Are you planning a bathroom remodel or planning to install a tile shower?  In addition to the contractor who will install the tile, you will also need to hire a trusted plumber to install the shower pan liner. The plumbing shower pan is the most important step when installing a tile shower as it collects any water that falls from the shower floor. Proper installation prevents water leaks and mold problems.  Below are pictures of a shower pan liner installation performed by Robert Bair Services.

Old shower concrete base with tile removed.

Shower base subfloor

The plumber installs the liner over the subfloor. A special adhesive is used to seal the edges and corners.

After the installation, the plumber fills the shower liner with water to check for leaks. The water is drained before the tile is installed.

The DuPage County Forest Preserve hired Robert Bair Services to help them go green.

The DuPage County Forest Preserves had solar thermal water heating systems installed in their remote forest preserve bathroom facilities. Solar water heaters, which are also called solar domestic hot water systems are a cost-effective way to generate hot water.  They can be used in any climate and are an excellent way to conserve energy.

The pictures below illustrate how 4×8 solar panels are installed on the roof of the forest preserve buildings. The panels use solar energy to heat the potable water.

Spring Creek Reservoir in Bloomingdale, IL

Solar Thermal panels installed on the roof of DuPage County Forest Preserve bathroom facility.

Hidden Lake Forest Preserve in Downers Grove, IL

Piping to the potable hot water supply from the solar panels.

Solar panels on the roof of a DuPage County Forest Preserve building.

Mud, debri, grease, and sludge are all culprits for blocking drains and sewers lines. Regular preventative maintenance using high-pressure water jetting services is necessary to prevent these blockages from becoming a huge headache and large financial burden. Not only is  high-pressure water jetting an economical solution, it’s also an environmentally safe method for cleaning water mains and sewer lines.

Storm Drain Cleaning

Robert Bair Services provides high powered jetting services to thoroughly clean your property’s drains and sewer lines.  Below are some pictures of a high-pressure water jetting of a storm drain. The storm drain was full of mud and debri, so Bair technicians were hired to flush out the storm water main.

This is the before picture of the storm drain full of mud and debris.

Bair technician is lowered into the storm drain.

"After" picture of the storm drain.

This is a large fish found wiggling around in the storm drain. Bair technicians caught the fish and released it in a nearby pond.

Tips to Lower Your Energy Costs – A “Fine Tune” for the Winter Months Ahead

It’s a fact, your heating system will last longer and conserve precious energy with regular system maintenance.  Here’s how and why.

On average, American families spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars every year to heat and cool their homes. That’s the bad news. The good news is that it’s relatively easy to cut those energy costs.

For starters, check your window caulking for cracks. The better your windows and their insulation, the more you’ll save on your fuel bill. Here are other energy-saving steps you’ll want to take:

• Clean or change your heating system filter monthly.
• Seal and insulate your air ducts. Heat loss from leaky, un-insulated ducts reduces the efficiency of your heating system by as much as 30%.
• Vacuum the cobwebs from your registers.
• Vacuum the fins on your baseboard heaters.

What’s more, have your system cleaned and checked before the heating season gets underway. That way, we can spot small problems before they become large repair bills. We can ensure the safe operation of your system and keep it running at maximum efficiency.  Here are a few steps included in our Clean & Check service:

• Start up the system and check all working components.
• Check Filter.
• Check for flue pipe leaks.
• Check safety controls.
• Check for proper air flow.
• Run capacitors.
• Blower wheel inspection.
• Test amperages on motor.
• Test for gas leaks.
• Lubricate all necessary parts.
• And more!

Here are some additional ways to enhance your indoor comfort while reducing energy consumption:

• Whole house humidifier.
• Automatic set-back thermostat
• Whole house air filtration.

Contact Us Now to Get your Furnace Cleaned & Checked Before the Winter Season Sets In!

October is Fire Prevention Month

Are you prepared in case of a fire in your home? More than 4000 people die in house fires each year and approximately 25,000 are injured. October is fire prevention month, which serves as a reminder that taking a few safety precautions can be a matter of life and death.  Here are a few fire safety tips and precautions:

Check your smoke detectors – Every home should have at least one working smoke detector and preferably have one on each floor of your home and next to bedrooms. Check them monthly to ensure that the batteries are working properly.

