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It's very likely that most people have dealt with some sort of plumbing issues at one point or another. You might spend a week or two coming home, watching the tub drain more and more slowly, and procrastinating until you're forced to call a plumber. You might find that a plunger is useless when faced with the clog in your toilet. Whatever the reason, professionals tend to charge a premium price for their services. On the other hand, you truly do not have to spend that much money. With the right tools in your plumbing supply closet, you can achieve much of what a plumber can. At the minimum, homeowners should possess the following equipment. 1. Plunger This is the foundation of a home plumbing supply and is almost always the first thing you'll want to try for backups and clogs. You can find them in sizes best suited for sink/tub drains and for toilets. The most important thing is that it forms a tight seal with the drain. Most small plungers will work for sinks and tubs, but for toilets, it's best to buy one with a wedge sticking out from the bottom. That wedge will fit into the drain itself, ensuring a proper seal. 2. Hand Auger and Snake This is simply a long, thin wire with a bore at the end and is often fed through a straight tube with a handle to turn. If the plunger fails, you can easily feed this down through a tub or sink drain. Proper force should remove any blockage. 3. Closet Auger This is a similar concept as the hand auger and snake, except with a shorter and wider snake for the toilet drain. The snake is fed into a hook shaped tube that goes down the drain. These can be used with a great deal of force, and is perhaps the most important quick fix tool in your plumbing supply kit. 4. Adjustable Pliers and Wrench These are two more essential tools, this time for the piping under the sink and behind the toilet. Both have, unsurprisingly, an adjustable head that allows the user to set the distance between the grips. It can be handy to have these around, as it makes it easy to grip a pipe of any size tightly without having to change wrenches or pliers. 5. Basin Wrench This is probably the weirdest looking tool of all. With an appearance vaguely like a pogo stick, it's got a long shaft and a swiveling head. This will come in handy for reaching into the tight, narrow spaces behind walls and sinks. These are the basic pieces of equipment you'll need for your home plumbing supply to save you from hiring a professional for basic jobs. Those who want to try replacing pipes on their own might invest in a hacksaw and blowtorch. One more piece of advice; though liquid drain cleaners can be good for dealing with sediment, they're not recommended for major blockages, and any problem they can solve can be easily dealt with using the equipment listed above. When considering items for their plumbing supply, Limestone County AL residents visit McCrary Supply Corporation. Learn more at http://www.mccrarysupply.com/.
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