Sometimes clogged drains just happen, but there is much you can do yourself to prevent them.
One of the best ways to prevent plumbing issues is by keeping the drains in your home free of clogs. Most homeowners don’t think about the things they dump down the drain, or into the garbage disposal, until the day they find water backing up.
The best way to steer clear of a major plumbing problem is to exercise preventative measures. This keeps clogs and blockages from occurring in your home.
Three Major Items That Block Drains
There are many items that shouldn’t go into your drains but end up going down anyway. Here are the top three items we see clogging drains on our jobs:
- Cooking Grease - Once cooled, cooking grease can become a sticky situation for anyone’s drain. To avoid a clog from a cooking grease buildup, save your cooking grease in an old container or milk jug, wait for the grease to harden, and throw it away in your garbage.
- Coffee Grounds - Another common cause of blockage in a kitchen sink, coffee grounds should be disposed of a different way. Try throwing them into your garbage or even using them in your landscaping mulch.
- Hair & Soap Scum - These are most common in bathroom drains such as showers and baths. You can go to your local hardware or plumbing store and buy a screen or drain grate that will catch the bulk of these substances from going down the drain. Hair is the stubborn one, and our post on what eats through hair in a drain covers what actually works on it.
Be Proactive in Preventing Drain Backups
You can hire us for professional drain cleaning when your pipes need a full clearing. However, there are a few tips and tricks you can do yourself to keep your drains as clean as possible, minimizing clogs and blockages in your plumbing system. Homeowners in Lakeland and Plant City call us most often for the ones that got past the prevention stage.
Easy Drain Cleaning Options
Both baking soda and vinegar are useful on a sluggish drain. Toss a bit of baking soda down the drain and follow it with hot tap water. The other method is one cup of vinegar down the drain, left to sit for about 30 minutes, then chased with hot tap water. Do not pour boiling water down the drain: most modern homes are plumbed with PVC, and boiling water can soften joints and loosen the glue. Hot from the tap is the right temperature. (Hint: not a fan of the scent of vinegar? If you have a garbage disposal, stick a wedge of lemon in it for a fresh scent.)
Skip the caustic drain openers entirely. They sit in the trap and attack the pipe, and our post on what happens if you leave Drano in the drain too long explains why. If the sink is draining slowly rather than not at all, start with the fixes in how to fix a slow draining sink.
Garbage Disposal: Preventative Measures
Keep the disposal clear by running it with cold water, which keeps food from sticking inside the pipes. Flush the kitchen sink with cold water before, during, and after use. Never run it dry.
If something falls in or the unit jams, cut the power at the breaker before you go anywhere near the chamber, and use tongs or pliers rather than your hand even after the power is off. When water is already standing in the sink, follow our guide to unclogging a garbage disposal with standing water.
Keeping Toilets From Backing Up
Most clogs turn up in bathrooms and kitchens, but toilets are their own category. Plumbing gets blocked by items flushed that were never meant to be. Avoid flushing:
- Feminine products
- “Flushable wipes” (they are not actually flushable, and here is why they harm your plumbing)
- Toys
- Other items that don’t belong
There is a longer list in our post on things you should never flush down your toilet. Repeat offenders eventually need toilet repair rather than another plunge.
By taking routine action, your drains will have less blockage and fewer odors. When more than one fixture backs up at once, the problem is usually the main line, not the drain you are standing over: see how to clear the main drain line in your house and, if it keeps recurring, sewer backup repair. Badly built-up lines are the ones we clear with water jetting.
Do you have a clogged drain that needs fixing?
Call us today at (863) 667-6364 and we can help you find the source of your drain problems. If it is backing up right now, our 24/7 emergency plumbing line is open.
