Let’s face it, not too many people put much thought into what’s inside the plumber’s toolbox.
Most people don’t really care what’s in there or how it works, so long as it gets the job done.
But we think it’s worth sharing!
That’s because your Bayside plumber deals with a wide range of challenging and unique plumbing problems.
Many of these problems require specialist tools to resolve, the likes of which you won’t find at your local hardware store.
If you’re interested in learning exactly what type of tools we’re talking about, you’ve come to the right place.
What’s inside a plumber’s toolbox?
Full disclosure before we begin: the things that go in your plumber’s toolbox or tool belt will vary depending on the types of jobs they respond to.
However, there are a couple of things you’ll find in any plumber’s van, regardless of the types of jobs they normally perform…
Familiar tools… with a twist!
Take a look at your plumber’s toolbelt – you might see a couple of tools that look familiar.
Take a closer look however and you might notice that each of these tools has a unique spin on it!
- Tongue-and-groove pliers: featuring serrated teeth, a long handle and an adjustable jaw, these pliers the perfect tool for twisting nuts, bolts and odd-shaped objects
- Pipe wrench: one of the oldest and most widely-used tools of the plumbing trade (the hint’s in the name), the humble pipe wrench is used to tighten and loosen pipe connections
- Plungers: your plumber carries a variety of plungers – one for every type of drain!
These are all the tools needed for a plumber to attend to smaller and more common plumbing problems, like leaking taps or running toilets.
Drain snakes
When your Bayside plumber encounters a blockage that can’t be undone using a plunger, out comes the trusty drain snake (also known as a “drain auger”).
Just imagine a reel of flexible metal hose with an electric metal drill bit at the very end and you have a rough idea of what a drain snake looks like.
When you encounter a deep or stubborn blockage, your plumber feeds the drain snake down your drain or toilet until they reach the source of the blockage.
Once there, they activate the drill bit, which physically breaks down the cause of the blockage until water flows freely again.
Drain snakes come in a variety of size – there’s a drain snake for drains of all shapes and sizes.
Some of the largest ones (which we save for the biggest jobs) has a coil that goes on for dozens of metres and needs to be powered from the van!
Pipe and tubing cutters
When your plumber orders piping, it’s usually delivered in long sections.
The problem? Your home might only need a little bit of new piping!
To fix your piping, your plumber needs to cut down the long sections of pipe down to a more suitable length. And for that, we need tubing cutters.
Unlike the good old-fashioned hacksaw, tubing cutters can be adjusted to cut different lengths of pipe. More importantly, they also guarantee a clean, even cut – most times, we don’t even need to sand down the ends when we’re finished.
Drain cameras
Back in the old days, there were only two ways to determine what the problem in a distant section of pipe was:
- Dig it up
- Take a guess
Luckily, there’s now a third option!
These days, cameras are smaller than they’ve ever been – without sacrificing resolution or picture quality. Add in live broadcasting and low-light and night vision functionality and the potential is obvious.
It wasn’t long before someone had the idea to attach cameras to a flexible metal hose, creating the first drain cameras.
These give your plumber the power to identify and prescribe problems with your plumbing remotely and with greater accurately than ever.
Call a Bayside plumber today!
Not all plumbing problems can be fixed on your own (nor should they).
What do you do if you find yourself in that situation? Call a Bayside plumber, of course!
Just like a Scout, your plumber is always prepared. Our team of expert plumbers roam Melbourne in fully-stocked vans filled with all the tools needed to tend to your plumbing problems.
The above are just a handful of the tools our team carries, giving us the ability to fix any plumbing emergencies, big or small.
Call Watermaster Plumbing’s Bayside plumbers today on 1300 156 650 or click here to book an onsite inspection with us.