subject: Drain Cleaning - Clearing Out The Clogs [print this page] While there are 101 tips to avoid clogs in your plumbing system, the fact remains that every household is going to experience one from time to time. You can make use of good practices like not putting pasta and grease down the sink, attaching hair traps and various strainers onto your sinks and tubs, but it's only going to get you so far. The important thing, then, is to know what to do when confronted with a clog. Here are some drain cleaning tips you can try before calling out a professional.
The Plunger
The wise homeowner will have at least two plungers in their home at all times. One should be a larger one for toilet clogs and the other should be smaller for sink and tub clogs. These can be terrifically handy when you can't get the water to go down like it should. As long as you don't have a major drain cleaning job ahead of you, the plunger can more than rise to the challenge in many situations. Give it a try before you move on to more advanced and elaborate fixes.
Saltwater
This is a not only a good trick for drain cleaning, but one of those things you can implement every now and then simply to keep things from getting clogged up in the first place. Make up a gallon or so of salt water and pour it down the sink to keep grease from clogging up the sides of the pipe. Remember, the best defense is a good offense. If you can stop clogs from happening, you'll have to concern yourself less with what to do afterwards. Plain water can also be a help after the clog has happened. Boil a pot on the stove and pour it into the sink. Used in conjunction with the plunger, you can often get pretty good results.
Commercial Chemicals
Some of the commercial drain cleaning formulas sold at your local retailer can actually do quite a lot to get rid of a clog. The ones that promise a foaming action often work better than those that are purely liquid, especially for tough clogs. There are two caveats to using these chemicals, however. One, you need to read the directions and warnings very carefully. Not only are these chemicals caustic to the skin, but also they can cause damage if used in areas or on certain pipes that they weren't intended for. Two, you should limit your repeated use of these formulas. If you're constantly pouring these harsh chemicals into your pipes, you could be creating some serious plumbing problems.
