Archive for June 2015

American Way has highly trained technicians and staff to help you with all your plumbing needs, but we also understand that sometimes, the job is more easily fixed at home. There are a multitude of reasons for our plumbing to act up on us, and some of them are very easily fixed with simple plumbing hacks. Because we understand that not everything is an emergency, we’ve come up with a few of these simple plumbing hacks to help you should you need to do a quick fix by yourself. If you have a loud sink that echoes or tries to simulate a gong whenever something strikes it, consider using an expanding foam between the two sinks. This will help eliminate the empty space and help offer more stability between the two – meaning, no more gong music when you’re trying to do the dishes. You can use your toilet after turning off the water – and if you’re in need of turning the water off due to extenuating circumstances, knowing how is extremely helpful. Keep a couple of gallon buckets near your toilet. Then, when you flush, pour one into the toilet. One gallon = about one flush, so if you need to keep your water off for long periods of time, keep a few buckets. If your child has dropped a toy down the toilet, it may seem beneficial to try and plunge it out, but a plunger will actually force the toy much further down your pipes. Instead, use a wet-dry vacuum to grasp the toy without getting messy yourself. These tips can help keep your bathroom and plumbing clear when you just need a quick fix, but remember that if your situation requires a professional eye and steady hand, always contact your local plumber for professional assistance. Trying to fix it on your own can make a situation much worse. Check out our Twitter for more updates and information!

Summer is here and she’s here to stay! We all know what summer can be like in New Jersey – hot, sticky, and a pain in the butt. Don’t let summer take you by surprise and keep you immobilized with her heat, get your AC in right away! But before you do, keep in mind that regular cleaning and maintenance is needed to keep your air conditioner in the best condition. American Way offers great deals and discounts on repair and maintenance of your air conditioning unit, but because we know that not everyone can afford to have regular maintenance on their AC, here are a few ways you can reduce your need for consistent assistance when it comes to keeping your home or office cool.   Know your unit. What sort of air conditioner do you have? Different air conditioners need different routine maintenance and cleaning, so make sure that you are acutely aware of what your AC needs. You can check out your manual for instructions on regular upkeep and cleaning, or you can go online to look up similar guidelines. Remember, not everything has the same components, so be certain that you know exactly what you’re doing before you go about cleaning every inch. If your air conditioner has coils – be certain to keep them clean. Whether these coils are inside or outside, keeping them free of debris, dust, and mold will help the efficiency of your air conditioning unit. Make certain that you can easily get to the coils before you clean them – if they are harder to get to, you may need to call for assistance. Keeping these clean will help improve the overall performance of your air conditioner, and help its life expectancy to go up, so don’t slack on it!   We’ll have a few more suggestions next week, so stay posted! Keep up with our Facebook!