Does Anybody NOT Take Their Phone with Them to the Bathroom?

Phone in Toilet

It is 2016, we have the world at our finger tips. They have an App for anything you could imagine, and not to mention most people are wrapped up in Social Media. What did people do in the bathroom before there were mobile phones? In our household we actually have books all around the house, including the bathroom. Our bathroom has a great selection of interesting books. Nothing to complex, mostly facts about History, how to guides, and of course Uncle John’s Fully Loaded Bathroom Reader. There was a study that was done several years ago about how much time was spent sitting in the bathroom. It was said, we spend 3 years of our lives sitting in the bathroom. That was before the smart phone came out. I could tell you that everyone spends way more time on their phone in the bathroom now. Parents, have always ran away to the bathroom from their kids when they were just too much to handle. Now, parents more often than not, pretend that they need to go to the bathroom just so they could go on Social Media. I’m not judging anybody; I’m actually writing this post from my bathroom. Bathrooms have become our new offices. Back in the day, a lot of people wanted an “office” in their house. Now, all you need is a bathroom and your smart phone.

I remember when I first became a plumber, my customers use to have newspapers, magazines, and books, in their bathrooms. I can honestly say, I rarely see that now a day. We need to bring back reading in our bathrooms, or keep the phone usage in the bathroom in moderation.

Time Spent In Bathroom

Above is an example of phone usage in the bathroom, I found on Instagram.

Please visit our website www.KevinSzaboJrPlumbing.net

How Do You Choose Lighting For Your Bathroom?

You need light in your bathroom. Unless you have a skylight in your bathroom and tons of windows, you need great lighting. Where do you place the lighting is the question?

Over the Sink

Both sides of the mirror.

Over the tub.

In the shower.

What type of Light Fixtures do you install?

It all depends on your style. What kind of person are you? What do you see yourself surrounded around? What colors do you love to decorate with? If you had a choice where would you live? What’s your favorite type of restaurant?

How you answered the questions above, is your Design Style. If you don’t understand your answers here is a link to help you choose.

What’s Your Decorating Style?

Modern
Contemporary
Traditional
Funky
Shabby Chic
Southwestern
Industrial
Tuscan
Medieval
French
Asian
Zen

If you have the extra money to add windows for natural lighting in your bathroom, that’s a Home Run. Natural lighting in your bathroom is always great. You could do a lot by placing and installing the perfect fixtures, but having a large window or two in your bathroom could give you the perfect Natural Light everyone desires. Before you begin your project sit down and plan out what exactly you want to do in your bathroom. After you have thought about what you have in mind, plan out the perfect spots to install lighting. Let your electrician and or remodeler know. They will be more than glad to work with your design idea.

Please visit our website for more information

www.kevinszabojrplumbing.net

Memorial Day 2016

On this day we honor the fallen heroes who gave us the freedom that we have. The men and women who gave their lives and left behind a family, so we could be with ours. We don’t say it enough; Thank You. Thank you for letting my family and I enjoy our days without worries, while you are away from yours. Thank you for letting me put my son to sleep every night, while you are away from yours. Thank you for letting me wake up every morning at home, while you are away from yours. You are MY HERO. Don’t worry, I will raise my son to know who the real heroes are.

You, sir and ma’am, are the reason this country is free. God Bless you and may you come home safe to your family, so we could shake your hand and thank you in person.

Kevin Szabo Jr

How To Rebuild A RPZ Valve

11 Surprising Ways To Getting A Good Night’s Sleep

THE IMPORTANCE OF GETTING A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP

If I don’t get a good night’s sleep tonight, I’ll get a good night’s sleep tomorrow! Have you ever said that?

Work projects are due, children need to be driven to practice, work errands need to be ran, dinner needs to get made, school projects need to be done, laundry needs to be washed, and the list goes on and on. Those are the things that go through the average person’s head. Stressing out about your day’s To Do List is not going to get anything done quicker, or on time. The way you get everything done in a timely manner is by getting a Good Night’s Sleep. When we sleep enough hours in a night, our bodies are rested. When we are well rested, we perform better. The important question is; how do we get a good night’s sleep?

