Plumbers stay busy with 'Brown Friday' service calls

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Many are spent the Friday after Thanksgiving in lines for store sales. However, plumbers woke up early for different kinds of lines.

"It seems to be a trend," said Daniel Salazar. "It's usually when we have family gatherings -- Super Bowl, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and also, in some cases, even New Year's. We'll have an increase of service calls the day after."

Salazar is the director of operations for PDS Plumbing & Air in Clovis.

He said, in the plumbing industry, the Friday after Thanksgiving is known as "Brown Friday" because they receive more calls for sewer and drain services.

By 9:30 Friday morning, PDS Plumbing & Air already had around 20 calls. Crews expect it to increase throughout the next week.

"We're probably going to see about 50% increase in service calls, and a majority of those are going to be sewage-related service calls," Salazar said.

Action News tagged along with a crew, as they responded to a clogged sewage pipe.

"A lot of families coming over and overuse of toilets can definitely cause clogs for a homeowner," Salazar explained. "Flushable wipes can cause major clogs."

Plumbers also see clogged kitchen pipes after Thanksgiving.

According to Salazar, hard foods and fatty oils should be tossed in the trash, not sent down the drain.

"Just because you have a garbage disposal doesn't mean that the garbage disposal is going to break all that food down," he said.

With the holiday season underway and more families planning to get together, Salazar said preventative maintenance can save homeowners hundreds of dollars.

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