Terms of Use

This statement covers the Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. Website (“Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. websites”) and any associated content including email and RSS feeds. Please read this statement carefully before proceeding to access any of our websites or information properties. Your use of Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. websites and information properties indicates your agreement to abide by the Terms in effect.

CC Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

Except where otherwise noted, Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. is pleased to make its original content available under a Creative Commons (CC) Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, for non-commercial reproduction with credit to the source site. You are free to Share and Remix with Attribution for Non-Commercial purposes. Some content may also be available for commercial purposes upon request, please contact us.

This license permits anyone to do the following with original Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. content, in any medium:

  1. To reproduce, remix, or otherwise alter original site material so long as the URL is displayed and credit is given. This includes, specifically, permission:
    • to reproduce quotes
    • to reproduce screenshots of any page of a Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. site
    • to include original material in mash-ups, mixes, parodies, caricatures, etc for print or online

Important Note: this does not include the right to republish images for which we may not be the copyright holder except in the context of a screenshot of the whole site.

We make no representations or guarantees about the suitability for third-party use of content that appears on Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. websites, and licenses herewith only the content of which Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. is the copyright holder.

RSS feed use

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. provides ad-free RSS feeds at https://balkanplumbing.com/feed/.

If you are using all or substantially all of a feed, we ask that you do not modify it in any way.

  1. Full ad-free RSS feed uses, including reproduction on websites, should only use the Excerpt feeds, unless otherwise agreed with the company.
  2. Please do not splice the RSS feeds into or otherwise redistribute them via third-party RSS providers.
  3. Please do not add content, including any advertisements or other promotional content, to the RSS feeds.
  4. We reserve the right to object to your presentation of the RSS feeds and the right to require you to cease using the RSS feeds at any time.
  5. We further reserve the right to terminate its distribution of the RSS feeds or change the content or formatting of the RSS feeds at any time without notice to you.

Web Syndication Terms of Use

  1. Internal links in the Site content must not be removed.
  2. The Site or Story URL should appear on each page displaying site content.
  3. The format or branding of the headlines, text and other information provided in the RSS feeds must not be modified.

Print Syndication Terms of Use

  1. Reproduction of screenshots from any Site is permissible, without prior written approval, so long as the site logo and URL is fully visible or otherwise included on the page. See above for general permissions on partial content.
  2. The Site logo and URL must appear prominently at the top of each section displaying site content.
  3. Content must appear unedited, except for replacement of hyperlinks with full URLs and use of product manufacturer’s site links where appropriate.
  4. Images from a Site must not be used in print without you obtaining the appropriate copyright clearances yourself.

General Terms of Use

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. provides this content “as is” and shall not be held liable for your use of the information or the feeds. Use of a Site’s content, including text and images, on your site, or in print, is entirely at your discretion. We are not responsible for any complaints regarding content or images that you choose to display on your site or in print.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED, Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES INCLUDING WARRANTIES FOR MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. By accessing the RSS feeds or the XML instructions provided above, you indicate that you understand and agree to these terms and conditions.

Corresponding with Joseph L. Balkan, Inc.

Any correspondence with our websites or submission of content to us, including any documentation or images, is considered property of Joseph L. Balkan, Inc.. We reserve the right to reproduce such content, in whole or in part, on any of our websites, properties or affiliates, and to use it in any way we choose, including allowing third parties to republish the material. In submitting something to us, you are representing that the content is yours to give to us, does not infringe on any third party’s rights – copyright, trademark, privacy rights and the like – and is not libelous or unlawful in any other way.

Comments Terms of Use

The comments sections on Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. website is accessible to users. In order to make our comments useful and interesting, the following guidelines have been established for comment users:

  • Do not post threatening, harassing, defamatory, or libelous material.
  • Do not intentionally make false or misleading statements.
  • Do not offer to sell or buy any product or service.
  • Do not post material that infringes copyright.
  • Do not post information that you know to be confidential or sensitive or otherwise in breach of the law.
  • We will not accept responsibility for information posted in the Comments.

Please note that once you post a comment to one of our websites, it becomes part of the public conversation. Our policy is that we will not remove a user’s comments unless we deem them to be in violation of our Terms of Service. So if you want to say something that you will later regret personally, it is advisable that you use a username that does not identify you. We cannot remove your comments simply because you have a change of heart about making them.

Additionally, it is our policy not to delete comment accounts. However, we reserve the right to remove comments entirely at its discretion, including for alleged violations of terms of service or legal rights.

