Happy New Year!

Here's to a new year that makes the world a better place, too. Find energy efficient alternatives to the products you use every day to save money and help the environment in 2010. Test out a tankless water heater, a programmable thermostat, or a high-efficiency boiler.

There are thousands of energy efficient plumbing & heating supplies to be found on www.supplyhouse.com

How is a gate valve different from a ball valve?

A gate valve allows you to control the amount of water that comes through. By using a knob, a gate valve lets you to allow no water, just a little water, most of the water, or all of the water through. You can turn the knob a little or a lot and determine the exact of flow that you want. A ball valve only has on or off. If you turn the handle one way, it's on. If you turn the handle the other way, it's off. There is no in between, you either get full flow or no flow.

Gate valves and ball valves can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

How to attach a pump

To secure your pump into your heating system, you will need a set of pump flanges. Flanges should be purchased based on the size of the pipe that you are connecting to. For example, if you are putting your pump on a 1" pipe, you will need 1" flanges. Shut-off flanges, or isolation flanges, can be helpful because you can stop the water flowing to the pump right at the source.

Heating pumps and flanges can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Make a clean cut

All PEX connections require a clean, even cut in your PEX tubing. Without a clean cut, it is incredibly difficult to create a secure fitting. If your tubing is uneven, the rings and fittings will not fit properly on the tubing and you can get a leak. To make sure that you have a clean cut for a secure fitting, use a PEX tubing cutter. Even if you have another blade that you use to cut everything else, a PEX tube cutter is a worthwhile investment at under $20.00 because it will create a perfect and worry-free cut in your PEX every time.

PEX cutters and other PEX tools can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Tis the season for comfort

When it's cold outside, staying in for a hot shower can't be beat. And, a new showerhead can make that shower even better. Today's showerheads have all the bells and whistles; multiple sprays, rain settings, massaging settings and more. Check out the huge selection of Alsons shower heads and Kohler shower heads.

Showerheads can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Clean operation of an oil pump

Beckett's new CleanCut Pumps feature clean operation through solenoid technology. The solenoid valve cuts oil flow almost at the exact instant that the power is cut to the motor. This eliminates soot formation and buildup that is typical from other pumps that take a while to shut down. Without soot formation, your Beckett pump will run cleaner and last longer.

Beckett pumps such as the CleanCut Pump can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Where to install a vacuum breaker

A vacuum breaker is used to prevent water from re-entering the public supply after it enters your private pipes. Having backflow preventers and vacuum breakers assures that the public water supply is clean and that the water that each home and business receives is equally clean from impurities. When installing a vacuum breaker, make sure that it is placed at least 6 inches above the highest point in the pipe.

Vacuum breakers and backflow preventers can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Warm up with a great gift

Heated toilet seats are one of the most popular gifts from SupplyHouse.com. A warm toilet seat is a great luxury on a cold day, and starting under $100, it's a luxury that you can afford. Both Brondell toilet seats and Takagi toilet seats are easy to install and are a change that will add so much comfort to your bathroom.

Toilet seats and heated toilet seats can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Norton Hot Surface Ignitors

Robertshaw 41-400 Series hot surface ignitors reach ignition temperatures within 17 seconds as electricity passes through the Silicon Carbide and makes it glow red hot. Operating under normal conditions a hot surface ignitor will last for 3 to 5 years, at which point they are easy to replace, similar to light bulbs. Most ignitors are interchangeable as long as they fit in the furnace space provided.

Robertshaw Norton Hot Surface Ignitors are available at www.supplyhouse.com.

PEX or PEX-al-PEX?

For heating or plumbing applications, you can use either standard PEX or PEX-al-PEX. PEX-al-PEX stands for PEX-Aluminum-PEX, which is a tubing composed of a layer of standard PEX, a layer of aluminum, and another layer of standard PEX. The aluminum layer in the PEX-al-PEX allows it to hold its shape, much like a pipe cleaner. Standard PEX comes in a coil, and to straighten it and get it where you want, you will need to secure it to the ground every few feet. With PEX-al-PEX, you will still need to secure the tubing to the ground, but since it will hold its shape, it will be easier to lay it out where you want it and have it stay put. A potential drawback of PEX-al-PEX is that you will need to use different fittings than are used with standard PEX. Because of this, it is best to only install one type of PEX in your home so that all of your tools and fittings will work on all of your tubing.

