JA Plumbing

Copper Repiping and Tankless Water Heaters

If you’re looking for more information on residential plumbing and piping, these links from around the web are great places to start. 

• For more information on tankless water heaters and how they’ll save you money, read through this informative guide from the U.S. Department of Energy.

• If you’re looking to learn more about tankless water heaters and why storage tank technology is outdated, check out this information from the California Energy Commission’s Consumer Energy Center.

• This guide will teach you about the energy-efficient and environmentally friendly technologies behind tankless water heaters.

• To learn a bit about the history of copper and its unrivaled use as a water pipe material, read this article from the European Copper Institute.

• If your home contains galvanized steel pipes and you want to read more about why you should consider copper repiping, explore this guide from the Copper Development Association.

Feel free to pick up the phone and call (510) 314-8635 if you’d like to speak with a professional at JA Plumbing about your plumbing concerns. We’ve been providing quality plumbing repairs for over a century.

Plumbing Pipe Materials through the Centuries and the Advent of Copper Water Lines

The history of plumbing is just about as old as the history of civilization itself. Since the very first cities were built, humans have required ways of bringing in potable water and disposing of waste in a sanitary way. Read on to learn a bit about plumbing pipe materials through the centuries. If your home is still using ancient plumbing methods, it’s time to talk with an experienced plumber about copper repiping.

•  Clay: Civilizations in the Indus River Valley employed an earthen type of piping as early as 2700 B.C.! Comprised of a clay or asphalt-like material, these pipes contributed to the world’s first large cities.
• Lead: Ancient Romans developed more vast and complex plumbing systems, transporting water through aqueducts and lead pipes. In spite of lead’s toxicity, lead pipes were largely used for plumbing purposes well into the Industrial Revolution. In fact, the decline of lead pipes used for potable water did not occur until a rise in lead poisoning awareness following World War II.
• Iron and Steel: In the United States, galvanized iron or steel was a popular choice for plumbing systems throughout the late 1800s until the 1960s. Though these materials were cheaply produced, many galvanized iron or steel pipes still included an unhealthy level of lead. To this day, many older homes in the United States contain this less-than-ideal pipe material. Even top-of-the-line iron and steel pipes are very susceptible to rust and corrosion.
• Copper: Although copper has been used in the occasional plumbing system for thousands of years, it wasn’t until the early 1930s that the invention of thin-wall or light-gauge copper tubes allowed for the widespread production of copper-piped plumbing systems. Balancing this material’s strength, conduciveness, durability, and cleanliness, copper pipes remain the best for plumbing applications to this very day.

If you would like to learn more about the benefits of copper pipes or why you should schedule copper repiping for your home, call JA Plumbing at (510) 314-8635. Our qualified plumbers specialize in copper repiping.

Preventing Costly Plumbing Problems by Avoiding Clogs

Your home’s drains are likely sources of many common plumbing problems. A clogged or poorly functioning drain can be a major headache for homeowners and often requires the professional expertise of a qualified plumber.

In this video presented by Angie’s List, you will learn some pointers for keeping your home’s plumbing drains running smoothly. All plumbers agree: The most important plumbing tool a homeowner can have is a plunger. When plunging a clogged drain, remember to fill the bathtub or sink with about an inch of water in order to create a seal. Learn how to properly operate a garbage disposal and when to call a plumber by watching this video.

To speak with a professional plumber today, call JA Plumbing at (510) 314-8635. With over one hundred years of plumbing experience, we know how to do the job right.

Signs Your Conventional Water Heater Is Costing You More Than It's Worth

If your home uses a traditional hot water heater with a large storage tank, chances are you’re wasting more money and resources than you realize. Outdated water heating technologies contain inherent design flaws that lead to inefficient use of both water and gas or electricity. For the homeowner, this means unnecessarily high utility bills. Speak with a professional plumbing service to determine if your home’s water heater is inefficient and to see if you’re a candidate for a new tankless water heater. Here are some signs that indicate a conventional water heater is costing you more than it’s worth:

• When you turn the hot water handle and wait for hot water to reach your faucet, you’re wasting water and money.
• After you use hot water, the remaining hot water will stay in the pipes and eventually cool. When you next use that faucet, you will once again have to wait for hot water to arrive, leaving the cool water unused and wasted.
• In homes with a large distance spanning between the water heater and the faucet in use, short tasks like washing one’s hands will draw hot water out of your water heater, only to stop in your pipes before it’s ever actually used. Your water heater will then work to restore its tank’s set water level and temperature, wasting water, energy, and money.

If you’re tired of spending more than pennies on these wasted resources, it might be time to install a tankless water heater inside your home. Unlike conventional water heaters, these tankless water heating systems provide on-demand access to hot water, when and only when you actually need it. By directly matching your actual hot water consumption, a tankless water heater offers increased efficiency that will save you an average of 20-30% on your next water bill. Savings like this will add up over time!

Tankless Water Heaters and Sewer Maintenance

To learn more about whether a single tankless water heater is enough for your whole house and what nature can do to your sewer line over time, check out the links below.

• Head to Rinnai.us to learn more about the efficiency of tankless water heaters and calculate your potential energy savings.
• Using a tankless water heater instead of a traditional model can bring convenience and energy savings. Read more on HowStuffWorks.com.
• For more information on the nuts and bolts of tankless water heating, visit this page from EnergySavers.gov.
• Sewer lines are vulnerable to invasive tree roots, among the other obstacles Mother Nature likes to throw at them. Check out ThisOldHouse.com for more information.
• For some information about “sewer-friendly” trees you can have around your home, read this article from LATimes.com.

Contact JA Plumbing at (510) 314-8635 today for tankless water heater installation, copper repiping, and more.