DIY DRAIN CLEANING

Kitchen and bathroom drain clogs are pretty common. Water backs up and pools around the drain, and especially in kitchen drains, sometimes it comes with unpleasant odors. Preventive measures and drain clog cleaning NJ can keep your drains from clogging. Innovative drain strainers and grease traps are now available on the market. These do not give 100% assurance that your drains will never clog, but are effective in preventing clogs from happening as often as prior to using these accessories.

Clogged drains aren’t just temporary problems. If these happen frequently enough, backed-up water puts pressure on pipes, stressing them and affecting their lifespan. It is important to do as much prevention as possible to avoid additional costs for repair and replacements.

For kitchen drains, throw leftovers and the smallest food debris to the trash before washing dishes. Avoid pouring grease or coffee grounds down the drain. Buy filters made specifically for your fixtures. Bathroom floor and tub drains only need screens that can catch hair. Prevent buildup by disposing hair caught in the screens to the trash after every shower. Toilets are designed to drain just sewage and toilet paper, feminine hygiene products are the usual culprits so provide for a bin for their disposal. Pay attention to what goes down your drains.

If your drains are already clogged, or water pools around the drain, there are home-made solutions to ease the problem. Here are tips to clear your drains using products available in your home:

1.    Pour a cup of baking soda down the drain followed by hot water. Baking soda works well as a cleaning agent and deodorizer.

2.    Run hot water through the sink after washing dishes. This liquefies oils and makes sure they do not solidify and cause buildups.

3.    Pour a cup of vinegar down the drain followed by hot water 30 minutes later. The acetic acid in vinegar works as solvent in removing organic buildups.

4.    Pour a half cup of salt and a half cup of baking soda down the drain. Follow with a half cup of vinegar and allow the mixture to foam. Follow with at least 2 quarts boiling water.

Preparations of lye or sulfuric acid are often available in hardware and home improvement stores. Small amounts of lye or sulfuric acid are reasonably safe. However, use of these chemicals in large quantities can do more harm than good. Repeated use can gradually erode the insides of pipes and cause leaks. When using caustic preparations with a plunger, extra care should be given as the chemicals can splash and irritate eyes and skin upon contact.

An overflowing toilet is a messy, major emergency. This is not the time to go DIY and attempt to solve the problem with store bought chemical preparations and a little know how. There are plenty of sewer and drain specialists with years of experience and modern specialized equipment to do the drain clog cleaning NJ. The key is to find the best one with a good track record, complete tools and equipment, and well-trained technicians.