Flush lines with baking soda, hot water, vinegar solution | Columnists

Q. Before renovating an unfinished basement in the 1970s, I replaced all of the plumbing with plastic pipes. Now, 45 years later, enough iron / mineral deposits have built up in the pipes to cause slow water leakage from the taps. I’ve never had a water softener before. The water supply comes from a well. I’m playing with the idea of ​​backflushing the lines with vinegar and some sort of pump to clean the lines enough to restore better pressure. I’ve always been very lucky to use vinegar to dissolve debris in shower and faucet heads by soaking them in it for a couple of hours when they start to clog. Is that a viable solution or the only way to replace the pipes? To do this, wall and ceiling panels would have to be removed, which I would like to avoid if possible. – Roger Franke of Wolcottville

A. For several years, deposits in your water pipes are inevitable, regardless of whether you have plastic, copper or galvanized pipes.

Galvanized piping is usually rust or iron that is in the water supply. In copper and plastic pipes, debris is usually minerals that are part of your water supply.

Well water that is untreated, unfiltered, or not softened usually contains all of these natural elements, depending on your specific location. These are the first things you should do to improve your water quality.

As far as rinsing out the existing lines – a solution of baking soda, hot water and vinegar is typically used to rinse the lines – supply lines and also drain lines.

Yes, it can clean the interiors and strainers of the faucets and shower heads. It’s also good to flush your water heater once a year to remove any debris that has built up. This is especially important if you have an on-demand water heater as it can easily clog the small passages of the heating elements and shorten the life of the water heater.

Jeff Deahl is a past president of the Builders Association of Northeast Indiana. Questions for the Square Corners column can be sent to [email protected].

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