As a business owner, your main goal is to run a successful business. Having an operational bathroom without the proper plumbing can drive away customers. Often, being a successful business correlates to having proper plumbing.
ASAP Plumbing can offer commercial plumbing services that your business needs to continue to strive. It is your responsibility as a business owner to know the top signs of when it is time to reach out to ASAP Plumbing for your commercial plumbing repairs.
Clogged Drains
Commercial buildings tend to have more of an issue with clog drains than residential homes. Most people do not flush paper towels and other rubble down their drains at their own homes. This rubble will stick together causing the pipes to become clogged, slowing the release of water down (low water pressure). Clogged drains may lead to larger problems and look unprofessional to your customers.
Faucet Leaks
A faucet leak may seem like a little problem however, it can lead to thousands of gallons of water being wasted a year. This will allow your water bills to be much higher than it should be. With faucet leaks, you only see what’s happening on the outside but what is happening within your pipes behind drywall? This could lead to water damage, mold and foundation issues to your property. You want to make sure you identify your leaks and call ASAP Plumbing.
Sewage Odor
Sewage odor is one of the easiest problems business owners can identify. The smell of sewage lingers throughout the business and will not only drive away customers, but it creates an extremely unhealthy work environment. This smell normally comes from a sewage block. Our commercial plumbers know how to detect the block in your sewer line and fix those issues efficiently.
Silent Leaks
Silent blocks are often identified by watching your water bill spike. Again, this could cause you to be wasting gallons of water a month without you noticing it until your bill comes in. Silent leaks are dangerous because they can cause health problems in the form of toxic mold.
Running Toilets
Running toilets can be spotted by the draining of water or the toilet flushing at random intervals. This is often caused because of a failed toilet flapper. A toilet flapper helps to seal the toilet float to keep water from running and overflowing the toilet. A failure to get your running toilet fixed will result in higher water bills.
Why Commercial Plumbing Is Different from Residential
Commercial plumbing systems work harder than the same fixtures would in a home. A bathroom that gets used a few times a day in a residence might see hundreds of uses a day in a busy office, restaurant or retail space. The pipes carry more volume. The fixtures take more abuse. And the consequences of any failure are bigger, since downtime can cost a business actual revenue along with the repair itself.
Code requirements are also stricter. Commercial buildings have to meet specific standards on backflow prevention, grease management, accessibility and venting that residential code may not require at the same level. A licensed commercial plumber knows those standards and works within them, which is part of why commercial work isn’t a job for whoever is cheapest.
Water Heater Capacity Issues
Commercial water heaters get pushed harder than residential ones, and capacity issues are one of the more common problems. Symptoms include hot water that runs out during peak hours, longer recovery times between uses and rising energy costs. The cause can be:
- A unit that’s been undersized for the actual demand of the business
- Sediment buildup that’s reduced the usable capacity of the tank
- A failing element on an electric unit, leaving only one of two elements working
- A burner issue on a gas unit causing it to run inefficiently
- A tank that’s reached the end of its commercial service life
For a restaurant, salon or any business that depends on hot water, this is one of the issues most worth getting ahead of. Annual maintenance, including a thorough flush, is a small investment compared to the cost of an unplanned shutdown.
Backflow Prevention Failures
Most commercial buildings are required to have a backflow preventer on the incoming water service. The device keeps contaminated water from being pushed backward into the public supply. These devices need testing on a regular schedule, often annually, by a certified backflow tester.
Failures show up either as a failed test that requires repair, or as a leak from the device itself. Either way, ignoring the issue can put the business in violation of local code and potentially trigger penalties. A licensed plumber can repair or replace the unit and provide the documentation the local authority needs to confirm compliance.
Grease Trap and Drain Line Problems
Restaurants and food service businesses run a unique set of plumbing risks because of the volume of grease, food waste and chemicals that move through their drains. The grease trap is the first line of defense, but it only works if it’s maintained on schedule. Common issues:
- Grease traps that haven’t been pumped on schedule begin to overflow into the drain line
- Drain lines downstream of the trap clog when grease starts getting through
- Floor drains in kitchens slow down as buildup narrows the line
- Sewer odors come back through floor drains when traps dry out during slower business periods
- Lift stations or below-grade pumps fail under heavy load
Hydro jetting on a regular schedule keeps food service drains running, especially older systems. Many commercial plumbers offer maintenance contracts that include scheduled jetting along with grease trap pumping, which is often the most cost-effective way to handle this kind of system.
Plumbing Issues Specific to Buildings on the Coast
Commercial buildings along the Mississippi Gulf Coast face conditions that make some plumbing issues more common than they’d be inland. Salt air corrodes exposed metal connections faster. High humidity wears on water heaters and appliances. Hurricane season puts every system through extra stress. Specific things commercial plumbers see often in this region:
- Premature corrosion of exposed steel piping in mechanical rooms and rooftop units
- Salt damage to outdoor sillcocks, hose bibs and irrigation backflow preventers
- Sewer backups from storm surge that pushes water back through the system
- Roof drain failures that follow heavy rain when the drains haven’t been cleared
- Sediment buildup in water heaters from harder local water
Businesses across Gulfport, Biloxi, Long Beach, Pass Christian, Ocean Springs and Bay St. Louis run into these patterns over and over. The buildings that come through best are the ones with regular maintenance contracts and a relationship with a plumber who knows the building’s history.
Building a Maintenance Schedule
Most commercial plumbing problems are cheaper to prevent than to fix. A reasonable maintenance schedule for a typical commercial building includes:
- Quarterly inspection of fixtures, faucets and visible piping
- Annual water heater service including flushing and component checks
- Annual backflow preventer testing if required by code
- Scheduled grease trap pumping for any food service operation
- Periodic hydro jetting of main drain lines based on use
- Roof drain cleaning before and after hurricane season
- An annual full plumbing audit that documents the condition of the system
The total cost of regular maintenance is consistently lower than the cost of dealing with the problems that come from skipping it. For most businesses, a small monthly or quarterly maintenance fee is much easier to budget than the surprise repair bill from a system failure during business hours.
If you detect a water leak, contact ASAP Plumbing immediately at 228-865-2727 or visit www.plumbinggulfportms.com and request a free estimate! We handle services including installation, repair and full water heater replacement.