Skip to main content

Any housing unit has INADEQUATE PLUMBING if it lacks one of the following: hot or piped WATER, BATH TUB or SHOWER, flush TOILET.


For most Californians, handwashing is a matter of turning on their home faucet. And while it is no substitute for other guidelines, handwashing is a SURPRISINGLY effective model or methodology against Coronavirus SARS 2/COVID 19. Unfortunately, not everyone can implement this public health guidance. The state’s HOMELESS POPULATION has difficulties, and so do residents with INADEQUATE PLUMBING.

The American Community Survey, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, collects national- and state-representative information about housing characteristics. In more than 6,300 housing units in California, people lack adequate plumbing, meaning they have no piped hot and cold water, no bathtub or shower, AND/OR no flush toilet.

Californians across the state live in units with inadequate plumbing, including in COUNTIES MONITORED for coronavirus spikes due to worsening virus indicators. Napa and Imperial Counties have slightly lower rates of housing with substandard plumbing than Sacramento and San Mateo. Of the state’s 58 counties, San Francisco has the highest rate. At about 1.8 percent, housing in San Francisco is over four times more likely than housing in Los Angeles to lack adequate plumbing.

The four counties with the highest rates of inadequate plumbing all have POVERTY RATES EXCEEDING 18%. Inadequacy differs by region as well: housing in Shasta, Yolo, and Humboldt Counties lacks hot and cold piped water at the highest rates, while housing in largely urban San Francisco, Alameda, and Los Angeles Counties tends to lack a shower or tub.

The coronavirus pandemic may compound struggles for those who live in housing with substandard plumbing. Over half of these units (57%) also lack a kitchen, making it hard for people to prepare meals at home. Affected individuals disproportionately face health and health care challenges. Compared to people living in modern facilities, those in housing with substandard plumbing are about twice as likely to be disabled (20% vs. 10%) and more likely to have no health insurance (13% vs. 8%). Furthermore, these units are much more likely to be single-person households (22% vs. 9%), which raises broader concerns about mental health.

Reducing virus spread through frequent handwashing is a vital part of MANAGING THE PANDEMIC.  But not every California household has the plumbing to meet basic hygiene needs.  Adequate plumbing is part of the foundation of improved health for the communities we live in!











Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Our reputation has leaked out!

  Our Smartplumber Joey was dispatched to a familiar scenario where customers are too often faced with a sudden increase in their monthly water bill. In no time at all, our Smartplumber was able to quickly determine that the laundry room had sprung a leak; underneath the hot water line piping stone-tiled floor!   This was determined by using a thermal heat sensor that was used to locate the direction of the pipeline and where exactly the pipe damage was.   (This type of device reminds me of a Dr's stethoscope, where earphones and a sensor are used to detect and hear soft hissing sounds). Next, our Smartplumber Joey had to excavate a 1-foot hole beneath the stone tile directly above the heat source was and where the hissing sound was detected. Hey, presto! Sure enough, there was a corroded hairline crack in the 3/4" copper piping directly below.  Joey, then went on to patch the copper piping with a soldering copper patch. (These copper patches are proven to ...

Tackling A Toilet Clog For A Commercial Building

A clogged drain in your commercial building can be the cause of extreme inconvenience, an unpleasant mess, or even significant damage to the building or its interior. In cases where self-administered plumbing fixes at a basic level aren't enough, Smart Plumbers stands ready. Here we have Joel cabling a pulled toilet drain to make quick work of the back-up.

A GOOD FLUSH BEATS A FULL HOUSE!

YOU NEED SEWER LINE REPAIR IF YOU SEE THESE SIGNS: Your toilet makes gargling noises. Drains aren't draining. Mold on walls. An increase in pests The toilet backs up when you flush.  Ever wondered why your bathroom smells of sewer gas odor? Without access to outside air the vacuum in the system might pull air from another plumbing fixture. For example, flushing the toilet could pull air from the bathroom sink removing the water from the P-Trap. So if you smell sewage out of the sink drain after flushing, this could be a sign of a larger ventilation issue. The P-Trap shaped piping is named after its shape. A small bend in the pipe to trap water creates a seal. This water seal prevents sewer gases and odors from leaking into your home via your drain. As water drains from the bathroom sink basin via the P-Trap, it draws air from the outside vent to equalize the pressure.  If the roof top vent is blocked by snow or some other debris then the trap seal could be sucked out by the dr...