You may think that plumbers are useless because it’s easy to unclog a sink or install a new faucet. After all, when was the last time you needed a plumber to help you right?

Newsflash: 95% of homeowners thought the same way until their toilet bowl clogged so badly that their plunger couldn’t do anything about it.

The point is, you’ll never know how important plumbers are until you encounter a plumbing problem that requires their expertise.

Well, we don’t feel bad that you think that way. It happens all the time with our kiasu plumber pros and we understand.

But in order to remove the myth that a plumber’s job is easy-peasy, here are some plumbing trivia and facts that will make you realize the importance of a plumber’s job.

Read on and be entertained!

Plumbing Trivia

• Any plumbing system follows these basic natural laws – gravity and pressure.

• Any person on the planet will spend an average of three years sitting on a toilet bowl.
• In the 1800s, there were no metal pipes, just wooden pipes made of logs hollowed in the center.
• Mario of the Mario brothers is the most popular plumber of all time.
• The toilet bowl is also called “the john” and its origin is the inventor of the first flushable toilet, John Herrington.
• Japan has voice-activated urinals that can flush themselves through several voice commands like “fire!”
• A bathroom with only a toilet bowl and a sink, without a shower area, is called a “half bathroom” or a “powder room.”

• Switzerland, New Zealand, and Norway are the top 3 countries with the best quality tap water in the world. In Switzerland, 80% of the drinking water comes from natural springs and groundwater.

Plumbing Facts

• A house without a functioning plumbing system is not livable.
• The P-trap’s role is not just to prevent clogging, but to prevent sewage smell from entering your home.
• CPVC or chlorinated polyvinyl chloride is the most trusted and widely-used plumbing pipe these days.
• Hair and grease are the top 2 causes of drain clogging in almost all households.
• The two plumbing sub-systems in your house are freshwater and wastewater. There must not be an overlap in these systems, otherwise, wastewater will pollute your tap water.

• You can’t just install any p-trap in your home. There is a size requirement based on the country’s plumbing rules and regulations.
• You can save almost 20,000 gallons of water a year if you buy a low-flush toilet rather than the normal one.
• A special wire called O-rings is what plumbers use to create watertight seals among plumbing components.
• Insulating home water pipes can reduce your hot water waiting time. Insulated pipes retain warmth a lot better than non-insulated pipes.
• You can install separate stop valves in individual plumbing fixtures to prevent water from flowing into the fixture. Parents can do this to avoid water waste when their kids play with the faucet.
• “Hard water” means water in the community is filled with so many minerals that can cause fast deterioration of water fixtures.

We hope you find these plumbing trivia and facts entertaining and informative. The next time you meet a plumber, tip your hat and give them the respect they deserve.