While the ants may have been killed initially, the pest company may not want a hacked-off client calling in a year wondering why the ants are back. Not all companies will insist upon, or even suggest, long-term contracts. It is your prerogative to search out the company whose policies you feel most comfortable with.
If you don't want to pay someone to do preventive treatments, you are not necessarily doing your property a disservice as long as you are vigilant and have reduced the risks of recurrence.
Q: I am having a shower installed, and the plumber says he will lose his license if he puts in any shower smaller than 36 by 36 inches. The existing shower is 32 by 32 inches. It will take a lot of work and money to get the larger shower in position. Am I being taken for a ride, and what do I do?
A: The Uniform Plumbing Code requires a shower interior measurement of no less than 1,024 square inches (which happens to be a 32 x 32 square) and must be able to encompass a 30-inch diameter circle inside. This requires a rough framing opening significantly larger than 32 x 32 inches; the exact dimension depends on the curb and flange depth. For neo-angle showers, the two straight dimensions must be at least 38 inches. So it would appear that you indeed need a bigger shower.
Q: We had several water heaters online at work, each with a double check-valve backflow preventer. The relief valves were almost continually activating until we added an accumulator. Can you discuss this please?
A: Any time you close a system with a water heater connected, whether through a common pressure-reducing valve, a closed-gate valve, or an inline-check valve, you will get an increase in pressure, as the first reader points out.
Most new water-heater installations are now required to have accumulators (commonly called expansion tanks or bladder tanks).
About the size of a basketball, typically mounted close to the tank itself, these units absorb some of the pressure as water is heated.
They reduce the likelihood the TPR will activate, lessening the increased pressure on the plumbing lines and tank.
Problem is, the increase in pressure will overcome the accumulator eventually (unless it has a "blow-off" feature).
Fact is, humans use and maintain water heaters, and no matter how many ways it may have been incorrectly operated with regard to valves and switches, and no matter how the thermostat, expansion tank or connected plumbing is working, the TPR is the ultimate and last line of defense.
To put the "scare tactics" in perspective: Lacking a TPR, you are not assured of having an explosion. However, if you do have an operating TPR, you can rest assured that you won't. |
