Drain Cleaning Mistakes That Can Cost Hundreds of Dollars
Having a clogged drain can be a real pain in the neck, but making costly drain cleaning mistakes is even worse. If you don’t want to make an expensive mistake when cleaning the drains in your Granite City, IL, home, check out these tips.
Chemical Cleaners
When most people have a clogged drain, they reach for a bottle of chemical-based drain cleaner such as Drano. While these might be the most popular drain cleaners, chemical cleaners like these can cause a lot of problems with your pipes. Long-term use of chemical drain cleaners will eat away at your pipes. This means they will need to be replaced sooner. Between this and the fact that chemical cleaners aren’t very effective, most plumbers recommend avoiding them.
For the best results, you should use an enzyme-based drain cleaner. They are designed to only eat away at the organic material in your pipes. These enzyme-based cleaners are affordable and safe to use in your drains. This means you can use them somewhat regularly to keep your pipes from getting clogged due to a buildup.
Manual Unclogging
Even if you think you can see a clog in your drain, you should never stick any objects down it to get the clog out. Not only is this not an effective way to remove clogs, it can cause serious damage to your drain pipes.
Avoiding Drain Clogs
The best thing you can do if you want to keep your drains clean is avoid putting the wrong things down them.
You should only flush toilet paper down the toilet. While some wipes are labeled flushable, they aren’t good for your drain pipes. Other things you should avoid flushing include cotton swabs, makeup products, condoms and feminine hygiene products.
As far as your kitchen sink goes, you should try to put as little food down the drain as possible. Even if you’ve got a garbage disposal, putting the wrong foods or too much food down your kitchen sink can lead to a clogged pipe over time.
For bathroom sinks and showers, your best bet is to install a strainer basket to catch hair and soap scum before it goes in the drain.
A Backup Plan
Even if you do your best to keep your drains clean and avoid using chemical cleaners, clogs can still happen. Next time your drain is clogged, call a plumber at Bailey Sewer & Water. We will avoid making a common drain cleaning mistake.