Plan your escape route—Plan an escape route and do an occasional fire drill. Everyone in your household should know and understand what to do if there’s a fire in your house. Make sure you have more than one exit point should one exit be blocked. Create a safe meeting place outside side where you will all meet up.

Alternate heaters—If you must use portable heaters, ensure that you keep the area around them clear.  Keep combustible items at least three feet away, if not more. Have your chimney cleaned yearly and use fire screens to keep fire in the fireplace.

Have your furnace cleaned and checked every year.

Home fire safety sprinklers—When home fire sprinklers are used along with working smoke alarms, your chances of survival are greatly increased. Sprinklers can extinguish residential fires in less than one minute. In addition to being affordable, home sprinkler systems can increase property value and lower insurance rates.

Oven and stove safety—Never use the oven or stove to heat your home. This is a fire hazard and can also cause carbon monoxide poisoning with a gas stove or oven. Wear tight-fitted clothing while cooking to avoid catching on fire.

For more information on fire safety and prevention visit the Illinois Fire Safety Alliance.

Naperville Home Burned Down
It was a few years ago, but my brother had an old house in Naperville
and the upstairs pipe (I think it was an older heat register in a
bathroom that used water to heat the house) was on an outside wall
facing the cold west.  Anyhow, he used an electric blanket to defrost
it and burned the house down.  Electricity and water (unfrozen) from
pipes do not mix.  M.S. Naperville

Downers Grove Condo Building Burned Down
About 6 years ago a friend who is a builder had an employee (a carpenter)
who was doing some work for a lady in a condo.  The work he was
performing was not authorized or managed by the builder -this was a
remodel side job for the carpenter. The carpenter accidentally shot a
nail through a pipe in the wall.  Not being a plumber he went to
Big Box store to get a kit to fix the hole in the pipe when he met a
handy man in the plumbing department who said he had the right tools
and could fix the hole for him. So the handyman & the carpenter went
back to the condo to fix the hole.  Unfortunately the handyman was not
as handy as he had thought because he started the insulation in the
wall on fire while soldering the pipe.  The whole condo building burned
to the ground.  I never did find out what happened to the carpenter
or the handyman, but I wonder what happened because neither one of
the workers carried a contractors license or insurance.

Metal Snake on Loose in Back Yard
This is a story about a rooter company coming out to unclog our toilet.
It was a young guy in an unmarked van that showed up. He went right
to work on the problem (we heard the usual scraping sound from the
auger in the pipes) and he was in the bathroom for about 1/2 an hour
when he came out and said he fixed the problem. After we paid the
money and he left we brought the kids from playing in the back yard.
They said that there was a big metal snake coming out of the house
and they tried to catch it! We figured out that the inexperienced
rooter guy rodded the toilet but got off track and shot the cable
out through the toilet vent rather than down the drain pipe. There
was proof on the siding at the back of the house as to what happened.
The toilet was also scratched up inside the bowl. We called the company
back and the call taker took the information but no one ever got back
to us even though we called at least 6 times trying to speak to a
manager.  We are just thankful the kids never caught the snake! Now
we call a licensed plumbing company not a rooter company because we
understand the difference between the two, which is a 4 year plumbing
education.

Newly Wed Flooding Disaster
A man called and said that he had a plumbing emergency – there was
water coming from everywhere and could we get there right away. The
dispatcher said yes and educated the customer on shutting the main
water valve and let him know the plumber would arrive shortly. The
plumber was actually surprised at the amount of damage done when he
got there and looked around. There were leaks and water damage all
around in almost every room. When the plumber started asking the man
and his young wife what had happened the man explained that they just
arrived home after 2 weeks away – they had been on their honeymoon.
When they returned everything was fine and they turned on the lights &
heat and started unpacking.  After an hour or so there was popping
sounds and water started shooting right through the drywall. Being new
to home ownership and not knowing any better they had turned off the
heat while they were gone (and it was winter time).  They had many
frozen and burst pipes which did not start leaking until the heat
thawed the building about an hour or two after they turned it on.
They had a very expensive mess on their hands.

The leaves are starting change, the days are getting shorter and the nights are getting colder. It won’t be long before you decide to turn on the furnace for the first time since last spring, if you haven’t already done so. There are a few things you can do beforehand to prevent being left in the cold with a broken furnace.

