Hello, my name is Lelani O’Malley. Welcome to my website about keeping your plumbing system in great shape. When I bought my first home, I was shocked to learn that it was built in the early 1900s. Another shocking discovery awaited as I learned that the plumbing system remained from its original build. Upon learning those facts, I dedicated my time to learning how to keep that system in great condition. I developed this website to bring that knowledge to you as well. I want to help all my readers maintain their existing plumbing system for years to come. Thank you for coming by.
Handling Your Home's Drain Issues
Drains can be some of the parts of your plumbing that are the most prone to suffering problems. While slow and clogged drains can be a significant problem, there are some simple ways that you can mitigate this plumbing issue so that you do not have problems with the pipes in your home.
Stop Hair From Entering The Drains
A common source of fairly significant clogs can be hair entering the drains. When hair is able to enter the drains, it may be able to form thick clogs that could completely prevent water from flowing through the line. While some people will shed more hair than others, this is a problem that almost every person will benefit from taking steps to prevent. The best option for this will be to place a drain strainer or hair catcher over the drain so that any hair will be caught before it can actually enter the pipes.
Use Salt And Hot Water To Periodically Flush The Drains
Flushing the drain line with salt and hot water can be a step that may help to remove small clogs and residue accumulations before they can become large enough to create significant problems for the house. The salt can be abrasive enough to remove much of the sticky residue that may have started to line the interior walls of the pipes. The hot water will also help to loosen and flush these residues away. In addition to these residues eventually being able to become large enough to pose problems for the system, they can also trap hair as it moves through the pipe. While you may need to flush the line several times using this method, it will be an effective and safe alternative to using harsh chemical cleanings that could harm the plumbing pipes.
Be Prepared To Manually Remove Thick Clogs
Regardless of your efforts to prevent clogs from forming, they are likely to develop at some point or another. The safest and most effective option for removing these clogs will be a drain auger that is able to reach deep enough into the pipes to hook these clogs so that they can be pulled out. When doing this repair method, the clog that you remove can be extremely wet and very foul-smelling. For this reason, you should have a separate bag or container available so that you can easily dispose of this clog. Depending on the severity of the plumbing issue you were experiencing, these clogs can be fairly large in size once they are completely pulled out of the pipes.
For more information about caring for the plumbing in your house, contact a local plumber.