The team at Vortex Gas have compiled a list of five handy tips to help you keep your drains in good working order and prevent them from blocking. Believe it or not there is quite a big difference to what blocks a kitchen drain compared to what blocks the bathroom drains, we will go into more detail below.
Bathroom Drains
The key to keeping bathroom drains unblocked is probably sat in your kitchen cupboard already! Salt and vinegar!
When a bathroom drain gets blocked it is usually because of sticky substances such as; soap, toothpaste and shaving foam. Another common cause is hair. Now all of these things are part of our daily routines and we can’t just stop using them and washing just to keep our drains clear, so what can you do to prevent them becoming blocked?
The answer is simple, pour a tablespoon of salt down your bathroom drain followed by a quarter cup of with vinegar, then leave it for around 1 hour. After an hour or so return to the drain and flush it our with plenty of hot water. To achieve the best results you should then repeat these steps.
Kitchen Sinks
Similar to bathroom drains salt and vinegar work well to help keep kitchen sinks free from blockages, but as well as this you should also routinely pour some household bleach down there. For best results you should do this before you go to bed so it can be left over night, however leaving for a minimum of one hour will also work.
Degrease Kitchen Sink
A build up of grease and fat is a very common cause of kitchen sink blockages. To prevent this from happening the answer is again very simple. All you will need is dish soap and a large amount of boiling water.
We recommend using a large pan to boil some water, when the water is almost boiling pour a minimum of a teaspoon of dish soap down your sink and follow it immediately with the boiling water, adding just a little at a time.
This works in the same way in which it works to clean your dishes, cutting through the grease and removing it from your pipes. For the best results repeat this method two or three times.
It may be tempting to just use the hot tap to carry out these methods of cleaning your drains however it wont work as it is just not hot enough to remove the grease even with the dish soap! That goes for the bathroom drains as well.
If you are having problems with blocked pipes and drains and DIY methods are not working or your just not that into DIY then its time to call out a professional plumber!
If you are in Liverpool or the surrounding areas and need a plumber then contact Vortex Gas today on – 0151 523 7243
