Nexus Plumbing Blog

Join the Water Authority for an informative discussion on our area’s water infrastructure at the third “Water Talks” community forum, co-hosted by the South County Economic Development Council.

The event is free, but space is limited and RSVP’s are required. Light refreshments will be served.

http://www.sdcwa.org/water-talks

For those who don’t know Westfield Mall UTC is undergoing a massive remodel.

Nexus Plumbing was awarded (2) projects as part of this renovation and recenlty completed the remodel of (2) restaurants located at the food court of UTC Mall. (1) Mongril and (1) Steak Escape.

Westfield UTC is scheduled to have the following changes by the end of 2012:

•Fourteen-screen ArcLight premium cinema — ArcLight operates with no commercials, all-reserved seating and no entry after a movie has started. Amenities include extra-wide seats.

•Tender Greens restaurant — will feature organic produce and al fresco dining.

•Expanded 24 Hour Fitness Super Sport Club — will be triple the size of the existing club and have a swimming pool and full-size basketball court.

•Public seating — more places to sit scattered throughout the mall, including tables for business meetings and soft chairs around a fire pit — and Wi-Fi.

•Family features — a new children’s play area and family lounge in front of Macy’s.

By the end of 2013, the mall plans to have:

•More than a dozen new shops and restaurants replacing some existing ones whose leases are expiring. Names will not be released until the deals are finalized.

Full Article:

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2011/sep/07/westfield-utc-kicks-1-billion-renovation-project/

Use a five gallon bucket as a tool holder. And if a leak springs mid-project, it’ll catch the water. A tool caddy can also be attached to the bucket providing a place for everything.

Keep a forced cup and a regular plunger handy. Each plunger has its own specific use and provides extra unclogging power.

Wrenches are essential in plumbing. A pair of medium sized slip joint pliers and an adjustable wrench should cover most jobs, along with various sized wrenches.

A multi-bit screwdriver can reduce the number of tools that need to be carried around on the job.

An assortment of Allen keys is very handy and has many uses.

Duct tape and leak sealing tape can help out in a plumbing emergency until a permanent fix can be made. Teflon tape will seal up leaks from around threaded connections.

A variety of blind caps can help you see your way through repairing a broken valve.

Heavy duty paper towels or rags will help clean up water from small leaks.
Emergency Tips

Always know where the main water shut-off valve is located in case of a leak.

Know how to turn off the water heater. If it’s a gas water heater, turn the switch to the “pilot” position.

Isolation valves located at each fixture will stop the flow of water to that location. This allows water to continue to service the remainder of the house while the leak is being repaired. It’s a good idea to turn on and off each isolation valve in the house at least once a year to keep them in good working condition.

Using two wrenches at once turning in opposite directions is called “backing off” and allows the wrench to absorb the stress and not the plumbing.

Slip joint pliers can be used to loosen the collar nuts on a drain line.

If a supply tube break off is causing a leak, screw in a blind cap to seal off the leak until it can be fixed.

Occasionally, the ferrules in a supply tube can get scratched or dented causing water to leak. Use Teflon tape around the ferrule until a permanent repair can be made.

Use duct tape or pipe sealing tape to pull together a crack in a pipe, reducing the leak as a temporary solution.

A cup plunger can be used for small drains like bath tubs, showers and lavatory sinks. Forced cup plungers have a funnel that can apply extra force down the drain, which is good for sinks or toilets.

When unclogging a kitchen sink, use a second plunger to cover the other drain to get the most force to remove the clog.

To unclog a toilet, use a forced cup plunger.

For bathtub clogs, unscrew the chrome cap — this exposes the entire drain. Once the mechanism is removed, you’ll be able to see the clog. Put the plunger on the drain, and then use the second plunger to plug up the tub’s overflow. Plunge the drain to remove the clog.

Allen wrenches are useful for working on a faucet and garbage disposals.

http://www.diynetwork.com/plumbing/plumbing-emergency-tips/index.html

The Holiday Season is a happy time.

During the Holidays we enjoy visits from our friends, family and even Santa Claus.

Although you love your friendly plumber, we don’t enjoy having emergency plumbing house calls.