PEX-al-PEX tubing and PEX fittings can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

AO Smith Corrosion-Fighting Technology

The corrosion-fighting CoreGard anode rod now comes standard on all AO Smith Conservationist and ProMax residential water heaters. This technology utilizes cathodic protection to fight corrosion inside AO Smith heaters. Cathodic protection has become a widely used method for controlling the corrosion deterioration of metallic structures in contact with environments containing enough ions to conduct electricity such as soils, seawater and basically all natural waters. It basically reduces the corrosion rate of a metallic structure by reducing its corrosion potential, bringing the metal closer to an immune state.

A large selection of AO Smith Conservationist Commercial Water Heaters and ProMax Residential Water Heaters are available at www.supplyhouse.com

Adding an extra ball valve

It's always a good idea to add as many points to shut off water flow as possible. If you have water going to two separate areas of your house, put a ball valve in. A ball valve will allow you to quickly shut off the water where you need to, and to do it right away. In an emergency, you'll be glad to have spent the extra dollar on a ball valve and prevent thousands of dollars of damage to your home.

Ball valves and other plumbing supplies can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

What is water hammer?

Water hammer is the term for a pounding or other loud noise in your pipes caused by a buildup of hydraulic pressure. Water hammer is actually a common occurrence when the flow of water is stopped suddenly by a closing valve. To silence this noise and relieve the pressure, you need a water hammer arrestor. Water hammer arrestors, such as the Watts 150A, work to absorb the hydraulic shock in your system and prevents it from making noise or damaging any of your system parts.

Water hammer arrestors can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

How to know if a crimp is done right

The HydroPEX Crimping Tool comes with a Go/No-Go Gauge so that you can check that your connections are done properly. To use the gauge, slide your fitting into the gauge at the proper size (3/4" crimp rings go into the 3/4" opening, etc). If the crimp ring does not fit in at all, it has not been crimped enough and must be crimped tighter. If the crimp ring slides all the way to the top of the gauge without any space in between, it has been crimped too tightly. In this case, you will have to remove the crimp ring, adjust the tool to loosen the crimping force, and try again. If the ring slides into the gauge into the area marked "GO" but cannot slide all the way to the "NO-GO" of the top of the gauge, your fitting is secure and your crimp has been done properly.

PEX Crimp Tools and Rifeng Fittings can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Traditional thermostats

Honeywell Round Thermostats are what most people think of when they picture a traditional thermostat. Simple and straight-forward, these thermostats are easy to program, easy to use, and easy to look at. To make it warmer or cooler, you simply turn the dial; to the left is cooler and to the right is warmer.

Honeywell thermostats and round Honeywell thermostats can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Increase pump head

By using more than one Taco pump, you can add the heads together. Taco 009 pumps have up to 35 feet of head at .5 gallons per minute, and less feet of head when you need higher gallon per minute flow (for example, 11 GPM at 1 feet of head and 5 GPM at 20 feet of head). If you need more feet of head with a high GPM, you can combine pumps. By using 2 009-F5 pumps with 5 GPM, you will get 20 ft + 20 ft, or 40 total feet of head.

Taco pumps and other heating pumps can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

AO Smith dip tubes

AO Smith Water Heaters have PEX cross-linked polymer dip tubes standard on all gas and electric models. Their unique construction makes them long-lasting and superior in resistance to destructive thermal oxidation. The function of the dip tube is to force the cold water to the bottom and allow the hot water to come out of the left side of the water heater. Since the water heater is constantly full, the dip tube ensures that the heater uses all the hot water available while any cold water in the tank is being heated.

A large selection of AO Smith products can be found at www.supplyhouse.com, including residential water heaters, commercial water heaters and replacement parts.

Fast fittings

SharkBite Fittings are by far the fastest and easiest fittings to install. Used for both plumbing & heating, SharkBite Fittings are push-to-fit fittings, so you just take the fitting, insert it into the pipe, and the secure connection is ready to go.

SharkBite Fittings can be found at www.supplyhouse.com

Easy baseboard covers

If you need to replace a baseboard heater cover in a hurry, Baseboard Heater Covers brand baseboard covers are definitely the way to go. These one-size-fits-most covers are easy to install and can fit over almost any baseboard heater.

Baseboard heaters and baseboard heater covers can be found at www.supplyhouse.com