Safe DIY Methods To Unblock Blocked Drains

Understanding Blocked Drains

Blocked drains are a common and frustrating plumbing issue that can occur when debris, grease, hair, or other materials accumulate inside pipes, restricting water flow. This build up causes water to back up, but you can keep your sinks, showers, tubs, and toilets free from these issues with regular maintenance. Understanding what causes blocked drain can make sure homeowners prevent and address them, ensuring the integrity of their plumbing system.

The most common causes of household drain blockages include:

• Hair, soap residue, and other debris accumulating in bathroom shower and sink drains
• Grease and food scraps building up in your kitchen sink pipes
• Tree roots that can become flushed down into and clog up exterior drainage pipes
• Flushable wipes, sanitary products, and other items that don’t break down getting stuck in pipes

Blocked drains can range from a nuisance to an emergency, With sewage backups from clogged drains creating health hazards and water damage if not addressed quickly. Preventative strategies, such as installing hair catchers, refraining from pouring fats/oils down drains, and consulting your local plumber for regular drain maintenance, can greatly minimise clogs.

When faced with a blocked drain, various DIY tips tricks like using chemical drain cleaners, boiling water, plungers, and wire coat hangers can remedy simple clogs before enlisting professional aid. Understanding the causes and DIY solutions on how to unblock drains empowers homeowners to efficiently address this common issue and maintain their plumbing system.

Causes of Blocked Drains

One most common cause of blocked drains in Kellyville homes and businesses typically involves the accumulation of hair, grease, soap residue, and food waste. As a plumbing company serving the local area, we frequently see drains blocked by:

• Hair buildup in bathroom shower drain and sinks
• Grease and food debris going down drain can contribute to kitchen sink clogs
• Soap scum accumulating in pipes over time

These materials can adhere to the inside of the drain pipe, leading to blockages in drains and slowly narrowing the pathway until a full blockage occurs, requiring clean out. Hair and soap scum tend to accumulate most often in your bathroom’s shower drains. Meanwhile, your kitchen drain clogs commonly involve fats, cooking oils, and food scraps, especially in homes with a garbage disposal.

Tree roots infiltrating and wrapping around external drainage pipes can also cause severe blockages. As roots grow, they intrude into cracks and joints in pipes, eventually forming a dense root ball that blocks water flow. This issue often requires excavation, pipe repair or replacement, and root removal to fully address.

By understanding the most likely causes of clogs in Kellyville households, we can help homeowners take preventative steps against caustic cleaner use, practise drain-friendly habits, and address issues in your drains before major damage or backups occur.

Signs of a Blocked Drain

Several signs blocked drain indicate when a drain is blocked in your Kellyville home, signalling homeowners to try DIY solutions before calling a professional plumber.

The most common signals of your blocked drain include:

• Water backing up or draining slowly
• Gurgling sounds from pipes when water drains
• Unpleasant sewage odours coming from drains
• Toilets, tubs or sinks that are slow to drain
• Pools of standing water around floor drains

Catching a blocked drain early on can allow those who know how simpler fixes to clear blocked drain before major pipe damage or sewage backflows occur. If DIY methods don’t assist in clearing blocked clogs, rest assured that your local Kellyville plumbing technicians can inspect pipes with specialised equipment to locate obstructions and clear persistent blockages.

By remaining alert to signs such as slow drainage, gurgling noises, and unpleasant odours, homeowners have all need to promptly tackle a clogged drain, forestalling more expensive plumbing complications.

Trying DIY Drain Unblocking Solutions

Before calling a professional plumber, there are several do-it-yourself methods homeowners can use to unblock drains in Kellyville. While major blockages often require a plumber’s expertise, DIY solutions can be a more effective first response using common household items.

Effective DIY remedies to unblock drains, such as a soda vinegar mixture, include:

• Using methods on how to clear blocked drains: mixing soda with one cup heated vinegar can trigger a fizzing chemical reaction that helps break up grease and debris. Pour down the blocked drain and let it sit for the recommended time before flushing with hot water.
• Pour Boiling water into - Slowly pouring a pot boiling water down the drain can help clear a blocked drain by dissolving soap scum, grease, and other build-ups. Take care when pouring into your PVC pipes.
• Plunger - Plunging your sink or tub drain 10-15 times can manually dislodge clogs close to the drain opening. Use a cup plunger for sink drains.
• Coat hanger drain tool - Bend a coat hanger to form a hook and snake it down the pipes to pull up hair and debris. Take care not to scratch pipes.

When trying DIY methods to use drain fix solutions, exercise caution to prevent burns or boiling hot water splashes within your pipes. If simple solutions fail to open the drain, contact our Kellyville plumbing team to accurately locate and clear the underlying blockage.

