Are you prepared for a Thanksgiving mishap?

It may be more than a week away, but I've already got Thanksgiving on the brain. The family arguments talks about who's hosting the big event and what's getting cooked where are in full gear. And now, on top of what kind of mashed potatoes to cook and how many chairs can fit around the second fold-out table, it seems there's another detail I'm supposed to be concerned about: the likelihood of my sink or toilet backing up right in the middle of that big day.

It seems that more than 17 million Americans have experienced an overflowing toilet during the Thanksgiving holiday, and nearly 24 million have experienced a clogged drain during that same time frame, according to a recent survey done by Jelmar, a maker of plumbing fixer-uppers.

It make sense, of course. Any festivities tend to put undue burden on your plumbing system. from the number of guests pushing down on that already fussy toilet lever to the mountain of scraps being sent down the drain.

My advice would be to give those fixtures a once-over well before the guests start coming over to avoid any such disasters.

And in case you find a problem, here are some helpful links on how to:

• Silence a gurgling toilet.
• Stop a faucet leak.
• Fix a sweating tank.
• Steady a wobbly toilet.
• Clear a clogged drain.
• Or, worse, a backed up toilet.