http://www.drainworks.com/blog Terry Cord's quest for truth, justice, better plumbing and drains that work right Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:57:46 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2012/01/blockage-in-pipes-water-backed-up-in-basement/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2012/01/blockage-in-pipes-water-backed-up-in-basement/#comments Fri, 06 Jan 2012 20:48:41 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3799 Feedback submitted by Maureen Harman from Toronto to HomeStars.com on Dec 22, 2011:

“Christmas week due to a blockage in pipes, water backed up in our basement to our horror. Everyone can understand the panic that takes over when this happens. I called Drainworks and immediately felt I was in the hands of professionals. I called at 8am and by noon Mike Dunn was in our basement examining the possible problem and probable solutions. I found Mike explained things clearly and succinctly and it all made sense. He showed us on the camera where the blockage was happening caused by tree roots and explained that we needed a new piece of plastic piping installed to replace the very old piping. Next day two coworkers arrived and they were equally impressive and they worked efficiently and Mike returned to run the camera again so that we could see our problem was solved. Mike was just great, a pleasure to deal with and, I suspect a huge asset to the company. I hope he gets a nice holiday bonus as people like him are rare to find and must be rewarded. I would recommend this company highly. Thanking you for relieving a stressful situation.” ~  Maureen Harman]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2012/01/blockage-in-pipes-water-backed-up-in-basement/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/sanitary-drain-pipe-replacement-toronto/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/sanitary-drain-pipe-replacement-toronto/#comments Wed, 28 Dec 2011 20:39:51 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3793 Originally posted on Homestars on Jan 3, 2011

Review from C. O’Hanley in Toronto Re: Replace 14 ft of Outside Sanitary Drain Pipes

“We had drain problems 2 days before Xmas. Armando Gatti from DrainWorks came and fixed temporarily, then his crew came back after Xmas to replace our drain pipe which was blocked with tree roots. The job turned out to be complex – they had to dig down 10 feet, tunnel, and then discovered that 4 houses connected into our pipe, requiring replacement of some very large, non-standard pipes and fittings which were difficult to locate during the holiday week.

The crew was fantastic – they worked long and hard in the cold weather digging, they kept us informed of the issues, options and cost impact, and were very careful about safety issues. After the job was done, they cleaned up the site, and even put down a layer of new topsoil where the hole was dug, and salt on the walk where it was wet from hosing the earth (to compact it).

Prior to making the final payment, Armando met with us and did a complete camera inspection of the drains so we could see what had been done and that there were no further problems in the drains.

Through out the process, the DrainWorks team kept us informed, arrived when they said they would, were upfront about what our options were and how much they would cost, and were very helpful in explaining how the city’s rebate program worked.

We were very happy with the service that the DrainWorks team gave us and would highly recommend them!”

Visit HomeStars.com for more reviews.

]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/sanitary-drain-pipe-replacement-toronto/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/toronto-blocked-main-sewer-line-fix/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/toronto-blocked-main-sewer-line-fix/#comments Wed, 21 Dec 2011 20:38:40 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3790 Review from from Marie in Cedarvale (originally posted on HomeStars on Dec 10, 2011)

“Our main sewer line was blocked, and snaking revealed a huge tangle of roots nearly completely occluding the pipe. Unfortunately, our house did not have appropriately-sized cleanouts to deal with the issue. DrainWorks had a team out the same day to inspect and snake the line. They proposed installing proper external cleanouts and then removing the roots. The proposal was in line with other estimates we had obtained, but at half the price. The work was completed in a single 9-to-5 day, and they even replanted a bush that we thought would be lost. They also sent a technician back that night to snake the line again for us and point out where potential problems might arise in years to come. All company representatives were courteous, friendly, thoughtful, and took time to explain the options and alternatives. Though I certainly hope never to have to, we would definitely use their services again.”

]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/toronto-blocked-main-sewer-line-fix/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/getting-rid-of-drain-flies-toronto/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/getting-rid-of-drain-flies-toronto/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:36:50 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3784 drain flies in your home, they’re typically around 1/16” in length, and can vary in color, mostly in shades of the red/yellow/orange spectrum.

