Bathroom Sink Plumbing – 5 Essential Parts

Every residential plumbing in Toronto has different parts and sections. One of the areas that play an essential role in your home’s systems is the bathroom sink plumbing and its critical components.

But why do you need to have bathroom sink plumbing occasionally? Every home plumbing fixture, for example, bathroom sinks, has several parts that can become blocked, break or leak.

As soon as you feel you need bathroom sink plumbing, contact professional plumbers in Toronto and let them solve the problem.

However, if you want to avoid frequent problems in your bathroom sink plumbing, it is crucial to know the primary parts of the system to choose and buy the most efficient and highest-quality ones.

Primary Parts of Any Bathroom Sink Plumbing System:

  1. Shutoff Valves
  2. Supply Tubes
  3. Drain Tailpiece
  4. P-Trap
  5. Drain Pipes

Now, let’s get into the details about these essential parts of your bathroom sink plumbing system.

1- You Need Good Shutoff Valves for Your Bathroom Sink Plumbing

Shutoff valves are the first essential part of your bathroom sink plumbing. These small valves are usually made from metal or plastic and are located between the water supply pipes and the supply hoses that connect to the tailpieces on the bathroom sink faucet. Most shutoff valves used in bathroom sinks have an oval handle that you can turn to close and open the valve.

One of the best things about shutoff valves in your bathroom sink plumbing is that you can turn off the water supply at the sink without shutting off the water of your whole home.

You can install most of the shutoff valves onto the water pipes without soldering, which benefits most homeowners who want to replace them with a DIY process.

Shutoff Valves in The Bathroom Sink Plumbing are Seen in Pairs:

  • The first valve is used for controlling hot water.
  • The second valve is for controlling the cold water.

2- Use High-Quality Supply Tubes

All of the bathroom sink plumbing systems have supply tubes that need to be high-quality to avoid frequent plumbing issues. High-quality supply tubes are made of:

  • Braided wire mesh
  • White plastic mesh
  • Gray solid plastic
  • Chromed copper

These bathroom plumbing parts are generally connected to the tailpieces and shutoff valves with attached nuts. If you have issues with your supply, it is recommended to hire a professional plumber to fix them.

bathroom sink and drain system

3- The Drain Tailpiece is Also Crucial for Your Bathroom Sink Plumbing

Drain tailpieces, also known as sink tailpieces, are straight sections of pipes that connect to the bathroom sink drain fitting. If your bathroom sink has a pop-up drain, the lever rod connects to a port on the back of this particular bathroom sink plumbing part.

Usually, a high-quality drain tailpiece is attached to the drain fitting with a slip nut, a threaded ring that you can tighten or loosen by hand, or channel-type pliers. A tapered plastic washer under the slip nut creates a watertight seal for your bathroom sink plumbing system.

Note: Remember to use tailpieces in your bathroom sinks that have slip nut joints since if you ever drop anything into the sink drain, you can easily disassemble the joint and retrieve your item.

4- Every Bathroom Sink Plumbing System Has P-Trap

Your bathroom sink plumbing system has a P-Trap which is made up of two primary parts:

  1. U-Bend
  2. Trap Arm

These two parts of your P-Trap are curved sections that allow your sink to connect to your home’s sewer line. The curved trap is used in the system to provide a safety feature for holding standing water and preventing sewer gasses from rising up and out of your bathroom sink drain.

Every time you run water down the bathroom drains, the old wastewater in the bend is flushed out and replaced with new water. You or your plumber need to assemble the P-Trap parts with slip-nut joints.

5- Be Precise When Choosing Drain Pipes

The last part of your bathroom sink plumbing system is the drain pipe. It is connected to your residential plumbing system from one side, and the other side is connected to the trap arm with another slip nut joint. With slip nut joints, replacing or repairing the pipes will be easier.

Most of the drain pipes used in bathroom sinks are three inches in diameter. However, depending on your fixture, you can choose a smaller or larger one.

Best Residential Boiler Maintenance Guide for You

If your home has a boiler room, you should know its type and learn how a forced air boiler differs from a steam heat boiler. Each system will affect the energy efficiency of your facility. Besides that, you should know how the residential boiler maintenance process works if you want your home plumbing system to function efficiently.

