Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Waiting Too Long For the Hot Water to Arrive?

Here at Boden Plumbing we're always on the lookout for innovative products and services for our customers. We aim to provide options and make recommendations that are cost-effective and that will save money and resources over the long haul.

Something we've been recommending for awhile now -- for people who don't seem to get enough hot water at their fixtures or who have to wait too darn long for it to show up -- is a hot water recirculation pump. It can save time, money and energy. We've installed quite a few over the years and receive excellent feedback from our customers from the results.

Well, recently we've come across a new hot water recirculation system that we think is another great option. It reduces the water bill without affecting the gas or electric bill. In fact, for the typical household, the water saved in a year would fill more than 42,000 one-liter bottles of water -- all while cutting down on that wait time.

One pump provides faster hot water for the entire house -- and is activated by turning on any hot water faucet in the house. It fits out of the way near the water heater, and the installation is simple.  

Q: How do I know if your product will benefit me?
If it take 45 seconds or more for your water to get hot, this system will save you water, time and money.  

Q: I have a tankless water heater. Will this product work for me?
Yes, we have systems that are effective with both tankless and traditional tank-style water heaters.

 Q: Will this take up space under any of my sinks?
No, this is very small and is installed near the water heater and quickly brings hot water to all of your sinks and showers.

Q: Is there a warranty on this product?
Yes, a full five year warranty.

Still have questions? Call us here at the office at 707-996-8683, or toll free at 866-663-7477.

Wednesday, January 02, 2013

Happy New Year From Boden Plumbing

Last year right about this time we posted a few ideas for easy resolutions we thought would set you up to save a little money and a little water in 2012. Those resolutions still look pretty good today so if you're casting around for a New Year's resolution, you might want to take a look at Easy Resolutions for a Green and Prosperous New Year.

Looking for some more advice and info to set the year up right and get your plumbing in order?

Some recent posts:
 
Feng Shui Your Leaks Away for a Prosperous New Year 12.26.12
Toilet Seat Art Gives Second Life to Old Fixtures
12.12.12
The Loneliest Outhouses in the World
12.05.12
Time for Water Heater Maintenance 11.28.12
Five Simple Steps to Avoid the Plumber Around the Holidays 11.15.12
Knock, knock. Who's There? It's Probably You Water Heater 11.07.12
Where is the Water Shut-Off? (Quick this is a quiz...)
10.24.12

For all our posts over the past umpty-doodle years, check the archives. It's full of diy plumbing tips, weird plumbing news and humor, product and service highlights, and more. We plan to keep it all going so stay tuned, check back or keep us bookmarked. We'll keep you posted.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Feng Shui Your Leaks Away for a Prosperous New Year

You might think we're kidding, but we're not. All year long we talk about water conservation and the things you can do at your home or business to cut back on use -- because it's the right thing to do in water-dry California. Now we've decided to invoke a little feng shui magic to motivate and inspire for a dripless and prosperous new year.

In Feng Shui -- the Chinese art of placement -- water represents sustenance, wealth, and the flow of life. Here in the West, it's pretty easy to understand those associations.

So clean free-flowing water is a good thing (think fresh water and clear drains) but stagnant water and restricted flow, not so much. And water drip, drip, dripping from a leaking faucet or toilet? Well, consider the full implications of the expression "money down the drain".

It all makes sense - psychologically, energetically and literally.

Anywhere you have a drain, you want the outlets and lines to be clean and clear, with no obstructions. Anywhere you have a water inlet, you want faucets, shut-offs and other moving parts to be working smoothly, with no drips. (No restrictions on incoming sustenance -- and no waste!)

It's pretty simple, but you can take the whole feng shui wealth and water thing up a notch by paying attention to where in your house or office the inlets and outlets are located.

The top graphic shows what's called the 'ba gua' -- a graphical representation of the eight taoist principles of reality: wealth and opportunity; fame and recognition; relationship; creativity; helpful people and travel; career; knowledge; and family.

In the art of feng shui, the bagua can be 'laid over' -- or is superimposed on -- our physical environment. That's where the second graphic comes in.

Notice in the second graphic where the front door is indicated. If you're mapping out your house or office, orient the layout of your room or building so the entrance lines up with the lower edge of the bagua.