Here are a few simple tips to help keep your Holiday parties and pipes running smoothly:

1. Keep drains free of cooking oil and grease. Scrape food and grease from plates into the trash. Pour off cooking grease from pans and bake ware into a can. Let it cool before placing it in the trash. Collect turkey frying oil and take it to the local household collection facility for free. The tallow company picks it up and recycles it.

2. Beware of the “unflushables.” Household cleaning wipes, facial wipes, baby wipes, toilet bowel cleaning pads, diapers, dental floss, feminine hygiene products and condoms should be disposed in the trash. When flushed they can hang up on roots in sewer lines and cause a stroke of disaster.

3. Keep your sewer lines free-flowing and root free. Use a snake to clean out roots. Don’t use copper root killers. They are toxic to the environment and treatment plants where the waste water flows. If trees grow over your sewer lines you may need to schedule regular visits from a qualified plumber to remove them safely.

http://www.elocalplumbers.com/blog/holiday-plumbing-tips-5541

SAN DIEGO, March 21, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Turner Construction Company, San Diego is pleased to announce that its prominent Turner School of Construction Management commenced its first session of 2011 on February 24 at the New Central Library jobsite in downtown San Diego. This free series of classes is available to any company or individual in any segment of the construction industry, and is designed to educate subcontractors on the industry’s newest technology and best practices. As one of the country’s top ranked builders, Turner Construction Company’s training program is an excellent opportunity to develop strategic business relationships with small, women-owned, and minority-owned firms. This newest series of classes in downtown San Diego will complement two existing sessions which take place at the San Diego International Airport every year. Turner’s San Diego office is the only business unit nationwide to host three Turner School sessions.

City of San Diego Mayor, Jerry Sanders, states, “Completing this program places subcontractors in a much stronger position to compete for future city projects. Having a robust local small business community benefits all of San Diego. These classes truly are an asset to our minority business-owners, our communities, and our economy.”

Turner Construction Company’s nationally-recognized Construction Management training program began in 1969 in Cleveland, Ohio. Since its inception, the training has taken place in 70 cities, and over 32,000 businesses have taken the classes. The classes are lead by community leaders and Turner executives who focus on specific aspects of the construction industry, for example: estimating, purchasing, logistics, finances, insurance, and bonding.

Shawn Rosenberger, Vice President and General Manager for Tuner Construction Company, San Diego states, “We have lined up a stellar group of industry leaders to share their expertise in the critical aspects of the construction industry. We are so pleased to partner with the City of San Diego to offer these classes to promote excellence in our industry, and support growth in our region.”

Turner is the leading general builder in the U.S., ranking first or second in all major segments of the construction field. For more information, visit www.turnerconstruction.com/sandiego, or contact Vera Howell at 619-961-2289 to register for future Turner School classes in San Diego.

Media Contact: Beth Binger

BCI

Mobile: (619) 987-6658

beth.binger@BCIpr.com

Local business owners rely on free USD legal clinic
By Tanya Mannes

Tuesday, March 8, 2011 at 6 a.m.

Eduardo Contreras
Gwen Pierce and her interns, Emily Cohlheim of Eastlake High and Shyana Brown of High Tech High, assemble packets of the latest issue of “The Chocolate Voice” magazine for mailing out.

Photo by John Gibbins

Anthony Ruiz, co-owner of Nexus Plumbing with his wife Rachel, installs a natural gas line valve as part of an extensive remodel of the backyard of a home on Soledad Mountain.
University of San Diego legal clinic for entrepreneurs
Who qualifies?

San Diego County entrepreneurs who cannot otherwise afford a lawyer. Applicants must submit financial documents to establish income levels.

What legal issues are addressed?

•Obtaining business permits and licenses

•Drafting, reviewing and negotiating contracts

•Determining the appropriate form of business entity, such as sole proprietorship or corporation

•Providing advice on trademark and copyright issues

•The clinic does not assist with court matters such as lawsuits

How does it work?

If you are selected for a program, a law student will be assigned to help you with your case, under supervision from an attorney. Cases can take some time because law students are working within their class schedules. If a case takes longer than a semester, the law student assigned to that client passes the file to a student signed up for the next semester.

How much does it cost?