Drain flies can be an absolute nuisance, and a rather difficult one to address, if you aren’t approaching the problem the right way. To give everyone a bit of a primer, drain flies primarily tend to breed/develop in the moist areas we have in our homes. Some of the major culprits for housing them are septic tanks, garbage cans, compost bins, drains, be it underground (sanitary lines) or aboveground (kitchen sinks, bathroom sinks, etc). Basically, anywhere there can be slimy residue (from soap scum, food waste, etc), or stagnant water is a prime area to investigate.

One thing you can try to do to remedy them is to put tape over the suspected drain(s) and remove it a few hours later to determine if there are any on the adhesive side that have tried to fly out of the drain. The adult drain flies tend to be very poor fliers and will get stuck very easily.

The drain flies really are a twofold problem; they’re a pest in their own right, and also indicate/act as a symptom of a bigger, underlying issue possibly. Once you’ve identified where they are coming from, you absolutely want to address the issue promptly as they procreate and spread rather rapidly; they can lay hundreds of thousands of eggs within a few weeks.

Some common household remedies that can work with success, albeit, sometimes limited, is to try any of the following – bleach, vinegar, boiling water in the problem area/problem drain. The reason, I say “limited success” is that, unless you’ve been able to eliminate all of them, they stand the chance to breed again in rapid succession.

If you’ve been unable to rectify this issue once and for all, feel free to give us a call. We’ve been dealing with issues like drain flies for 15+ years, and have won the Consumer’s Choice award for Drain Service excellence for an unprecedented 11 consecutive years. In fact, if the drain flies are coming out of your basement floor drain, call us before January 31, 2012 for a camera inspection of your underground sanitary drain system and quote this promo “FLY50” for $50 off the camera inspection! Don’t forget, you must print off this blog post and present it to our technician to take advantage of this great offer!

Yours in telling flies to “buzz” off,
Terry Cord,
President and Founder,
DrainWorks Plumbing
]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/getting-rid-of-drain-flies-toronto/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/water-service-upgrade-for-toronto-east-customer/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/water-service-upgrade-for-toronto-east-customer/#comments Fri, 02 Dec 2011 22:04:26 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3753 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/12/water-service-upgrade-for-toronto-east-customer/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-emergency-drain-cleaning/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-emergency-drain-cleaning/#comments Tue, 29 Nov 2011 22:27:17 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3740 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-emergency-drain-cleaning/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/north-york-sewage-back-up/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/north-york-sewage-back-up/#comments Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:30:11 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3677 DrainWorks. Within less than 24 hours Matt was fixing it. He was friendly, courteous and efficient. I would hire them again (but hopefully won’t need to)! - Happy North York Customer -]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/north-york-sewage-back-up/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-drain-replacement/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-drain-replacement/#comments Tue, 08 Nov 2011 14:44:55 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3673 Mike and his team (including the people in the office) were friendly and professional. They replaced a lot of bad pipe. They job was completed on time and they were very tidy. They were great! - Camille in York -]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-drain-replacement/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-sewer-replacement/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-sewer-replacement/#comments Tue, 01 Nov 2011 15:52:12 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3670 DrainWorks. Long story short, in August 2011 Drainworks’ work on our property revealed an existing fault with the city-owned portion of our water service. The symptoms (severe lack of water pressure) were intermittent, combine that with the fact that Drainworks had just completed major work and we had a hard time convincing the city that their portion was at fault. Frank from Drainworks spent much time and effort at our house proving that their work was good and working with the city to restore our water. He is was always responsive and available over the 2 weeks or so it took to resolve our issue. I’m sure it was an low-profit job for Drainworks because of all the additional time spent and work done but he was always friendly and understanding that we needed our water back. Thanks Frank and crew!]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/11/toronto-sewer-replacement/feed/ 0 http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/10/toronto-drain-pipe-repair/ http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/10/toronto-drain-pipe-repair/#comments Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:49:30 +0000 admin http://www.drainworks.com/blog/?p=3666 DrainWorks was amazing! Not only did they come out the same day I called, but fully accessed and fixed my problem within 24 hours. And let me assure you it was one big stinky mess! their techs were kind, courteous, competent, professional and clean. What more could you ask for? Thank you DrainWorks! - Allie Cambridge in Toronto -]]> http://www.drainworks.com/blog/2011/10/toronto-drain-pipe-repair/feed/ 0