Tips for Keeping Your Drain Clear

It’s just the nature of drains. Over time, material and debris collect to the point where liquid can’t penetrate it. Even if you’re an incredibly attentive homeowner who puts blood, sweat, and tears into keeping your drain clear, you may still experience multiple issues over the years. The good news is you can reduce the number of clog problems. Of course, the Seattle Plumbers at Price Busters Plumbing & Sewer are more than willing to come over and clean your drains on a regular basis; however, if you don’t want to see our shining faces every month, we have some handy drain cleaning tips that you can perform yourself.

1. Watch What You Put in Your Drain

You’re probably not shocked to hear this, but it’s still worth noting. Whether it’s in the kitchen or bathroom, you don’t always think about exactly what is seeping into your drain. When it comes to keeping your drain clear, there are obvious no-nos such as dumping paint or cement in a sink or throwing more than toilet paper in the toilet. Thick and grainy chemicals can harden and coat the inside of pipes, and extra toilet material will disrupt flushing. All of this can greatly reduce the amount of flow space for liquid.

Certainly, a common culprit of clogged drains is hair and soap scum. Given the answer here is not as easy as “don’t shed hair in your drains” or “get rid of all your hair and soap”, the most effective preventative measure is to place strainers of every drain in the home. It will help catch the hair and scum (and other items). Just remember to clean the strainers regularly.

2. Keeping Your Drain Clear When Using a Disposal

We’ve discussed DIY plumbing tips for garbage disposals before. After all, it’s a system that’s whole job is to grind food waste and send it through pipes; it’s just asking to get clogged! Fortunately, it takes little effort to ensure that a disposal continues to operate in an effective manner.

Use a Drain Strainer

Yes, our friend the drain strainer makes another appearance. It may behoove you to prevent large amounts of food scraps from falling into your garbage disposal. Moreover, there are some foods should never be thrown into a disposal, which we will explain in a bit.

Use a Compost Bin

Composting is not just excellent for the environment; it’s good for keeping your drain clear. Instead of sending food to the pipes or trash, try saving it in a bin for your city’s composting program or your backyard garden.

Don’t Put Certain Foods Put in Your Disposal

*image from Insinkerator

As we mentioned a bit ago, your garbage disposal is not a catch-all solution for discarding food. Some material should never be placed in the system since it may be too thick or sticky:

• Grease
• Eggshells
• Potato and banana peels
• Bones
• Coffee grounds
• Fruit pits
• Rice and pasta

3. Perform Simple Drain Maintenance Regularly

*image from Ecomastery Project

Utilizing a non-pathogenic bacteria and enzyme cleaner is an acceptable strategy for keeping your drain clear; however, it’s not a must. In fact, there are some basic household ingredients that you can use to keep your drains running as smooth as possible. First and foremost, it’s a smart idea to flush sink and tub drains with hot water every week or so. But, if you’re looking for a little more cleaning oomph, we have a recipe for that.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Vinegar
• ½ cup baking soda
• Hot water

Directions:

• Boil water in a pot
• Pour hot water into the drain followed by the baking soda
• Combine the vinegar with a cup of hot water, pour into the drain
• Plug the drain and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes
• Boil another pot of water and pour into the drain

You see? A little drain care can go a long way!

Just so you know, Price Busters Plumbing & Sewer specializes in more than keeping your drain clear. We offer a plethora of services, from fixing leaky pipes all the way up to full bathroom remodels. Our highly-trained plumbers are dedicated, dependable, friendly, and technically adept. What’s more, we partner with the top brands and technology so that your plumbing problems are met with a state-of-the-art defense. And, the icing on the cake — we’re extremely affordable!

You can put all your plumbing needs in our hands. Drop us a line to learn more!