These services are free to the client, although clients must pay for any fees or expenses required by law. For example, if the clinic assists the client in filing incorporation papers, the client pays the filing fee required by the state. In many instances, there will be no fees.

Who qualifies?

Because its services are free, the Entrepreneurship Clinic focuses its efforts on assisting those who cannot otherwise afford a lawyer. In addition to income criteria, the clinic also considers how complex or simple the client’s legal needs are, the type of legal issues raised, and the client’s dedication to the business.

Information: Visit sandiego.edu/law and click on “Free Legal Assistance.” You can also call (619) 260-7470 or e-mail director Donna Matias at dmatias@sandiego.edu
Chula Vista resident Gwen Pierce wanted to be a positive voice for the African American community, so in 2007 she began publishing a magazine with inspirational content aimed at people of color.

As her subscriber base grew, Pierce needed legal advice on handling contracts with writers and advertisers at “The Chocolate Voice” magazine. So she turned to the University of San Diego’s entrepreneurship clinic, staffed with law students who assist local business owners at no cost.

“They helped me draft an advertising contract and contracts for writers, and helped me do research into copyright issues,” Pierce said. “I have this document that was drafted up for me, so I refer back to it.”

The USD legal clinic is among just two in Southern California (the other is at the University of Southern California) that help entrepreneurs with their businesses.

It limits its services to low- and moderate-income business owners in San Diego County despite requests from business owners in Los Angeles and Orange counties, said Donna Matias, the clinic’s director.

“We’re a San Diego school and we want to help people in our community,” she said.

The USD legal clinic doesn’t handle lawsuits, focusing more on “transactional” law such as drafting contracts, forming corporations and handling copyright issues. It was established to serve the needs of students who aim to be corporate lawyers, not litigators.

The clinic has closed 526 cases in the 10 years since it was established. It has assisted a wide variety of businesses, from pet sitting companies to restaurants and breweries, as well as business consultants, hairdressers and plumbers.

Many business owners go without legal advice because of the cost, which can be prohibitive for a struggling entrepreneur. The average billing rate for attorneys is $284 per hour, according to a 2009 study by Incisive Legal Intelligence. Business owners seeking legal advice at USD need to submit financial documents to prove they need the help.

Most law schools don’t offer legal clinics for entrepreneurs, in part because of the expense of paying attorneys to oversee each case. Law schools with legal clinics have traditionally focused on helping vulnerable individuals, such as people needing tax assistance, tenants in disputes with their landlords, and domestic violence victims, not businesses, Matias said.

In the 1990s, the University of Chicago was among the first law schools to establish a legal clinic for businesses as a way to train students who aimed to work in corporate settings, said Matias, who worked on that project and later came to USD. Today, about 50 U.S. law schools offer free legal clinics to business owners, sometimes in specialized areas such as intellectual property, community economic development or nonprofit organizations.

Matias said that the legal clinic is a way for USD to give back by helping struggling business owners achieve self-sufficiency.

“It’s not like we’re doing really complicated legal transactions for them, but from their perspectives it makes a huge difference,” Matias said. “You’re helping them help themselves.”

The legal clinic helped Pierce avoid costly mistakes with her magazine venture. She now asks advertisers to agree to contracts that clearly spell out billing terms, along with a printing-error disclaimer. “It certainly makes me do things more efficiently and conscientiously, instead of just jumping in,” she said.

San Diego business owners Rachel and Anthony Ruiz contacted the legal clinic in 2009 for help in establishing their company, Nexus Plumbing in San Diego. Anthony had worked in commercial plumbing for years, and decided to start the business when his employer began cutting salaries.

The couple filed paperwork on their own to establish the business as an S-corporation, and obtained a general contractor’s license. The law students helped them perform all the required tasks, such as drafting a shareholders’ agreement. “I wanted to register with the state as a minority-owned business, and they require lot of documents,” Rachel Ruiz said.

She said the clinic helped her to understand the business better. “It gave us the opportunity we probably wouldn’t have had, working with an attorney to learn the ins and outs of why we were doing certain things,” she said.

USD law student Arine Harapeti is in her second semester of working at the legal clinic. “You get the hands-on experience, and you see how the law and what you learn applies in real life,” said Harapeti, 23.

