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Ken's Plumbing | Blog

Ken Flournoy

Ken Flournoy: Owner and Master Plumber. Born in Norfolk, Virginia, and raised as a Navy brat, Ken has lived all over the country, from Estill, South Carolina to Hawaii.

Recent Posts

Putting off Plumbing Repairs Costs More in the Long Run

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Aug 17, 2016 8:00:00 AM


Many households end up putting plumbing problems on the back burner when it comes to calling in a professional to help. Either other expenses come up and eat away at money saved to help take care of that plumbing bill or they just can't afford to take time off work to let the plumber in the house.

By getting caught up in every day responsibilities, it's easy to believe other chores take precedence over a leaky faucet. However, if you continue to neglect "small" repairs, you may find yourself looking at a much larger and costlier repair in the future.

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Topics: Plumbing Hacks, Plumbing

Landscaping Choices That are Bad News for Your Plumbing

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Aug 10, 2016 8:00:00 AM

We bet you didn't know that the plants you choose to landscape your yard with could have an affect on your plumbing, but they definitely can! Now, we aren't saying planting marigolds around your mailbox is going to cause your water heater to quit on you, but some larger plants like trees and bushes can actually affect how your toilets, sinks, and showers drain.

To help you avoid problems down the road, here's a list of trees, bushes, and plants that you should keep out of your yard (no matter how pretty they'd look):

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Topics: Plumbing

Buying a New Home? Check the Plumbing First!

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Aug 3, 2016 8:00:00 AM

You've finally found your dream home! Not only is it beautiful inside and out and the perfect size for your family, it's also close to your work, it's in a great school district, and there are plenty of children in the neighborhood for your kids to play with!

But before you finalize the sale, do yourself a favor and check the plumbing throughout the house to know for sure whether this great house is too good to be true. To help you out, we created this plumbing checklist so you'll know exactly what to look for:

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Topics: Plumbing

8 Plumbing Things You Need to Know

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Jul 27, 2016 8:00:00 AM

You learn a lot in the course of your lifetime, and, of course, some of the facts and information you pick up along the way are more important than others. For example, we're sure you learned the Pythagorean Theorem at some point, which was useful only to pass the test you had on it. Meanwhile, you likely never learned about maintaining your pumbing, which is useful from the very moment you move out on your own through the rest of your life.

We're here to help you close the knowledge gap and learn some useful plumbing information that can help you identify small problems before they become huge disasters, and maybe even help you stop an occurring disaster before it can go from bad to worse!

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Topics: Plumbing

It's Time to Upgrade to High-Efficiency Plumbing

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Jul 20, 2016 8:00:00 AM

If your home was built before the 1990s and you're still using the plumbing that was built into the house, it's safe to say you're wasting both time and money. You need to install WaterSense labeled products which will allow you to save dozens of gallons of water per year, which means you can save hundreds of dollars, too!

If you've made a conscious effort to turn off lights in rooms you're not in, set your thermostat to more efficient temperatures, and do larger loads of laundry, it's time for you to make high-efficiency plumbing a part of your eco-friendly lifestyle as well. Discover the difference it can make:

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Topics: Plumbing

Plumbing Tips for Summer

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Jul 13, 2016 8:00:00 AM

Seasonal plumbing issues reach far beyond clogged toilets at Thanksgiving and frozen pipes during an ice storm. Just as many things can go wrong in the summer, but with the added stress of some of them occuring while you're out on the beach and won't be home to discover them for another 3 days.

To help keep your Summer as carefree as it should be, we've made you a quick plumbing checklist to help you and your family prevent disasters before they strike:

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Topics: Plumbing

Do You Need a Professional to Replace Your Water Heater?

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Jun 29, 2016 8:00:00 AM

Listen, we get it. We know you want a DIY solution to your hot water heater problem because it means you save a couple of bucks, but we can assure you this is a situation where the cons are downright dangerous and outweigh the pros of saving some money.

Your water heater is one of your more dangerous home appliances because of the dozens of gallons of extremely hot water, gas lines, pressure-controlled tanks, etc. Discover why you need to put away your toolbox and pick up your phone to schedule an appointment with your professional plumber when it comes to water heater replacement:

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Topics: Water Heaters

How Do Faucets Control the Temperature of Water?

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Jun 22, 2016 8:00:00 AM

One of the best things about modern plumbing is that it just kind of works. You don't necessarily have to think about where your water goes when it drains or how a faucet can produce hot and cold water, but when you start thinking about those things, it can be hard to figure out how everything actually works.

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Topics: Water Heaters

4 Signs You Need to Start Shopping for a New Water Heater

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Jun 15, 2016 8:00:00 AM

Replacing a major home appliance is never fun or convenient, but the experience can go just a little smoother if you can start preparing for such a major purchase before things head totally south.

So if you're suspicious that your water heater may be on the road to failure, check out this list to see if your unit's symptoms match up with these 4 signs that your water heater might be giving up, and plan ahead for a replacement:

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Topics: Water Heaters

Electric Water Heaters vs. Gas Water Heaters

Posted by Ken Flournoy on Jun 8, 2016 8:00:00 AM

So far we've given you a list of things to consider when shopping for a new water heater, and we've compared traditional and tankless models, so this week we thought we'd help you learn the differences between gas water heaters and electric water heaters.

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Topics: Water Heaters