Clogged drains are a common problem in homes and offices. If your drains consistently have trouble eliminating waste, it can be annoying and inconvenient. Luckily, with the right tools and techniques, you can repair clogged drains almost immediately with relative ease. If your drains have become completely clogged, or if you're dealing with a slow-moving or recurring clog, you may need to call in a professional plumber for assistance. However, if your drains are just backed up due to an obstruction such as hair, cooking scraps, or toys, you can try these DIY tips instead. There are a few different causes of clogged drains, but there are general strategies you can follow to improve the flow of water through the pipes more quickly and easily each time it happens again.
Check for obvious problems.
The first step in fixing clogged drains is to make sure there aren't any issues you can see. If you're dealing with a recurring clog, that probably means that something is blocking the inside of the pipes, which means you'll need to find a way to remove it. For example, if you have a persistent hair clog, you'll need to figure out how to get the hair out of the pipes. For other types of clogged drains, you may need to take action on the source of the problem, which means unplugging something (like a washing machine or a kitchen sink) or removing a barrier that's blocking the flow of water (like tree roots growing into a nearby ditch).
Don't put fat, oil, or grease in the kitchen sink.
Cooking oil can make its way down the kitchen sink, and then into the sewage system. When this happens, it creates a blockage that can cause a clogged drainage pipe. The best way to avoid this problem is to be very careful to keep your kitchen clean and avoid leaving fat, oil, or grease in the sink. If you do need to use oil for frying, make sure to strain it out of the oil before you put it down the drain, or use a fat trap. A fat trap is a small container that you can hook up to a sink, so that fats and oils are caught and can't make their way into the main pipes. If you don't have a fat trap, you can also put a coffee filter or a paper towel in the sink to catch any oil.
Don't put food scraps in the garbage disposal.
Food scraps can clog the inside of the pipes leading to the garbage disposal, which can cause major problems. If you have a clogged disposal, you'll need to unplug it and clean out the inside with warm water. If food has clogged the disposal and is blocking the flow of water, it's likely that the disposal will become damaged by the build-up of waste. If this happens, you'll need to replace the disposal. Although this is a more involved fix, it's also a more long-term solution. If you want to avoid having to deal with this problem in the future, you should make an effort to keep food scraps out of the disposal to begin with.
Don't put items in the toilet that aren't supposed to be there.
If you have hair, paper towels, or other items that are meant to be flushed down the toilet but wind up getting caught in the pipes that lead to the toilet, they can cause clogs. If this happens to you, you'll need to unplug the toilet to clean out the pipes. This is a less involved fix than repairing a clogged toilet, but it's still something that you'll need to do as soon as possible in order to avoid a bigger problem.
Add a little sand to your pipes for extra drainage.
If you have a sand-heavy area in your yard that runs into a sand-heavy area in your pipes, you can create a sand trap to divert the water away from the sand. This can help you avoid clogged drains, especially if you're in an area that sees lots of rainfall. You can add sand to the inside of the pipes near the drainage point to create a sand trap.
Clean out your pipes with a pipe cleaner.
A pipe cleaner can help to remove build-up and debris from the inside of your pipes, which can help you avoid clogged drains. If you have a large build-up of debris in your pipes, a pipe cleaner can help you get it out. If you have a smaller build-up, you can try to clean out an area with a cleaning product like a vinegar and baking soda solution. Piping cleaners are available in different sizes and shapes, so you can choose the right one for the job.
Drain your water garden by hand to avoid a clog.
If you have a water garden, a blockage can be caused by too many fish or other living things in the water at the same time. To avoid a clog, you can remove the fish and any other creatures that are in the water, and then let the water run out of the garden. Doing this will help keep the water in your pipes flowing smoothly.
Conclusion
Clogged drains can be annoying and inconvenient, but there are ways to avoid them and fix them quickly. If you're dealing with a recurring clog, you'll need to find a way to remove the source of the problem. If you have a quick-moving clog, you can try some easy DIY fixes, such as adding sand or a pipe cleaner. If you need to unclog a clogged toilet or a clogged sink, you may be able to avoid hiring a plumber. If your drains are consistently backed up, it's a good idea to check for problems like tree roots or build-ups that can cause problems. If you have a clogged water garden, you can unclog it by hand.