While you should always hire a professional to do yearly inspection and preventative maintenance on your furnace, here are some additional tips to help your furnace run smoothly and efficiently.

Check to see that nothing flammable is stored near the furnace.

Run your furnace for a few minutes before you need it to check for yourself that it runs properly. This will prevent you from being stuck in the cold without heat.

Check to make sure the thermostat works properly and that the temperature doesn’t get too hot or too cold.

Change the filters on your furnace once a month during the heating season.

Inspect for gas leaks in gas furnaces.

If you find any problems or are unsure, it’s always best to call a professional to further inspect and repair the furnace.

Check out our furnace maintenance coupons and call us at (630) 964-1700 to schedule your furnace maintenance appointment.

Escape the heat and relax in the air conditioning. While you’re chilling, take a stab at the word search from the most recent Robert Bair Services News From The Bair Den Newsletter.  Can you spot the words air condition, furnace, and plumbing? Print it out and give it a try!

Robert Bair Services has been awarded the 2010 Best Pick Report™ published by EBSCO Research LLC  for  plumbing and HVAC services in the Southwest and Western Suburbs. Companies are chosen based on independent research and objective interviews that show good performance and service. 

Below are handful of testimonials from over 334 homeowner customer service reviews that were collected by EBSCO during their research for Best Pick Reports.

“I thought the work was as planned, and I’m very satisfied with Bair. And I’ve used them for years and will continue to do so. They do all the normal plumbing issues: the faucets, the drains, the sewer. This was a sewer line problem going to the street. Everything is holding up just fine that they fixed for me.”

 “I thought they were good. He worked in a very clean way. He explained himself very well and made sure I understood what he was doing. That was plumbing work.” 

“Excellent. My husband went in the basement and smelled gas around our hot water heater. They came down, and they told us they could replace the part that was leaking; my husband opted to replace the whole heater because it was twelve years old. We have never had anything but excellent, excellent service from Robert Bair. We also use them for our heating and air. Excellent work, excellent people, excellent.” 

“We had a leaky toilet. In that situation we used them for plumbing. We also use them for heating and cooling. They replaced our furnace, replaced our air conditioner, and installed an electrostatic filter. I’ve had them doing service work every year just about, seasonal service for the heating and air conditioning. I’ve always been very satisfied with them. Their workers are all extremely polite and seem to do the job very well.” 

“I use Robert Bair Plumbing. Robert Bair is great. I’ve been using them probably four years. They’re o nice. They come over, and they explain things. I just really like them all. They’re nice.”

 “I think they’re good. They responded quickly, and they’ve done what we wanted them to do. We use them for both plumbing and heating and cooling. The system we have was in the unit before we bought it, so we just use them for maintenance. I would recommend them to anyone.” 

“I’ve been very happy with them. They’re the only people that I will use. They hire really friendly, professional people, and they always come right out when I need them. They always go the extra mile, and they try to save me money when they can. I use them for heating, cooling, and plumbing work.”

 “They did some work for us just back in June. We had a new air conditioner and furnace. They did very good with the installation and everything. We already had a service contract with them. They come out and do our yearly maintenance. I would recommend them to someone else.”

 “I recently got a furnace. The reason I had chosen them was because of their excellent service.”

 “I’ve been very pleased with them. I’ve been happy with them. They just do a good job, and they’re timely and reasonable. The most recent time they had to come out, I think it was plumbing. Two of our bathrooms had a problem with the toilets, and they fixed what needed to be done. I have not used them for heating, but I have for all kinds of plumbing.”

 “I go to Bob Bair; he’s my go-to person. He does plumbing and septic for me. He installed my system, and I also use him for maintenance, too. I have a service contract with him. He always comes out on time when I need him to. I would recommend him to someone.”

A customer of Bair Services had just moved into a new home. Unfortunately,her cat,Gucci,wasn’t too happy with the move and became stuck hiding in some pipes behind the water heater. We ended up cutting the drywall on the other side of the water heater to rescue the cat. Gucci emerged full of drywall dust, but was otherwise unharmed. Our customer was happy and thankful to have her feline companion safe and sound in their new home!

This is just one example of how Bair Services helps customers solve problems, whether it’s a plumbing issue or a trapped pet that needs rescuing!