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. is not responsible for the content of user comments. If a third party complains that your comment violates our Terms of Use or their rights, we will invite them to respond in the comments themselves. If they pursue the complaint, we will make reasonable efforts to contact you by the means you have provided us, to alert you to the situation. We will protect your contact information as described in our privacy policy, but may be compelled to turn it over pursuant to legal process.

Image and Video Terms of Use

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. websites typically display images, audio, and video (the “Material”) as part of blog posts written by our editors. The types of Material editors are authorized to use on Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. websites include:

  • Material licensed from photographic archive and video vendors
  • Material supplied to our editors or released into the public domain by public relations and marketing companies for press purposes
  • Reader-submitted Material, with the implied representation that the person submitting the material owns the copyright in the material and the right to give it to us for use on our site(s)
  • Material published on Flickr or other public photo / video websites with licenses granted under Creative Commons, with attribution in accordance with the CC license granted in each case
  • Material commissioned by us
  • Material that we believe to be covered by the Fair Use Doctrine, taking into account factors such as:
    1. The purpose and character of the use (i.e. transformation from the original, use for criticism, satire or parody
    2. The nature of the copyrighted work (i.e. factual or newsworthy vs creative works)
    3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the whole (i.e. use of cropped, reduced, low-resolution Material used for no more than to convey the point made)
    4. The effect on the potential market for the copyrighted work (e.g. use that is not substitutive for the original, or would never be licensed in any event)

If Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. receives notice that Material posted is not in keeping with these terms and conditions or the intended use of the Comments section where it is posted, we reserve to right to remove the material.

If you think we have published Material that infringes your copyright, we will address your concerns; however, if the material falls into one of the categories listed above, we believe that our use is legitimate and we will not remove it from the site.

Please note that we will respond only to notices of alleged infringement that comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The text of the Act can be found at the U.S. Copyright Office Web Site, http://lcWeb.loc.gov/copyright/.

To file a notice of infringement with us, you must provide a written communication (by email with an attached and signed PDF or by fax) that sets forth the items specified below. Please do not send us regular mail, as we may not receive it in a timely fashion. In all cases, if you do not hear a response from us within 10 days of submitting a complaint, please contact us to confirm that we received your original complaint.

To enable us to address your concerns, please provide the following information:

  1. For each allegedly infringing image, video or piece of text that you wish to have removed from one of our websites, provide the exact permanent URL for the page containing the material.
  2. Provide information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact you: an email address is preferred, as well as a telephone contact number.
  3. For images, provide the following information detailing your claim to ownership of the copyright in the allegedly infringing image:

    * Proof of copyright in the image concerned, namely proof of registration of the Image under the DMCA,

    OR, absent such registration,

    • a detailed description of where the photograph was taken, by whom, who or what the subject of the image is, AND

    • Evidence to support your claim that you own the copyright in the image.

    We will not comply with requests to remove an image where the complainant cannot prove that they own the copyright in the image in question.

  4. Include the following statement: “I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accurate and that I am the copyright owner or am authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.”
  5. Sign the document and send:, Attn: Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. Legal / DMCA Complaints

Please note that you will be liable for damages (including costs and attorneys’ fees) if you materially misrepresent that any material on our websites is infringing your copyrights. We also reserve the right to publish your letter on the site(s).

External Links Disclaimer

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. websites routinely contain links to external, third party websites. By providing links to other websites, we do not guarantee, approve or endorse the information or products available at these websites, nor does a link indicate any association with or endorsement by the linked site to the Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. Site in question.

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. does not operate or control and has no responsibility for the information, products and/or services found on any external websites. Nor do such links represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any information, products and/or services provided on or through any external websites, including, without limitation, warranties of any kind, either express or implied, warranties of title or non-infringement or implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Visitors to Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. websites assume complete responsibility and risk in their use of any external websites. Visitors should direct any concerns regarding any external link to its site administrator or webmaster.

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. is a proud supporter of the framework, ideas and technologies that continue to make this website possible including; Net Neutrality, Open Source, Fair Use and Creative Commons Licensing.

Please contact us with any questions.

Customer Consent for Stripe Payments

Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. utilizes the Stripe Payment Gateway to ensure a secure payment process for their customers. It is noteworthy to also mention that Stripe Payments is also PCI compliant, which is a Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard to prevent credit card fraud and related security breaches.

As per the Stripe Payment Policy, Joseph L. Balkan, Inc. would require the consent of the customer to store their credit card details at the initial payment process. The same card details would be used by Balkan Sewer & Drain Cleaning, Inc. to process the subsequent payments automatically.

The frequency and amount of the subsequent automated payments would be as per the service agreement and work provided by Joseph L. Balkan, Inc.