Bathrooms aren’t at the top of most people’s lists when it comes to interior decoration. Most are usually more concerned with the kitchen and living room. However, a nice-looking bathroom adds a bit of character to your home and set it apart from others’. There are plenty of ways spruce up your bathroom if you have some free time.

The most expensive yet most valuable changes you could make to your bathroom would be updating your vanity furniture. Giving your vanities a facelift can breathe new life into your bathroom. Still, it doesn’t have to be expensive. Head to an IKEA and look around; you could find some expensive looking vanity furniture without paying a fortune.

Another major change you can make to spruce up your bathroom is to put in a new faucet. Your old faucet might be dragging the overall look of your bathroom down. New faucets look sleek and stylish; the right faucet can bring your boring bathroom into the modern era, not to mention they may function a lot better.

New hand towels are a great complement to your new sinks. Ditch that dirty old hand towel for something a little more fresh and decorative. Aim for something soft, too. The more senses you can appeal to in a positive fashion, the better.

Add some green to your bathroom with plants. Plants are easy on the eyes, giving some color to an otherwise plain room. In addition, they help refresh the stale bathroom air. The humid bathroom air is an excellent environment for certain types of plants to grow. Some of these plants are the peace lily, the spider plant, and even aloe.

Your bathroom floors could use an update too. Wood flooring looks very nice, but it doesn’t mix well with rooms that often contain a lot of moisture. Fortunately, you can get faux wood flooring for cheap. Faux wood flooring tends to be made out of vinyl, which is easy to install. Grab some faux wood flooring to give your bathroom a bit of charm.

Lighting is also important for your bathroom. Chances are your current lights are more functional than beautiful; they’re probably quite harsh and don’t add much flair. Try replacing them with LEDs. The light from LEDs is softer on the eyes and enhances how everything else in the bathroom looks.

Then, of course, there’s the scent. Bathrooms aren’t known for being the most pleasant-smelling areas of the house, but you can make it so with a few simple additions. First, you can put in some scent-absorbing items like baking soda or white vinegar. After that, consider adding a candle or two to give you bathroom a pleasant, welcoming scent. To keep odors out of your bathroom, leave the fan on and open the door once you’re done showering or bathing. This will air out your bathroom, preventing that musty mildew smell from polluting your bathroom.

Winter weather is known for causing many plumbing problems, most commonly frozen pipes. Believe it or not, warm weather brings its own plumbing problems too. With the summer heat in full force, you might run into a few of these common summer plumbing problems yourself. If you do, Barner Murphy’s plumbing experts can address these issues and get your plumbing system back to normal in no time.

Clogged garbage disposals are much more likely to happen in the summer thanks to all the cookouts. See, there’s a common misconception that your sink’s garbage disposal is a place to dump all your food. This leads to a clogged disposal under your sink. The clogging is worsened in the summer since most cookout food is meat, and meat involves grease and bones. Grease solidifies in your disposal, and bones get caught in the blades. Fruit is also a big cookout food, but the pits can’t go down the disposal either. You should only be putting biodegradable food waste down your disposal.

Another plumbing object prone to clogging in the summer is the toilet. Kids are home for the summer, so your toilet’s going to see much heavier use. Clogging is inevitable, whether through normal use of because kids try to flush other things down the toilet. Teach your kids what does and doesn’t go down the toilet and keep a plunger handy. 

Keep an eye on your washing machine. Summer activities tend to involve a lot of dirt, sand, sweat, and grime, all of which your washer has to work harder to get rid of. Having all your kids home all day can magnify the problem as everyone’s trying to wash their wardrobe. Try to be home whenever you’re using your washing machine this summer. If you hear any weird noises or notice anything wrong with clothing when you remove it from the machine, you might need professional help. In the meantime, seek out laundry accommodations from friends, neighbors, or your local laundromat.

Not all summer plumbing problems occur outside your home. Summer storms occur quite often in certain areas; the rain can get into pipes underground and back up the sewer lines. Toilet water backing up into your bathtub’s drain is a red flag for sewer backups. If you see this happen, call a plumber like Barner Murphy immediately.

Sprinklers can be a cause for concern once its warm outside. With regular lawn mowing and more people running around on your lawn, it’s not too hard to break a sprinkler or two. Check on your sprinklers regularly before using them to identify broken sprinklers or other issues so you don’t cause further damage.

These are 5 of the most common summer plumbing problems. Stay on top of your plumbing system and act the moment you discover and issue. If any of these happen to you this summer in Buck County, you’re not alone - the experts at Barner Murphy are always willing to help. Give us a call and we’ll be glad to help!