Hello to all,

I want to talk to you about cracks in tiled floors.

If you have a older house, perhaps, and your tiled bathroom floor has a long, virtually straight, crack that reaches from wall to wall, this may indicate a structural problem.  If the crack goes through the center of the tiles, not just the grout lines, and the tiles along the crack are still firmly imbedded, this more than likely indicates that one (or more) of your floor joists have been damaged from water, insects, or may have just sagged over time.  This kind of damage can cause your tile floor to crack along the plane of the most affected joist.  A true repair may involve demolition of the bathroom and replacement of the joists and sub-floor. 

In a newer house, a straight line crack on your bathroom floor usually indicates improper tile installation.  If the crack affects only the grout lines, turns 90 degrees, or several tiles and/or the grout is loose surrounding the crack, this may indicate that your tile was set directly onto the plywood sub-floor, rather than a proper tile substrate (or base layer).  Wood expands and contracts with the amount of moisture in the air.  If tile is set on plywood, problems tend to show up at the joints where expansion is greatest.  To properly set tile, a cementious backer board on thin-set (as a cushion) should go over the plywood sub-floor, with staggered joints to avoid cracking.  The good news is that your joists and sub-floor should not need replacing.  The bad news is that all that tile you paid to have installed just a few years ago must be ripped up and replaced. 

Avoiding problems with tile is as simple as knowing a few rules, and insisting on the proper tile installation.  Always remember that tile is supposed to be set with a cementious product (such as thin set), on a cementious backer-board (such as Durock), for all floors and any wet applications like showers and tub surrounds.  Other materials like mastic on drywall tile installations only work well for tile installations on walls in non-wet areas such as kitchen backsplashes and wainscot (tile to a four foot height on bathroom walls, not including shower and/or tub surrounds). 

If there is a crack in your tile floor, ask yourself when the tile was installed.  Then try to get a look under the floor to see if there is any evidence of joist damage such as mold, discoloration, sagging, rot, or insect holes.  Contact a professional as soon as possible if you see any of these signs.  Improper installation is not dangerous, but should be addressed before water damage can occur.

Rebecca

Welcome to Pro-Cision, LLC’s Toolbox Tips.  The idea for this blog comes from the questions and experiences from our clients, family, and friends. 

The process of home renovation and maintenance can be a daunting experience.  We would like to share tips, ideas, and personal experiences with you in an effort to make the process an easier one for you. 

Pro-Cision, LLC is a small, family owned, and operated, renovations company based in Decatur, GA.   Our co-owners, the brother/sister team of Mike and Rebecca Williams, will be contributing to this endeavor.  Mike is our specialist in trim carpentry, framing, foundations, and tile installation.  He has more than ten years experience in these fields.  Rebecca is our specialist in finishes, including drywall, paint, and plumbing.  She has more than sixteen years experience in these areas. 

Please feel free to forward any comments, questions, or topic ideas regarding previous posts or your own project to us.   We are asking you to sign up as a user (it’s free!!) before you comment to help manage spam.  These comments are moderated as well (also for spam), so it may take up to 24 hours for your comment to appear.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Hello to all!

Rebecca here.  I want to have an honest talk with you about garbage disposals. 

From a purely plumbing standpoint, garbage disposals are one of the worst things you can do to your pipes.  Imagine this:  your water lines are like the arteries in your body.  They carry the clean fresh water to your sink, dishwasher, clothes washer, etc.  Your drain lines then are like the veins of your body, carrying away the waste.  In your kitchen sink, there will inevitably be some grease and food particles washed down the drain.  If you have a garbage disposal, you introduce ground up food particles to this mix of “stuff” washing down your drains.  This, over time, causes an arteriosclerosis of sorts of your drains where grease and starch cause the food particles to stick, then cements over the particles with another sticky layer of grease and starch, which causes another layer of food particles to stick, and so on.  The diameter of your pipe shrinks as the layers accumulate, causing stoppages.  Eventually, the cement paste of grease, starch, and food particles grows to such a degree that it collapses on itself when drain cleaning machines are used, and the entire pipe must be replaced.

So what can I do to maintain healthy pipes, you ask?  The best option is to pour all cooking grease into an empty lidded can (like an empty coffee can) to toss in the garbage when it gets full.  Then, you start a compost pile in your backyard and put all those chopped veggies, used coffee grounds, and egg shells into it (no meat products, though!).  Good for your garden, the environment, and your drain lines.

If you absolutely insist on keeping your garbage disposal, then follow these rules:  NEVER put excessively fibrous or starchy materials such as celery, potato skins, or rice into your disposal.  Always use cool water to rinse your disposal.  Occasionally, grind up eggshells or a little ice to clean the sticky debris from inside your disposal, this will make it smell better as well. 

If your disposal mysteriously stops working, try these tricks before you call a plumber:  If you turn on your disposal switch and there is NO sound at all, try pressing the red reset button on the bottom of your unit.  If you turn on the disposal and it makes a humming noise but will not grind, turn it back off and use the hex key provided with the unit (or the proper size hex wrench if you have a set) to manually turn the cutting blades.  If there is an obstruction, this should clear it.  If neither of these tricks work, and your machine still will not work, consider changing the unit yourself. 

Insinkerator Badger 5 has a great reputation as a decent disposal, or look at any top rated unit from Consumer Reports.  There are detailed directions in the box, if you dare attempt the swap yourself.  Otherwise, sorry, but it is time to call in a professional plumber.