Next, look to see where your kitchen, bathroom or other inlets/outlets fall. In this diagram the kitchen is in the 'Fame and Recognition' area. According to feng shui, any problematic plumbing issues are going to negatively impact things relating to your reputation -- and because water is involved, those impacts may well be of the cha-ching variety. Say, people stop referring you for work, so new clients seem harder to come by...fewer clients means fewer jobs...You know, that kind of thing.

So what do you think about feng shui-ing your way into a more prosperous new year? Could be just the ticket!

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Boden Plumbing Wishes Everyone a Wonderful Holiday

    To all our customers and neighbors in
--   Sonoma Valley, Napa and Petaluma --




As always, our wish for you is a safe and prosperous New Year free of plumbing woes and worries. Knock on wood, be happy, but call us if you need us!

-- a very Merry Holiday and wonderful New Year, with best wishes from Terry, Mary, Casey, Chris, Rudy, Andy, Randy, (and his other brother) Randy AND Bruiser

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Toilet Seat Art Gives Second Life to Old Fixtures

photo credit: Julie Gomoll on flickr.
Barney Smith, toilet seat artist
It all started when retired plumber Barney Smith of San Antonia was looking for something on which to mount a set antlers. Naturally he settled on a toilet seat lid, (The shield-like shape is perfect really, you'd have to agree.) and the rest is kitschy folk art history.

Mr. Smith did not sell his art but instead amassed a collection of hundreds of uniquely decorated seats and lids. His garage served as studio and museum where he received over a thousand visitors a year.

These kind of stories always get us thinking differently about our pile of defunct fixtures out back that are destined for recylcing. (see: Steampunk-style Lamps From Plumbing Parts on this blog)

And, if Barney Smith's toilet seat art gets you feeling a bit less nostalgic about your old but familiar toilet -- like maybe you could change it out after all, send it on to a new life in Art, well we can facilitate that.

Remember, Sonoma County is offering rebates and the Sonoma County Direct Install Program is back.

---
Read more about toilet seat art:
Incredible Toilet Seat Art on Environmental Graffitti
King of the Toilet Seat Arts - Gone
The Toilet Seat Art Museum
Barney Smith's Toilet Seat Art Museum

Wednesday, December 05, 2012

The Loneliest Outhouses in the World

photo credit: Nestor Lacie on flickr

When it comes to needing to go, we humans love our privacy. Just check out this amazing collection of photos of the 13 loneliest outhouses on earth that we found on Environmental Graffitti. Even though each one of them seems to be located in the absolute middle of nowhere with nary a soul in sight, someone has still gone to the effort to set them up -- and generally situated them to afford the best view to boot.

Is that how it is for you? Is your bathroom, however humble, your own little away place?

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

This time of year attention always seems to gravitate to hot water issues. When you wake up on a dark, chilly morning and the shower isn't as steamy as you like -- or you have to wait for forever for the water to even get hot -- you notice.

It's a good time of year to perform basic maintenance on your hot water tank for that very reason: the damp and cold is a perfect reminder.

The other thing to think about is the water wasted running the tap waiting for the hot water to arrive. There is something that puts hot water at your fingertips when you need it. It's called a hot water circulation pump, or recirc pump in plumber's lingo.

Installation of a recirc pump is straightforward, and it's easy to maintain. The pump attaches to your hot water heater and a small return valve is unobtrusively installed on the furthest faucet in the home. Since the existing lines are used, there's no added expense for additional lines. Then a timer keeps that hot water circulating in the pipes just when you need it most - saving time, energy and water.

You may not run the hot water all day long while the family is away from home at work and school. During that time, heated water lays in the line cooling off. Then when you do get home - or up in the morning - and need the hot water, all that unused and now tepid water has to run through the line - and down the drain - before fresh hot water reaches the faucet.

The water savings can be significant. Some estimates suggest that in a typical household as much as 16,000 gallons of water can be saved per year with a recirc pump.

If you'd like more information, call the shop. We'd be happy to answer any questions or come to your home for a site evaluation.

:: PG&E energy calculators

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Boden Plumbing primarily serves Sonoma Valley, Napa Valley, and the Petaluma area. We provide a full range of residential plumbing repairs and services.
866-663-7477
www.nodrips.com

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