Nowadays, most modern houses and facilities have different types of boilers that heat water and distribute warm air, steam, or hot water to heat the building. If your residential plumbing system has boiler heating, you will want to ensure it is in good condition before the cold seasons arrive.

As professional plumbers in Canada, we want to get you ready by touching on each type of system and provide residential boiler maintenance tips to help you keep the plumbing system running efficiently throughout the year.

Generally, a residential boiler heats water that moves either steam or water through pipelines to keep your house warm and comfortable via radiators.

Steam and Water Heating Systems in Residential Boiler Rooms

Before getting to the residential boiler maintenance process, you should know the steam and water heating systems and their functionality. Radiators and boiler systems are not generally installed in new homes; however, traditional heating systems are still used in old houses, apartments, and older office facilities.

Steam Residential Boiler System

In the steam residential boiler system, the boiler heats water with burning gas or fuel and turns the water into steam. The generated steam travels through pipelines to convertors or radiators. After the steam is cooled, it condenses back into the water, and the plumbing system returns it to the boiler to be heated.

Hot Water Boiler System

The hot water residential boiler system operates on the same principle as the steam boiler. This system pumps the hot water through the procedure for heating the radiators. Other variations of hot water boiler systems distribute hot water and heat through baseboard units in the walls. The modern systems are radiant in-floor heating systems that go through tubing embedded in the floor.

Advantages of Steam and Hot Water Residential Boilers

Even though hot water and steam residential boiler maintenance and usage are dated, they have some benefits that you need to know:

  • Fewer moving parts
  • Durable and reliable
  • Clean and dust-free heat
  • Maintain the ambiance and appearance of old buildings

Disadvantages of Steam and Hot Water Boilers

  • Uneven and inefficient heat distribution
  • Require diligent gas residential boiler maintenance
  • Expensive installation
  • Accessibility problems
  • Issues with furniture placement

Forced Air Boiler System for Homes

The forced air boiler is another standard system that requires knowledge and residential boiler maintenance. This home boiler heating system heats water and sends it to a hydronic coil similar to the refrigerant coil in your air conditioning system.

As the hydronic coil gets heated, a blower allocates warm air through ductwork through your home or office building, and the water goes back to the boiler for being reheated.

Advantages of Forced Air Home Boilers

  • Circulating air in the system can be humidified, dehumidified, and filtered as desired.
  • Modern air force boilers are more efficient than the old residential boilers.

Disadvantages of Forced Air Residential Boilers

  • Forced air boilers require ductwork.
  • You need space in your home wall’s structure.
  • Ducts must be heated before the system can heat the building.
  • Moving air can cause allergens and dust.

Standard vs. High-Efficiency Home Boiler Replacement

Nowadays, building regulations require that new residential boilers display their AFUE, which stands for Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency rating. High-efficiency systems that require precise residential boiler maintenance are more expensive since a house must be retrofitted to handle the plumbing system. However, it will decrease your energy bills cost.

With this said, it is better to purchase and use high-energy efficient boiler systems for your home.

Residential Boiler Maintenance Process

Regardless of the differences between the systems above, precise residential boiler maintenance is required for keeping your plumbing system efficient.

Although you can maintain your system with basic residential plumbing skills, it is better to call a plumber to check your boiler once a year.

Before calling a professional for your system, there are things you can do for your residential boiler maintenance.

Residential Boiler Maintenance Checklist

  • If your boiler doesn’t heat the way it should, you can bleed them by placing a protective cloth on the floor and using a radiator key to open the valve. Close the valve after the hissing sound stops, and the water flow starts.
  • Blocked air vents can prevent your residential boiler from efficient functionality. Thus, check the flues and air vents, and if you detect any blockage, clear it to allow the air to flow freely.
  • You should check the water level in your boiler; and if the water is below the manufacturer’s suggested number, check for any plumbing leaks. If there are leaks, you should repair them ASAP.
  • If the overflow pipe of the boiler has leakage, you should hire a plumber to replace it.
  • It would be best if you allowed your boiler to breathe by clearing the system’s area from boxes, bags, and other equipment.
  • Check if your boiler’s flame has a blue color. If it is yellow or orange, call a professional.