Common Household Remedies

Homeowners can use many common household items, with their associated properties, to create effective home remedies for clearing simple drain blockages at home before necessitating professional help. Two of the best ingredients to clear clogs are a Mix of vinegar and a combination of salt and baking soda.

For blocks caused by soap scum and hair in bathtub and sink pipes, try using baking soda vinegar method:

1. Pour cup of baking soda followed by a 1/2 cup vinegar into drain
2. Add two cups heated white vinegar, then pour down drain; the mixture will fizz and bubble from the reaction.
3. Let the mix do its magic and work on dissolving the clog for 15 minutes, then proceed to flush it through.
4. Flush the baking soda and vinegar mixture by pouring water into drain with 2 litres of very hot water
5. Wait half an hour, then run more tap water for a minute to flush any remaining gunk down the pipes.

Exercise caution, as the heat and chemical reaction can cause splashing that might irritate your skin. Goggles and sturdy rubber gloves are recommended.

Other common DIY options we highly recommend include using a plunger, drain snake, ice cubes, or wire coat hanger to manually remove blockages. However, take care not to damage your own pipes or cause leaks.

For best results, try measures like straining sink water, using hair catchers, and avoiding grease/oil down drains to prevent clogs from forming in the first place.

Using Plungers and Drain Snakes

Plungers and drain snakes are two of the ways clear effective physical DIY methods to clear blocked pipes before consulting a plumber.

Using a Plunger

For sink clogs, fill the sink halfway, cover drain opening completely with the plunger, then quickly plunge up and down 10-15 times to dislodge gunk.

Repeat until the sink drains fully. Plungers use suction to manually remove blockages. Use caution not to over-plunge and damage pipes.

Using a Drain Snake/Auger

Feed this coiled metal tool down the pipes and crank the handle to drive the barbed end through the blockage where hair can accumulate. Slowly pull out while twisting to hook and extract hair, debris, and grease clogs. Exercise care not to scratch pipes or puncture pipe joints while snaking.

For deep blockages beyond arm’s reach in your home, rent motorised gas- or electric-powered drain augers from hardware stores. Their spinning heads bore deeper through obstacles.

Commence by pouring boiling water down or use a suitable drain cleaner before using the snake to help loosen the clog initially. If DIY methods fail to clear the obstruction, it’s time to call our Kellyville team to accurately locate and clear drains.

Best Practices to Prevent Blocked Drains

Preventing blocked drains involves developing good household habits and regular maintenance to minimise buildup inside pipes. Effective prevention measures for Kellyville homes include thoughtful practices that help remove potential clogs through drain maintenance:

• Installing hair catchers in shower and sink drains to trap strands before they can clog your pipes
• Using anti-grease dish soap and limiting oil/grease poured down your kitchen sinks act as a natural cleaner for your pipes
• Avoiding flushing anything except toilet paper down toilets to prevent accumulations
• Regularly it’s beneficial to pour a combination of soda can be added to salt down the drain, which can effectively disperse accumulated soap scum
• Professionally cleaning out exterior drainage pipes every 3 years to remove root intrusions

Natural drain cleaning methods like boiling water can have clearing effects on stopped-up minor clogs in your drain, but caution is needed with PVC pipes. Always start by pouring slowly down one side of the drain. Repeating drain care monthly keeps flow free.

Staying vigilant to reduce hair, grease and soap debris minimises plumbing emergencies. But if blockages still occur, act fast using DIY methods before sewage backflows or pipe damage happens.

When to Call a Professional Plumber

While many minor drain blockages can be cleared with easy DIY methods using common household products, recurrent clogs or more severe obstructions often require a professional plumber’s expertise.

It is best to call Kellyville Plumbing to clear any obstructions if DIY methods fail to open drains and you experience:

• Complete clogging with no water drainage
• Backed up sewage into sinks, tubs or toilets
• A foul sewer gas smell from drain lines
• Excess standing water around drains
• Leaking from loosened pipes after snaking

Our licenced technicians have specialised equipment to accurately locate and clear clogged drains your all types of drain blockage, including:

• In-line video inspections to pinpoint the obstruction
• High-powered hydro jetting to scour interior walls of pipes
• Electro-mechanical augers that bore through tough debris
• Pipe rodding to remove root masses or collapsed sections

We also offer expert drain cleaning, repairs, smell elimination and waste trap services to provide complete solutions.

For reliable drain unblocking services in Kellyville, contact our friendly team 24/7 by email or phone (1300 349 338). Get help resolving persistent clogs before major plumbing disasters strike.