Friday, April 20, 2012

How Vancouver Drain Cleaning Companies Figure in Toilet History

Why are toilet subjects like drainage repair considered distasteful? And why do people almost never say the word toilet when it is exactly what they are referring to? Although most people would say common decency calls for it, toilet isn’t that dirty a word.
Derived from the word toile—French for cloth—the word toilette or toilet originally referred solely to the process of grooming, dressing, or generally preparing oneself for the day ahead. In the 1600s, a toile was draped over a man’s shoulders while he went through his morning and end-of-day rituals. Over time, the word toilette came to describe this process, and then became a genteel way of referring to the room (sans the commode) in which people took care of their daily ministrations. It is perhaps because of its indelicate purpose that the use of the word toilet is considered distasteful today.
We use euphemisms like chamber pot, latrine, the loo, commode, and john instead. The abundance of terms for this contraption shows that people often try to find ways to avoid talking about toilets and the problems associated with them, particularly the icky sort. Thankfully, Vancouver drain cleaning professionals like Milani Sewer and Drain can take care of regular maintenance, thus saving you from potential problems like clogged toilet drains and the like.
Much as people avoid talking about it, toilet technology can be rather interesting: Michael Telzrow, curator of the aptly-named “Privy to the Past” exhibit at the Neville Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin, provides us with a glimpse of toilet systems throughout the ages. Among other things, the exhibit displays a few contraptions we’d never think to use today, such as a toilet used during the Roman times that features a brine-soaked sponge fastened to a stick that was communally used to wipe people’s backsides.
Where and how to dispose of waste and sewage is an everyday concern that has hounded man since the beginning of time. Roman engineers constructed aqueducts, lead pipes, drains and dams to address this problem.
Telzrow says, “Advances in toilet sanitation are every bit as important as the development of the computer and the automobile. It has allowed people to live a healthy existence in cities.” It’s certainly hard to imagine what life would be like without the toilet.
But while toilets may have come a long way, maintaining our modern-day toilets and drainage systems is just as important as ever. For toilet problems, you may contact experts in drain cleaning Vancouver housekeepers recommend, like Milani.

Monday, April 16, 2012

Sewer Inspection: The Weirdest Things to Come Out of the Sewers

You’ve probably seen those morning cartoons where right after a sewer inspection people start traveling through sewers for reasons ranging from solving a case to traveling to another world. Through these shows sewers are painted as a wondrous place, home to magical and sometimes scary but otherwise endearing or curious creatures whose story you’d like to follow every episode. As you grew up though, you soon realize that these things belong to a fantasy world, so thereafter when you sit on your toilet, you are able to go about your business without worry. Unfortunately, when it comes to sewers, truth is definitely stranger than fiction. Heard of alligators being found in the sewers? Those are true stories. Some of the weirdest things that sewer maintenance companies like Milani ever found in sewers, drainpipes and trenches all over the country are illegal drugs, guns, live cats, snakes, iPods, and even prosthetic eyeballs. That said, here are three of the top weirdest things that have been found in sewers around the world.

Dentures

In Rock Hill, South Carolina, a frantic caller told a sewer maintenance man that he dropped his teeth down there. The maintenance guy was able to recover the man’s dentures intact and in good condition. The customer said that he intended to wear them again, but after a thorough cleaning, of course.

Man-bra

Like something from a bad comedy show, a sewer jetting technician in Plainfield, Illinois went to a commercial building and worked on a toilet in the men’s restroom. After hours of trying to unclog it, he was shocked to discover the cause: a training bra.

Carnivorous Lizards

Lizards enjoy water. If they live in recently urbanized areas, they will go wherever they can find a source of constant water (i.e., the sewers). A few years ago, a Norwegian boy told his mommy he needed to go, and when the mother lifted the toilet seat, they were greeted by a large Teju, a South American carnivorous lizard. Luckily, the mother accompanied her child, because if he had sat down on the toilet without looking, the giant lizard would have almost certainly bitten him. Whatever problems you may encounter with your plumbing or drainage system, it’s always a good idea to have a professional look at it. It’s hard to tell what you may find down there, so for your own safety, have your favorite sewer repair company’s number written alongside your other emergency contacts. There’s just no telling when you’re going to need it.