Brown Friday Keeps Plumbers and Drain Cleaners Extra Busy

The Day After Thanksgiving is Roto-Rooter's Busiest Day of the Year

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Nov 16, 2018, 12:24 ET

CINCINNATI, Nov. 16, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The day after Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for plumbing and drain companies like Roto-Rooter. Big meal preparation and kitchen cleanup frequently overload the sink and disposal, creating work for plumbers who stay busy unclogging kitchen sinks, garbage disposals, toilets and sewers. Retailers call it Black Friday, but Roto-Rooter plumbers call it "Brown Friday" because of the volume of sewage and waste water they deal with.

Roto-Rooter, the world's largest provider of plumbing repair and sewer & drain services, says "Brown Friday" is its busiest day of the year. Customer calls increase by 50% over an average Friday and they see a 21% uptick in business over any other four-day weekend period during the year. All because of big holiday meals and guests. "Extra people inside a house mean more flushes, showers and washed dishes, increasing the chance something will go wrong with the plumbing" said Paul Abrams, spokesman for Roto-Rooter. "When the drains stop working, our phone starts ringing," he added.

Roto-Rooter will be fully staffed on Friday to deal with extra service calls. Virtually every Roto-Rooter service technician will be working on "Brown Friday," to save customers from long waits.

To avoid plumbing and drain trouble over Thanksgiving weekend, follow these tips:

Never pour fats or cooking oils down drains. They solidify in pipes and choke drains.
Don't put potato peels, poultry skins, bones, rice or pasta down the garbage disposal. Disposals can handle scraps in small quantities but most food waste belongs in the trash can.
Make sure the disposal is running when you feed it food scraps.
Don't flush wet wipes down toilets. They won't dissolve and may cause clogs.
Place a plunger in guest bathrooms to save your guests the embarrassment of asking for one.
Spread out showers and laundry loads.

To learn more about the Thanksgiving/Brown Friday phenomenon, watch these videos.

Founded in 1935, Roto-Rooter is the largest provider of plumbing and sewer & drain cleaning services in the world. Roto-Rooter also provides water damage cleanup services. Roto-Rooter operates businesses in more than 120 company owned locations and 500 independent franchise locations serving the U.S. and Canada. Look up your local Roto-Rooter at www.rotorooter.com/locations/

Contact: Paul Abrams
513-762-6434
Cell: 513-702-5631
[email protected]

SOURCE Roto-Rooter