1. Avoid caffeine late in the day.

2. Don’t eat late at night.

3. Don’t have stressful conversations late at night.

4. Keep electronics/gadgets out of the bedroom.

5. Read before bed.

6. Have a Zen like environment in the bedroom.

7. Don’t eat in bed.

8. Eat healthier- avoid Carbs, sugars, heavy drinking. Eat vegetables, fruit, and protein. If you are not a big fan of fruits & veggies, try having a smoothie(they are delicious).

9. Work out- go to the gym, go for a walk around your neighborhood, invest in a bicycle, go hiking at the Forest Preserve.

10. Avoid taking a pill for everything. If certain medication is not REALLY necessary, don’t take it. Studies have shown that taking too many pills can cause insomnia.

11. Drink WATER.

Sleep is important. Good sleep is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.

As a plumber and business owner, I need my sleep. Could you imagine me being at a customer’s house: at an emergency call, or a commercial job, on NO SLEEP?? No, I won’t perform up to par.

Sleepless nights will make you depressed, forgetful, ages you, will make you gain weight, and will impair your judgement. If that’s not enough of a crappy list to try to help you improve your sleep, I don’t know what will.

PUT A LITTLE EFFORT INTO GETTING A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP.

TONIGHT TRY THIS:

1. EAT DINNER EARLY.

2. PUT YOUR KIDS TO BED AT A DECENT TIME.

3. TURN THAT TV OFF.

4. PUT YOUR PHONE AWAY, IN A DIFFERENT ROOM.

5. READ A BOOK AND GO TO BED EARLY.

TOMORROW: GO CONQUER THE WORLD!!!

Is it Dangerous To Take A Shower During A Storm?

When I was a young kid I always heard it was dangerous to take a shower during a storm. I always thought it was a joke. How could someone get electrocuted taking a shower? As I got older I realized it’s true. We have several pipes running to our homes under ground and we have live wires attached to our homes. Here is what happened when Myth Busters tested the myth:

Explanation: Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to … shower in? The National Weather Service urges the public to avoid hopping in the shower during a lightning storm in the event that a bolt strikes one of your home’s water pipes and electrifies your bathroom.

MythBusters Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage took that weather alert to task and constructed a makeshift house, complete with grounded plumbing. Then, they doused it with simulated lightning in an electricity testing facility to find out whether the voltage really could leap from the sky to the shower.

Since the MythBusters were shy about showering on camera, they hired a stand-in: a ballistics gel dummy that had roughly the same electrical conductivity as the human body. To screen for a fatal lightning strike, the dummy wore a heart monitor. The 700,000 volts of fake lightning indeed arced onto the water pipes and jumped to the shower, causing a fire.

source: http://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/mythbusters-database/shower-in-thunderstorm/

LIGHTNING SAFETY TIPS

http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/lightning/resources/lightning-safety.pdf

Mother’s Day Gift

Mothers Day 2016 What does a son get their Mother for Mother’s Day?

Mother’s Day is celebrated every year, the second Sunday of May. We dedicate one day out of the year to show how much we admire and respect them. We all love our Mothers. They love us when we are up, they love us when we are down. They encourage us to do good, and they tell us when we are steering away from the right path. My Mother has been there for me through everything. I always let her know how much I love her and appreciate her. I could buy her presents, send her flowers, but that wouldn’t be enough. I truly believe the best gift a son could give his Mother is to take care of all the things that need to be taken cared of in her house: Fixing, repairing, and installing the things that she has been asking you to come over and do for weeks. This Mother’s Day remember the woman who always loves you and shows you how incredible you are.

