Ken's Plumbing | Blog

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):

5 Plants That are Bad For Your Pipes

• Oaks: These trees grow very, very slowly with elaborate root networks that grow straight down. These roots are very strong and can break through your drain and sewer pipes. So, we suggest you pass on planting new oaks and beware of future damage if you have an old oak in your yard.
• Holly bushes: While beautiful, holly bushes also have strong roots that will grow into your pipes via small cracks and will continue to grow Grow GROW until eventually they overtake the pipe clogging it up so it's unable to drain.
• Willows: These trees need more water to survive than most other trees, so unless you have a fairly sizeable body of water on your property to quench their thirst, they'll seek out water wherever they can get it — which will likely be your pipes.
• Ivy: Planting Ivy on your property is bad news. Ivy plants can cause so much damage to your pipes so quickly that they are even BANNED from being cultivated in some places! Steer clear of this ticking time bomb!
• Birch: Birch trees grow pretty tall above the ground, but what you see pales in comparison to their root system which grows up to three times as long as the branches aboveground! Neglecting to account for the root growth just about guarantees sewer damage.

When you have drain problems, you don’t want to wait for office hours to make your home livable again. 24 Hours a Day, 7 Days a Week — Ken’s Plumbing has you covered! Just give us a call at (864) 242-5511or click the banner below to schedule drain service online!

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