Clogged Drain?
Ah…summertime: Summer dresses, bathing suits, and essentially, the less clothes the better. What goes along with this? Showers, shaving, and a clogged drain. Studies show that more people to tend to shower during the summer. This may be because it’s so blessed hot, or it may because the females in your family choose to maintain the smooth skin that comes along with summer. In addition to the small bits of hair going down your drain, studies show that women naturally lose between 50-100 strands of hair per day. That’s a lot of hair going into your drain!
Therefore, it’s not secret that hair-washing and shaving rituals increase the likelihood of a clogged drain.
At Wyman Plumbing & Mechanical of North Phoenix, we have three solutions to keep you out of “hairy” situation.
Vinegar and Baking Soda
Do you remember as kid making volcanoes out of baking soda and vinegar? Well, that foaming lava works wonders on your drain! Regularly flushing your drain with baking soda, vinegar, and boiling water, is a great way to keep your pipes open. Here’s how you should do it:
- Sift one cup of baking soda onto the clogged drain. Next, add one cup of vinegar. Let it sit for about 10 minutes.
- Next, pour about 4-8 cups of boiling water down the drain.
- After you’ve flushed the drain, run your facet to ensure the blockage is gone.
- For more stubborn clogs, repeat the process a few times. Or let the mixture sit overnight.
Just Zip-It
While some people just use a wire hanger for this, buying a Zip-It tool is a pretty inexpensive way to unblock some of the more trickier clogs. Or, if you happen to have a plumbers snake, this works great, too! Here’s how it works:
- Buy a Zip-It or Snake-It.
- Push the tool down the drain to the hair jam.
- Twist it around if you have a Zip-It.
- Carefully pull the tool back out of the drain. Warning: This part is gross!
- Repeat steps until all of the blockage is out.
- Run your faucet to see if your plumbing is properly draining.
Proactive Solutions
People who have long, luscious locks love to take care of their hair. This, in tandem with seeking smooth skin in the summer, can wreck havoc on your drain. However, not all of it has to go down the drain. Here are a few steps you can take to save yourself the time and hassle of unclogging your drain:
- Brush your hair before you take a shower or bath. This helps pull out the loose ends and lessen the amount of hair that ends up in your drain.
- Purchase a drain screener. This will help catch some of the hair before it goes down the drain. Simply collect the fallen hairs and dispose of them.
- Shaving creams and soaps can also clog your drain. So, instead of shaving in the shower or over the sink, dedicate a bowl of hot water to rinse your razor. This will help prevent both hair and lather from clogging your drains.
Let Wyman Plumbing & Mechanical Get You Out of a “Hairy” Situation
Any way you look at it, your hair, your wife’s hair, your kid’s hair, and even your dog’s hair will clog your drains. While it’s not the funnest thing to do, regularly cleaning out drain can save you major plumbing problems in the future. However, there are times when the clogged drain becomes a battle meant for a professional plumber. At Wyman Plumbing & Mechanical, we have plenty of experience in quickly and safely resolving clogged drains. Sometimes, even the simplest of blocked drains can actually be more complicated in the long run. Wyman Plumbing & Mechanical has you covered.
Do you have clogged or slow drains? Contact us today to schedule an appointment with one of our certified plumbing technicians.
