Tips On How to Keep Drains Clean in Your Home
A clogged drain can damage your plumbing, cause burst pipes, and lead to major water damage throughout the home, and require attention from a professional plumber.
Some homeowners use various DIY methods to keep from getting clogged drains in their kitchen sinks and bathroom sinks, such as hot water from the faucet, baking soda, boiling water & dish soap, a cup of vinegar, table salt, bleach or other chemical drain cleaners. When it comes to staying clog-free and preventing plumbing problems with sink drains and your home’s plumbing system, regular maintenance can be key to preventing a drain clog or septic system issues.
What types of issues can surface if you do not clean your drains regularly?
Here are some examples of the common problems that arise if you neglect to clean your drains:
Bad Odors: Does your sink drain smell like rotten eggshells? Do you notice an unpleasant sulfur odor emanating from your drains? Bad odors are one of the most obvious signs that you have blockages that are growing.
A bad odor coming from a drain is one of the most obvious signs that there is a problem. While the stinky drain may not be clogged yet, the fact that there are foul odors coming from the drain means there are organic materials lodged in the drain, rotting, and growing bacteria, gunk, peels, and other material that goes down kitchen drains.
Clogged Drains: Do you have a tub drain, sink or shower drain that keeps clogging? If so, this may be a sign that there is a blockage that’s stopping water from draining through the pipes. From soap scum, toothpaste, toilet paper, hair – your bathroom drain pipes can have stubborn clogs from everything they can see.
At first, the clog may not be a big deal, but as the blockage grows, it can make the draining process slower and slower until the blockage stops the flow of water altogether, which can be quite unpleasant, leading to bacteria-filled standing water – an unsightly mess.
Damage to Your Plumbing System: If we neglect our bodies for a long time, for example, if we eat a poor diet and we don’t exercise, eventually the years of neglect will take its toll on our health. It’s the same thing with drains. Years of neglect will lead to corrosion and system failures.
If you neglect to maintain your drain system, it can lead to irreversible damage. Sludge and blockages accumulate, restricting the flow of wastewater in the pipes.
As all that sludge, hair, grease, and grime accumulate over time, they:
1) impede water flow
2) put too much stress on the pipes
3) cause clogs
4) cause slow draining of wastewater
5) stop draining altogether.
Drain cleaning in Kansas City can be done professionally with techniques like Hydro-Jet Cleaning. A-1 Sewer & Septic Service uses high-pressure water to thoroughly eliminate blockage/common-issues/drain-cleaning/es and any type of debris.
Drain cleaning machines called rooters can unclog drains, too, but there are also ways to keep drains clean to prevent clogs in the first place:
- Remove debris and rinse bathroom sink pop-up stoppers.
- Clear debris from shower/bathtub drain covers, using bent wire or a hairbrush.
- Collect cooking grease in a can or container and throw it in the trash.
- Dispose of coffee grounds in the garbage rather than down the drain.
- Install drain screens in tubs and showers.
Other techniques for keeping drains clean include:
- Brushing your hair before showering.
- Using a quality plunger or auger
- Properly cleaning your garbage disposal.
- Clean out the grease in the garbage disposal every month and rinse the system with water so grease and slime do not build up in the pipes.
These are just a few tips, but you can depend on A-1 Sewer & Septic Service to provide the most thorough Kansas City drain cleaning. For maintenance, same-day or emergency service, or last-minute service in the evening, on weekends, or during holidays, call 913-631-5201 and let a professional plumber from A-1 take care of you and yours.