People don’t think much of their plumbing until water starts gushing back from the kitchen or the toilet sink and your home gets flooded. Water damage is among the hardest to clean up, so keeping the drains clean and unobstructed is definitely worth the time and money. Averting a plumbing disaster is best achieved using the following 7 ways.
The easiest way to unclog a drain
It is hard to find a single best way to unclog a drain because there are several types of clogs. Sometimes you have to disassemble the pipes, while other clogs can be easily fixed using nothing but boiling water. Put a kettle on the stove or in the microwave and heat the water until it boils. Then simply pour it down the drain and the problem should be solved if the water inside the drain is organic.
1. Getting your hands dirty
In many cases, there isn’t a clog, to begin with. All the muck that accumulates over the ears can slow the flow of water, making it impossible for the shower, tub, or sink to drain. The best way to solve this issue is to get your hands dirty and open the pipes to clean the debris by hand.
The kitchen sink is the source of such a problem most often. Food morsels drop through the grid and accumulate over time, reeking in the process. What you need to do is unscrew the grill at the top and let the water inside the pipes flow out into a vessel you have placed underneath.
Then comes the dirty part of the job when you need to remove all the muck using gloves and a toothbrush. Once you’re done, screw everything back tightly so the drains are watertight once more.
2. Using chemicals
Although many homeowners restrain from using chemical solutions to clean the pipes, they are quite handy, we must say. A typical pipe cleaner comes in a small bag at a price of half a dollar. Inside the bag, there are small pellets that dissolve either by hot or cold water.
Once they get inside the piping, they trigger a chemical reaction and dissolve the clog itself without damaging the inside of the pipes. Chemical cleaners are useful if it is not about hurting the environment.
3. Remodeling the house
Usually, pipes instal in a home during its construction. Over time, they deteriorate so even if they haven’t ruptured by now, it doesn’t mean that they will survive the next winter. Therefore, you should use the opportunity when remodeling the hose to replace old pipes with new ones.
Take special notice of bathroom and kitchen plumbing because these are the rooms with the most water outlets. Also, replace the tap in the bathtub and similar water features because these can easily malfunction as well.
4. The magic of baking soda and vinegar
If there was a universal “unclogger,” then that would definitely be the mixture of baking soda and vinegar. Once you must a third of a cup of baking soda with a third of a cup of vinegar, they will instantly react and start fizzing like a soda drink.
As soon as the concoction starts to fizz, pour it down the drain. The chemical reaction will remove any grime, hair, and gunk deep inside the drain. Ideally, you should leave solution overnight to work its magic. In the morning, flush the pipes using hot water.
5. Drain sweeper
We all have metal coat hangers inside the house but did you know that we can use them to clean the pipes. If you take a coat hanger and straighten it, leaving a small hook at one end. The hanger should be thin enough to pass the drain cover and go into the pipe system.
Using the hook at the end of the modified hanger, you will be able to pull out fur-balls and other nasty stuff deep from the drain. Remember, you don’t have to pull the dirt to the surface, as you only need to dislodge it and then wash it down using the tap above (hot water works the best).
6. The shower handle trick
Water is by far the best cleaner out there. In fact, the best way to clean any surface is to use pressurized water. However, you won’t haul up the garden hose to clean the bathroom but there is a closer source of water. By removing the handles from the end of the shower hose, you get an excellent cleaner. Put a finger on the hose to regulate the pressure. Direct it at surfaces that need cleaning the most, such as the toilet bowl or the sink. In fact, you can aim the hose directly into the drains to power wash the pipes.
Averting a plumbing disaster should always be high on your list of household maintenance. Water damage can set you back thousands of dollars, so applying the cleaning methods listed above is the best protection against leaks and ruptured pipes.
Punit