Her clients have included San Diego resident Antonio T.J. Johnson, who is applying for nonprofit status for a theater company.

Harapeti is helping Johnson write bylaws, assemble a board of directors and file documents. “It’s just really putting the papers together,” Johnson said. “She gave me a to-do list.”

Johnson, 58, is an actor who appears in local dramatic productions. Years ago, he was homeless because of his alcohol and drug abuse. That experience motivated him to establish what he plans to call the Vagabond Theater Project. He wants to offer dramatic classes for young homeless people at his church and host a theater festival at a local community college.

“Working in the theater kept me grounded and kept the magic in my life, and I want to offer that to other people,” he said.

Pierce’s magazine business is steadily growing. She’s on track to be profitable in June, with 200 paying subscribers. “It’s a ton of work, and I spend a lot of time on it,” she said, “but it’s a labor of love.”

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/mar/08/local-business-owners-rely-free-usd-legal-clinic/

Get at least 3 bids per item or work (for subs and materials), and use those bids to negotiate with each of the other subs, but be careful with this. You really shouldn’t say exact bids, or whom they are from because these guys talk. They will know if you are making stuff up and if you aren’t, so, be honest!

Now, you want to know how to get bids, and since you need to get three of them, you should learn the secret to getting them.the secret to getting bids is to ask for them! Ok, this is not much of a secret, but seriously, you really just need to get on the phone, find some contractors, and ask for bids.

To find the contractors in your area (which are the ones you want bids from, otherwise you will get travel expenses included in your bid), open the phone book and look under categories relating to construction. For example, “building contractors,” “general contractors,” “excavating contractors,” “concrete contractors” are all great places to start. Just go down your list of needs and find a contractor, sub, or supplier that can fill it, and ASK for a bid. A great way to find these subs is to go to other job sites and ask the subs there for bids. Ask builders because they like to keep their subs busy, so it helps them to send work to their subs. Once you find some subs, ask them for material people and suppliers they recommend. This has great advantages.you find out the best people to go to, and often subs will warn you about the people you don’t want to go to.

In most instances, in order to get an accurate bid you will need to get your plans, house specs, suppliers list etc. to the contractor. Many times they will come to you to get them. Make sure you have plenty of specs and prints. It is very inexpensive to print several of these, and it equals savings because it allows you to get multiple accurate bids. Once the contractors and subs have your specs and plans set a deadline that is reasonable to have them get you a bid in and have you accept or reject it.

See full article at :http://www.homebuildingremodeling.com/how_to_get_contractor_bids_1_000915.html

Backflow preventers prevent the possibility of pollution in the water systems. Thus, the good water does not come into contact with the sewage or other pollutants. This is the same function that the vacuum breakers play. Therefore, in essence, vacuum breakers are types of backflow preventers. They are in the shape of plastic disks, and when there is water pressure, they move forward and cover the vents. One of the common types is the atmospheric vacuum breaker. It is the cheapest of the backflow preventers. The other type is the pressure vacuum breaker.

Read more: http://www.doityourself.com/stry/are-backflow-preventers-the-same-as-vacuum-breakers#ixzz1EnxAPyYE

One of the worst things to happen is a sewer line clog. This is not only gross and inconvenient, but the cost of fixing it is really high. The worst thing about this problem is that it typically can be prevented if you know how. Here are some of the usual culprits of a sewer line clog:

Grease
Grease all too well known to be bad for drains. Grease should never ever go into the drain or be washed down the sink even if it is in liquid form because when it gets cooler, it will solidify and clog the sewer line. The best way to get rid of grease is to put liquid in an old can and then throw away when it hardens.

Food
Food often gets down the drain when you are cleaning up after dinner or a meal. Using a strainer over the drain is the best idea because you can stop all of the little pieces from getting down there.

Soap
Be careful what kind of soap that you use because sometimes it can cause buildup.

All of these things can be prevented if you are careful. A little extra time paying attention to what’s going down the drain will save you a lot of time and money in the long run.

Read more: http://www.doityourself.com/stry/3-common-culprits-of-a-sewer-line-clog#ixzz1EhtNQmO2

Copper slipped Wednesday as businesses hold back on purchases because of higher prices.