We don’t normally think about our home’s gas line. Afterall, most reliably deliver gas to our homes decade after decade without issue. However, gas lines do not last forever. They should last at least 30 years, and many last much longer than that. However, they can break down. And, when they do, they can cause [...]
While you may have reached for a drain cleaner many times before, you probably don’t understand what the cleaner is doing to your pipes. All drain cleaners, except for natural enzyme-based ones, rely on chemical reactions to try to clear out your pipes. These cleaners might use lye, bleach, aluminum and sodium nitrate to create [...]
Burning plastic is not a pleasant smell. If you have it in your home and you’ve narrowed it down to the water heater, you may wonder why your water heater is putting off this smell. Burning smells are not something you should ignore, even though it’s not likely your water heater is on fire. It’s [...]
You’ve started to notice that your toilet is wobbling a bit when you sit down or stand up. Is a wobbly toilet bad? It certainly isn’t good. A toilet is designed to sit flush on the floor with proper support. If it is moving around, that means it isn’t flush. If left alone, the movement [...]
An accessory dwelling unit (ADU) is a great way to add more space and functionality to your property. However, you don't have carte blanche when you build an ADU. There are general California-wide requirements for ADUs and specific ones in Fremont that you will need to follow. One sticking point is often the bathroom: do [...]
You’re standing in the bathroom, you haven’t used the toilet, but it starts running for a second, and then stops. What is going on? This problem is calleda phantom flush. Your toilet is wasting water and driving up your utility bill. There are simple fixes to this problem, but first, you need to understand what [...]
