If there’s anything that’s more frustrating than a drain clog that stops whatever you’re doing–whether it’s taking a shower, cleaning up after cooking, or even trying to use your sprinkler system outside–we’re not sure what it is!
But it’s pretty much inevitable that every homeowner will deal with a drain clog at some point–unless of course, they take preventive measures to avoid them! But what are these measures exactly? Read on to find out!
Utilize Drain Covers or Shields
Things like soap scum, hair, and small objects like toys that can accidentally get knocked down into a drain are the most common sources of drain clogs in the bathroom. You can prevent most of these though, but putting drain covers or screens on your bathtub and sink drains.
These are sold at pretty much any hardware store, bathroom supply store or even kitchen supply store. Drain screens do require a big of installation, and you might want to work with a professional plumber for this. But it’s an easy solution to a stubborn problem!
Don’t Put FOG Down the Kitchen Sink
FOG stands for “Fats, Oils, and Grease.” These cooking byproducts are your kitchen sink drain’s worst enemies. Sure, they’re in liquid form while hot. But as the cool down, they congeal into solids and are hard to remove–especially if they attach themselves to the inside of your drainpipes.
Run Hot Water Down the Drain After Each Use
This helps break up things like soap scum and FOG, should these things go down your drain after all. You don’t have to run a lot of water down the drain, but doing this can at least limit the risk a bit.
If you want to take this a step further, poor a little baking soda down your drain and follow it up with some white vinegar. This breaks down things in your dran that can be causing foul odors. This doesn’t necessarily effectively clean out the drainpipe, but it can make a huge difference in smell after cooking byproducts go down your drain.
Schedule Routine Drain Cleaning!
Professional drain cleaning far surpasses the benefits of using a liquid, store-bought solution. Store-bought drain cleaners have harmful chemicals in them that can actually do more damage to your pipes than good–leading to corrosion and ironically, more clogs.
This is because they’re only designed to break down certain types of clogs–namely hair. They dissolve some substances, but either bypass or build up on other clogs, leaving you with a bigger mess than you started with.
Routine professional drain cleaning once a year not only eliminates existing clogs, but prevents clogs from forming in the future.
Our Drain Cleaning Tools
Of course, drain clogs can’t be prevented 100% of the time. When you do discover you have one and a plunger isn’t doing the trick to relieve it, give us a call. We employ tools like drain snakes or even the more powerful hydro-jetting for truly stubborn clogs–a hydro-jet can even handle tree roots that have infiltrated a sewer line!
Get your plumbing “Fixed, At the Speed of Life!” Contact DC Cheek Heating, Cooling & Plumbing to get in touch with a professional plumber in Duluth, GA.