Simple Way To Brighten Your Room

Sun flower Vase We all love flowers. Flowers bring color and a smile to everyone’s faces. Adding a vase of flowers in your room will brighten up the room and will bring you serenity. The smallest things all ways make a difference. Below a is a simple way to add a little “extra” to your morning vase. You don’t have to follow the exact directions to brighten your vase. You could, slice oranges, grapefruit, or limes. The same goes with the flowers you choose. If you visit Trader Joe’s, they always have a variety of flowers for a great deal. I bet whatever you choose will come out beautiful.

Find a vase that fits inside another vase with half an inch of room between them. Fill the space between the two vase up most of the way with water before slipping in sliced lemons(arrangement pictured requires nine lemons). Pop you accent flowers(pictured are a dozen sunflowers) in the center vase, and voila!

source: http://www.countryliving.com/gardening/garden-ideas/how-to/a5791/flower-hacks/

Happy Earth Day 2016

When I became a Plumber I knew I was going to see good and bad. I always see my customers recycle, plant, and go the extra mile to conserve water, and I love it. A lot of people think that being a Plumber is just a job, it’s not. A Plumber’s number one duty is to “Protect the Health of the Nation”. It is my job to make sure we have Clean Water. Today, being Earth Day it is my responsibility to share with everyone simple ways to save and protect our Planet Earth.

Planet Earth gives us so much. We don’t have another Planet, so we need to protect the one we have. I want to make sure my son and hopefully grandchildren get to enjoy this gorgeous Planet that gives us everything that we need to survive. We all need to be a “little more green”. Below is a list I put together that should get you started.

**I was planning on planting a tree with my son today, since I won’t be home till late, we will go ahead and donate to www.EarthDay.org to plant a tree on his behalf. Follow the Link below to contribute and make a difference.

$1 = 1 TREE

WWW.EARTHDAY.ORG

Indoor Spring Cleaning and Maintenance Tips

We all clean our homes on a regular bases. After having all our windows closed through out most of Fall and Winter we have to go the extra mile to clean and maintain everything. All that dust that builds up from having everything closed. Certain stuff not being used over Winter, we have to make sure it’s working properly.

The first thing you have to do, is open every single window. Let that fresh air in. Now turn some music on and let’s go down the list.

Clean or replace your furnace filters
Test your air conditioning system(don’t wait till it gets too hot to see if it’s working).
Check caulking around all windows and doors. Improper caulking allows for moisture to get inside your walls and can cause mold.
Replace screens on your windows if they are torn or broken.
Clean your windows, inside and outside.
Test your smoke and fire detector, replace batteries if needed. Dust the inside and outside.
Check your fire extinguisher.
Clean your ceiling fan with a wet rag.
Rotate your ceiling fan so it’s spinning counter clock wise for Summer.
Clean out your fridge and freezer. Place a new box of baking soda in the back to maintain freshness.
Check for pest problems, you might look into calling someone to spray before the warmer months.
Organize your closets, put away Winter clothes and bring out the Spring and Summer clothes.
Clean your walls, sponge and water, or a wet rag. Dust builds up on your walls, especially during Fall and Winter.
Dust and reorganize your book shelves. Move your books around, place some vertically, and some horizontally.
Wipe down all your light bulbs.
Wash your shower curtain. Replace the inside liner. You can buy the inside liner for a buck or two. They tent to get moldy quickly.
Clean your bathroom walls, having your fan on during and after showers isn’t enough. Mold grows, you have to prevent it.
Soak your shower head in vinegar and lemon for half an hour or longer if you please. Minerals tend to build up in it.
Vacuum mattress and box spring.
Dust off all vents.
Clean out the dryer ducts.

If it seems like your in need of a Plumber, Electrician, Heating and AC Repairman, or a General Handyman give them a call. Don’t wait to the last second. Trust us, you’ll be glad that you took care of things before they got bad.

If you have any questions or concerns, email or call me.

Kevin Szabo Jr

Plumbing and Sewer

(708)845-7922

kevinszabojrplumbing@yahoo.com