Water, Water, Everywhere: Plumbing Science Explained

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Water follows physical laws based mostly on gravity and pressure. This is the main idea of the science of plumbing. The rest is mostly the exact effects of pressure and gravity on water, and how these factors control its flow. Grasping a basic understanding of how water moves can help you make small repairs or come to recognize the severity of certain plumbing issues. Such knowledge would, no doubt, not only be useful but could save your house and money.

Plumbing systems work in two ways; one is to take water in, and the other is to take water out. In summary, it’s clean water in, dirty water out. If that simple order or sequence gets mixed up, it’s time to call a plumber to fix a monumental plumbing disaster.

How does clean water come into your home? That is explained by the natural law of pressure. The pressure allows clean water to pass through pipes, travel upwards to one or several floors, move left or right into this room or that, wherever it’s needed. Those ubiquitous water valves control the way these pressurized water move in and around your home. Coldwater flows from the primary pipes following the process described above. But if you need hot water, the cold water is first redirected to an installed water heater in your home that warms it up. The heated water then travels along the hot water line that again brings the water to all outlets in the home that requires hot water, like the dishwater, the bathtub, or the shower.

If water intake is simple science, so is water and waste outtake. But often, plumbing problems caused by waste outtake result in more costly repairs than the intake. There is a need for the skilled expertise of certified plumbers, or if you plan to repair it yourself, the right “non-leery” attitude, for obvious reasons.

Dirty waste water, after all, leaves your house following the law of gravity. Wastewater goes downward to the sewer or septic tank, nice and easy. Behind this simple rule is the multitude of vents and traps to keep the process of waste removal possible. Vents allow air to fill drainpipes, precious air that allow wastewater outflow. The S-shaped portions of the pipes underneath the sink drain are traps. Traps perform a crucial role in forcing most of the water through the drainpipe but leaving some to seal the area and prevent sewer gas from backing up.

Plumbing, clearly, is a science. Ignore the science behind it and your home will either be flooded, or you will encounter water damage of varied proportions. Undertaking any plumbing repair, particularly major damages, is best left to the capable hands of plumbers. Some areas have particular local plumbing codes that need to be checked on whether or not a homeowner is allowed to self-repair plumbing problems.

Over time, understanding the science behind plumbing can save you money and help to better know your own home.

So if you are looking for a professional plumber in Maui, then please call us at 808-563-4054 or complete our online request form.

What Our Clients Say

Matt was very professional and considerate as we are in a COVID world. May not necessarily be the cheapest but you are paying for the quality, peace of mind, and quick response time to my urgent matter. I will definitely call them again for my next plumbing issue.

-Elias S.

If you have any plumbing needs this is the company to use. They said they would be there at 9:30 and by gosh, they showed up at 9:28 that not a normal thing when it comes to plumbing. Both of them were not they answered all my questions without hesitation and got the job done within 45 minutes even though they said it would take an hour and a half.

-Bob J.

Brayden and Maka worked on a major repair at our home over a time period of four days. We have high praise for both of them, their professionalism, courtesy, friendliness, and reliability. Steve’s Plumbing is lucky to have these two fine employees.

-Ulrich

Shon Bolo was very courteous. He was very informative about how Plumbing is just as important as the engine of a car. He was very respectful. Even though I wasn’t able to get everything done as expected. Shon was able to install my laundry tub to get my washer ready to drain and connected. Definitely would recommend shon bolo to friends and neighbors. Thank you very much for the wonderful job. Great service Shon!!

-Rowena H.

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