How to Prepare Your Oshkosh, WI Home’s Plumbing for the Spring

April 16, 2025

Now that spring is here, Oshkosh, WI homeowners are tackling all the cleaning and maintenance that wasn’t always possible during the winter. While doing spring cleaning and preparing your backyard for summer barbecues, you can’t forget your plumbing or potential flooding on your property. Between melting snow, spring showers, and pipes that may have frozen and cracked during the winter, you might have more water-related issues than you think in your home. Fortunately, preparing your home’s plumbing for the spring season is easier than you might think. Here are some tips that will help you with that task.

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The Benefits of a Tankless Water Heater for Busy Households

March 15, 2025

There are many reasons to upgrade a traditional water heater to a tankless model. In your home, you use hot water to bathe, wash clothes, wash dishes, and more. If you have a traditional tank device, the amount of hot water you can receive is limited by what the tank can hold. That said, a tankless water heater doesn’t have this limitation, which is why it works well for a large, busy household. Tankless water heaters are newer options that have more functionality, so if you have an older home, upgrading to one of these models may

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7 Signs That Your Water Heater Needs Repairs

February 8, 2025

Your water heater is responsible for supplying your home with hot water. Unfortunately, like any appliance in your home, it can develop issues over time. Most water heaters last between eight and 12 years before they should be replaced, but newer water heaters can often be repaired if they only have minor issues that you catch in time. That being said, let’s go over seven signs that your water heater is in need of repairs. 1. Little or No Hot Water The biggest indicator that your water heater needs repairs is when you have little or

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Winter Tips for Preventing Frozen Pipes

January 16, 2025

The temperature outside in Appleton, WI, can get quite cold in the winter months. This can put homes at risk of experiencing frozen pipes. This is a potentially devastating situation that can cause all kinds of structural damage, mold growth, wood rot, and an interruption in your water supply. Let’s look at some of the ways you can prevent frozen pipes in your Appleton home this winter. Adding Insulation to Pipes and Water Tanks By adding affordable and effective insulation around your pipes, you can prevent water from becoming too cold inside those pipes. This can

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Why Your Garbage Disposal Smells and What to Do About It

December 8, 2024

Have you noticed that your garbage disposal has recently started to stink? Unpleasant odors coming out of a garbage disposal are a common problem. Luckily, it’s also something you can both prevent and overcome easily as long as you know what contributes to this problem and how to avoid it. Understanding What Causes a Garbage Disposal to Stink Two interrelated issues can result in nasty odors wafting out of a garbage disposal. The first is fat, grease and bits of food can get stuck inside the disposal and start to rot. All the stuck food scraps

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Why Is My Sump Pump Running But Not Draining?

November 15, 2024

Sump pumps play a crucial role in keeping your basement or crawl space dry by pumping excess water from the sump pit and diverting it away from your home. By doing so, they help prevent flooding and protect your foundation from potential damage. However, it can be frustrating when your sump pump runs but doesn’t drain. At Black-Haak, we want to help you understand why this issue occurs and how professional repairs can resolve it. How Sump Pumps Work Understanding how sump pumps function can help explain why one might run but not drain properly. When

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Different Types of Bathtubs

October 11, 2024

A bathtub can be far more than a basic bathroom feature. Your tub can be a peaceful oasis after a stressful day. A soothing bath provides psychological and health benefits. If you choose the right bathtub for your interior design, it can serve as a beautiful and functional centerpiece of your bathroom. When you’re remodeling or installing a new bathroom, think about choosing a tub that provides the most luxury and aesthetic enhancement for your decor. Also consider the amount of space you have, the water capacity of your home, floor weight capacity, and the tub’s intended

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The Effects of Water Softening on Hair, Skin, and Nails

September 12, 2024

Water softening is a process that replaces hard minerals such as calcium and magnesium in water with sodium or potassium ions. This process, commonly referred to as “soft” water, has transformative effects on personal care. Hard water, by comparison, can leave behind a residue of minerals that impacts the effectiveness of cleansers, soaps, shampoos, and conditioners, often leading to dull hair, dry skin, and brittle nails. When switched to softened water, the absence of these minerals creates noticeable improvements, especially in hair, skin, and nails. The following sections explain how softened water enhances these three key areas of personal care.

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10 Disadvantages of Tanked Water Heaters

August 12, 2024

If you’re in the market for a new water heater, you can choose between tank and tankless forms. The more traditional option is the tank water heater. However, this type of water heater has many disadvantages you need to know about. What Is a Tank Water Heater? Thanks to its cylindrical tank, a tank water heater is easily distinguishable. This traditional water heater will vary in size depending on the total gallon capacity that your household needs. Most tank water heaters have a capacity between 30 and 120 gallons. They can be powered by electricity,

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How Long Does a Shower Replacement Take?

July 15, 2024

Your shower is an integral part of your daily life, so having it out of commission for a long time can become exceptionally problematic. However, sometimes a shower replacement is warranted, whether you want a new look, need to fix a problem, or need a new function. Use this guide to understand how long it will take to replace a shower and the variables influencing that timing. General Rule of Thumb for Professional Installation How long it takes to replace a shower first depends on whether you’re trying to do a DIY replacement versus having a

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