How to Properly Clean Your Drains

Your plumbing system works hard every day to keep water properly flowing throughout your home, but sometimes the buildup of hair, soap scum, and food debris can bring the flow to a grinding halt. When water stops flowing, and your drains get backed up, it might be tempting to quickly grab a bottle of harsh chemicals that promise to clear the drain right up. While these solutions are widely used by homeowners, they can actually be quite harmful to your pipes and plumbing system. This DIY guide will help you clean out gunk from your drains while keeping your entire plumbing system healthy.

You don’t have to wait for a completely blocked drain before cleaning. Catching a clogged drain early is much easier than dealing with a full drain blockage. Watch for these red flags to avoid a total blockage:

• Slow Drains: If water is lingering in your bathroom sink or tub long after you turn off the faucet, you have significant buildup in the drainpipe.
• Unpleasant Odors: A kitchen drain that smells like rotting food usually has food stuck in the garbage disposal or the trap.
• Gurgling Noises: If your sink drain makes glugging sounds, air is likely trapped by a drain clog, signaling a partial blockage.
• Frequent Clogs: If you find yourself using a plunger to unclog the same pipe every few weeks, you have a persistent problem that requires a deeper clean.

Many homeowners reach for chemical cleaners to unclog and clean drains, but we recommend avoiding them. These cleaners can damage your pipes over time and are bad for the environment. It’s best to avoid these cleaners altogether and use this effective, safe method for the environment. Do this method once every three months to keep your drains clean and to prevent bigger blockages down the line.

Before you pour anything down the drain, check the stopper. In a bathroom sink or shower, this is where hair and dish soap scum love to collect. Remove the stopper, wipe away the gunk, and rinse it with hot water.

• Pour a half cup of baking soda down the drain.
• Follow it with a half cup of white vinegar
• Plug the drain and let the fizzing reaction break down the gunk for about 15 minutes.

Once the baking soda and white vinegar have done their job, flush the solution out with hot water. The hot water will help flush away any extra gunk left in the pipes.

Note: DO NOT use boiling water. While some guides recommend this as another solution to the problem, boiling water can soften and warp PVC pipes, melt the glue at joints, or crack older porcelain sinks.

For persistent odors or slow drains that don't respond to flushing, place a bucket under the U-shaped pipe beneath your sink, unscrew the slip nuts, and clear out any accumulated debris. In Las Vegas, our hard water scale often builds up in the P-trap.

Sometimes a drain blockage is bigger than a DIY project can handle. While baking soda and vinegar can help fix minor blockages, there are times when you will need to put the baking soda down and call a professional drain cleaning service.

• Multiple Slow Drains: If you have clogged drains across the house, the issue is likely deep in your main sewer line. To fix these issues, a licensed plumber will need to inspect the main sewer line.
• Water Backing Up Elsewhere: If you notice water coming out of your shower when you turn on the kitchen sink, your plumbing system has a drain clog deep in your main drain line. These deeper clogs will require more advanced drain-cleaning tools to clear up.
• Standing Water That Will Not Budge: If your drain is overflowing and a plunger and the baking soda and vinegar solution don’t work, it’s time to call in a licensed plumber. Our licensed pros will fully diagnose the issue and get your water flowing again in no time.

At Dr. Cool, we treat every part of your home with care and precision. When your DIY efforts reach their limits, we are here to handle the stubborn clogs. We take the hassle out of professional drain cleaning with upfront pricing and a 100% satisfaction guarantee, so you can enjoy flowing water, stress-free. We use safe, high-tech methods to clear blockages and restore proper flow to your pipes so you can get back to enjoying your day.

Tired of dealing with slow drains? Call Dr. Cool at (702) 608-6939 or schedule your professional drain cleaning service online today.