Blocked drains can be the bane of existence for home owners. Try as you might to ensure that all hair, sand, dirt and debris stays well away from your drains and plugholes – there’s really no guarantee that you’ll be able to keep them clear forever. If you’re facing a drain blockage, then why suffer any longer than you already have? Here are a few tips on unblocking a drain that will help you to get your water flowing again in no time!
There’s no harm in over the counter products (they might just be useless)
One of the first things that you could try to do is to pick up a reputable bottle of plughole unblocker from your local store. If they have a selection, then go for one that expands as it reacts with oils (and oxygen). This can help to dislodge most grimy build ups, but it won’t treat all causes of a blockage, especially if there’s just too much to handle.
Run boiling hot water for a few minutes straight
If oil has made its way down into your kitchen sink and then solidified overnight (often the case when pouring fat from cooking away), then you might be facing a stubborn blockage that ignores everything but the… kitchen sink. This incredibly funny pun is where you’ll find your next solution – directly from the kitchen tap. Try running boiling hot water for a few minutes to see if the heat will break the oil build up down and dissipate it in a way that it won’t cause much of a nuisance.
Avoid pushing anything into the drain (metal rods, hangers, etc)
The last thing that you should do (and we’re not suggesting this!) is to rely on metal rods, sticks, bent clothing hangers, or any other long and spindly tool to try and dislodge the cause of the blockage. Why you ask? Well, in the best case scenario you’ll just move the cause around until it breaks apart, which could result in a blockage further down into your pipe system where it can be almost unreachable. In the worst case, you could do irreparable damage and this is the last thing that you’ll want to have to pay to have fixed!
Call out the big guns
So, what can you do if you’ve exhausted nearly all of your resources and you’re still nowhere nearer to ridding your drain of that irritating blockage? Well, you could always get in touch with a friendly and reliable plumber. The great thing about these experts is that they genuinely know what they’re doing. They will be able to recognise the cause of a blockage, consider the best way to treat it and then take care of the matter with minimal fuss. In fact, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t get in touch with a plumbing company as soon as you spot an issue with your drainage system – as having an expert come in and address the problem as quickly as possible can save you time, effort and cash.
