DIY: Don’t Hire a Plumber Just Yet!

Did you know that plumbers in the Philippines need to pass a board exam to become certified? Yeah, actually, anyone can take that board exam and be called Master Plumbers. Even architects need to take on it if they want to design a building or house and lot for sale in Cagayan De Oro or anywhere as long as they are in the jurisdiction of the country.

But not you! No, you are here on the internet exactly because you can fix your own problems like the DIY master that you are! And why not, even someone with plumbing experience but no certification may set you back around P300, not including the cost of the materials that will be used for the fix. For some jobs, you will definitely need an expert to work on your waterways but there are problems that you can come to the internet to fix like…

Leaky Faucets

Two problems are present with leaky faucets: the constant tapping noise that it makes against the sink, and the fact that it’s leaking and costing you money. If you can’t sleep at night because of the constant tapping, just tie a string to lead water gently to the surface without impact.

Fix leaky faucet

You get the picture; just lead the water gently down and you’re good. If anything else, you would probably want to replace that faucet head or at least the tighten the knob. Here’s a video to help you better.

Clogged Drainage

Some would think that Coca-cola, after getting to room temperature, can be poured down the drain to corrode whatever is clogging it. While that may be true, it will also take about 2 liters of the sweet, sweet beverage for the unclogging to happen. Not cost efficient.

Instead, go for an inexpensive baking soda. Just pour a cup of the salty substance on a very dry sink/tub (pour it dry as well, by the way), and help it down with very hot water (presumably to help it dissolve into a fat-melting solution). You follow this up by pouring another cup of baking soda and help it down with vinegar this time—just remember to immediately plug the opening. It’s a well-known trick that vinegar + baking soda turns into a bubbly substance great for making volcano science projects with, but this chemical reaction also deodorizes the drainage using carbon and salt.

Busted Toilet Flush

In case you are here because you really don’t know anything about how a toilet works, you can repair a busted toilet flush manually if your problem is just the link that displaced the plug.

Flush toilet manually

Most of the time, you can fix this by just joining the junctions with a string or copper wire. Or you can just, you know, use other water-displacement systems that make flushes work, ie, “buhos-buhos(water pouring)” system.

If anything else, these tips should set you up well for common plumbing problems you may encounter in your newly bought house and lot in Cagayan de Oro. Keep that 300 bucks for a really rainy day.