March 2026
Topics
- Selling the house because there is no jobs.
- Installing spouting in high wind areas.
- Move to Electric from gas.
Selling the house?
Was your job made redundant. See our article below on back to wall toilets. If you have one of those old plastic toilet cisterns and 1060’s toilets consider upgrading the toilet to back to wall. Young people today do not want to do upgrades if they can buy a house with it already done.
Replacing rusted flashings is another area that makes the house look better for sale.
Got a vanity basin with the timber work swollen due to water ingress is another small job to make the place look better. Replace it with a budget modern vanity for a much improved look for little cost.
Is your house high up and buffeted by high Wellington winds?
During this last storm from the south some home owners lost their spouting due to the brackets being too far apart. Ensure brackets on plastic spouting is around 300mm apart. Otherwise the wind will break the brackets. The spouting is lost for ever gone who knows where with the wind.
Conversion from gas to electric water heaters, space heating and cooking
Here is the problem.
Central heating 20Amps
Cooking 30 Amps
Water heating 15 Amps Total 65 Amps
The house has other uses of electricity to add to this and the house only has a 60 Amp cable. So changing to electric is beyond most homes electric cable if all appliances used at the same time, which although unlikely if they are on thermostats which they are you never know when they will turn on and if they do the fuse will blow. The issue is do you want to pay for a second supply cable to the house? That will cost you and extra supply charge negating removing the gas meter as you are simply swapping the gas meter charge for an electrical one. No good suggesting you are saving the planet when the power comes from coal which is worse than gas. In addition if all gas users converted how will utility cables cope and where will the energy come from. Perhaps get solar on the roof and large batteries. That may help. Consult with one of our electrical contractors.
Back To Wall Toilets
Back to wall toilets have taken over complete with soft close seats. So no loud bangs in the middle of the night when someone has to go. The the other beauty of back to wall toilets is there is a lot less to clean no difficult nooks and crannies to get dirty stuff out of and therefore they are less smelly. Some back to wall toilets have triple inlets ie left side, right side and back inlet. If installed back inlet they can completely hide all the plumbing. Its a little more work but well worth the look and obviously less visible plumbing and again less to clean. Some of the brands we install are Le Vivi, Toto, and a few more. The are reasonably priced and not too difficult to install. One of the beauties of back to wall is they connect to most plumbing pipe work without too much alteration. A full installation can be around $1500 to $2000 at 2020 prices. The pages and pages of toilets you see in brochures and online can be minimized to back to wall. They are better all round.
Solar Power to Pumps and Water Heaters
We are increasingly being asked to fit solar power to pumps from tanks and to feed troughs for pets and other domestic animals eg your horse trough.
Another use of solar power is feeding your water heater as it acts like a battery and if there is surplus power why not heat water instead of sending it back to the grid.
How’s that power bill been this winter?
We have two recommendations.
- Shift some of the power load to solar power
- Reduce or change the type of electrical fitting to an economical option.
This year is going to be a big year for solar power as new solar power storage products hit the market. You will be able to store power more economically instead of selling it to power companies.
Did your heat pump really do its job this winter?
If not, call us. We have solutions for fixing heat pumps.
BBQ’s Can Go Bang
Recently one of our team members got a huge fright and the operator suffered burns, when using a barbeque that had not been serviced. What happened? When gas is released into a container (e.g. a hooded BBQ) and not ignited straight away, a spark eventually occurs. Enough gas by this time was built up to make it explode, causing flames to rush out of the opening, and the hot plates to go vertical.
Gas is a great and safe energy source. Call us for a quick service or a clean.