial toilets in Pittsburgh before you have any work done on your bathroom.
Tankless toilets have been generating a big buzz among commercial business operators for quite a long time now. Yet still, so little is understood about them.
Of course, everyone understands that when the lever is depressed, the water goes whoosh, and then new water flows in to replace what was there.
What needs to be understood, though, is the differences in commercial plumbing that go into the installation and operation of this type of toilet. Tankless toilets, because they have no tank, require a greater volume of water, delivered under higher pressure than it takes to operate your standard toilet with a tank on the back.
So it all starts with the plumbing behind the wall. Larger pipes are required to deliver the higher volume of water on demand, and if they aren’t there, they have to be retrofitted.
That is if a tankless toilet is being installed during a tenant improvement project on a commercial building.
Commercial toilets in Pittsburgh have also gone high-tech with several new feature options. Among the most common that you may have already seen is the infrared sensor auto flush. This is a mechanism that senses body movement and, in turn, triggers a toilet to flush, doing away with the all too familiar toilet flush handle.
What Does the Shower Have to Do With Commercial Plumbing In Pittsburgh?
The answer to that question is quite a lot; that is, if the shower is being installed in a commercial setting. There are more businesses that require showers than most folks realize.
Of course, everyone knows that businesses that operate in the personal fitness genre have showers, but there are still others.
Schools, some restaurants, and even your local supermarket now have commercial showers for the workers to use before they climb into the car to head home after their shift is over.
Commercial showers in Pittsburgh mean Pittsburgh plumbers are doing the commercial plumbing in Pittsburgh when these showers are installed. Then just like the tankless toilet, in these businesses, a higher level of reliability and greater volume of water is required.
Particularly if there is more than one shower in operation, a greater amount of water will be needed on-demand than would be expected in a residence.
Then in businesses where the shower is a central focal point of their day-to-day operations, such as in a fitness gym, the level of reliability can’t be denied.
The showers must not malfunction in a business setting because downtime means money is lost. What’s also important to consider is that unlike the plumbing under the kitchen sink, the commercial plumbing in Pittsburgh that makes the shower operational is far less accessible.
With the exception of the shower heads and handles, it’s all located inside the wall, quite often with tile work installed over it.
So once you look deeper below the surface, it’s not hard to see that commercial plumbing in Pittsburgh undeniably has a lot to do with the showers installed there.
A Few Thoughts on Gas Line Installation and Repair In Pittsburgh
Gas lines may not be subject to damage by freezing weather, but just like everything else in and around homes and businesses, they can be subject to wear due to age.
Pittsburgh is an older city. What this means is that there are older buildings and that in turn means older gas lines.
In fact, if you could somehow visualize all the gas lines that are running underground in and around the city of Pittsburgh, what you would see is a variable spider web of pipes delivering gas to all the homes and businesses there.
The plumbers in Pittsburgh that do commercial gas line installation and gas line repair in Pittsburgh would tell you that it’s different than residential Plumbing.
For one thing, the lines tend to be larger in diameter to accommodate the greater demand. Also, on commercial tenant improvement jobs where work is being done to accommodate a new business, a higher level of knowledge and experience is required.
Commercial plumbers in Pittsburgh also work in accordance with different and often more strict municipal codes and industry norms. So this genre of commercial plumbing in Pittsburgh is different in ways that most people familiar with plumbing in Pittsburgh would reasonably be expected to know.
Then the same thing applies to gas line repair in Pittsburgh in commercial settings. This is because most commercial businesses are open to the general public; that’s a significant consideration when it comes to repairing gas leaks.
This isn’t to say that Pittsburgh gas line repair is less stringent in a home. It’s just that the permitting and inspection process on a commercial job will be.
There’s A Lot To Cover When It Comes To Water Lines
It’s true. There really is a lot to talk about when the subject of plumbing in Pittsburgh and water lines comes up. For starters, water lines and their functions are incredibly diverse. Then as time progresses, the topic becomes even more complex.
For example, your grandparents would have never dreamed that someday a small reliable water heater that heats water on demand could be installed underneath the kitchen sink.
With a twist of the lever, the cold water could be instantly turned into hot water for a cup of coffee or tea or a bowl of instant soup. This without having to wait so much as one second.
The same water heater technology is also replacing older-style water heaters that use precious energy to keep a tank full of water hot 24 hours a day.
Water softeners are yet another appliance plumbers in Pittsburgh are installing with increasing numbers.
It isn’t until people actually see and feel the difference between the hard water that comes out of the taps and water that has been processed through the water softener that they come to appreciate it.
It cleans better. That applies to anything from laundry to how you feel as you step out of the shower. Water pipes in Pittsburgh that exit a water softener also deliver water that tastes better and is more healthy to drink.
Contrary to popular belief, all the minerals contained in hard water are in most cases in excess of dietary requirements.
People susceptible to kidney stones, for example, are often advised by their doctor to stop drinking mineral water. In its own way though, mineral water is coming out of water pipes in Pittsburgh.
Hard water is just bad for plumbing in general as well. It’s responsible for the crust that clogs up the screen on kitchen and bathroom faucets. Minerals that precipitate out of boiling water also form the white crust inside your coffee pot.
But that’s just what you can see because plumbers in Pittsburgh will tell you that that same white crust builds up on the inside of faucets and kitchen appliances.
Listen To What Plumbers In Pittsburgh Have to Say About Water Line Leaks
If you want to know about water line leaks, then the people to talk to would be plumbers in Pittsburgh. They deal with water leaks every day, and the one thing they will all tell you is they won’t go away on their own.
Water is a determined adversary, and once there is even a tiny pinhole leak, it’s going to use it to wreak havoc on a home or commercial building if it can.
Everybody knows about toxic black mold now, and all it takes to get started is water. Even a very slight amount will do, and there are two things that you need to know about toxic mold.
The first thing is that just because you can’t see it on your walls doesn’t mean it isn’t growing on the backside of the sheetrock, in the wall cavity. Then the second thing you need to know about toxic mold is that it comes in more colors than just black.
Black tends to be the more prevalent, but there is also yellow, orange, and even red mold that can be more toxic. These colored mold varieties have different nutrient requirements, though.
The most common scenario involves these molds being fed by rat or mouse excrement, but they can also feed on any type of food residue.
Every home and commercial building should have a functioning water pressure regulator installed on the main water line, and it should be adjusted to the minimum pressure required.
Excessive pressure in water lines causes leaks in pipes. It can also lead to catastrophic blowouts on flexible plastic lines like those found under kitchen sinks and behind a toilet.