Let’s be honest. Blocked drains are quite possibly on every homeowner’s list of top 10 things of things they hate the most. And it’s easy to see why – they’re messy, unsanitary, can cause additional damage if not addressed timeously and above all else, they’re usually quite smelly as well.
For the most part, local residents make use of the blocked drain plumber Melbourne homeowners rely on to keep drains and pipes as clean as possible. In addition to this, there are also some steps that you can take to minimise the risk of having to deal with blocked drains.
Prevention is Better than Cure
When it comes to dealing with plumbing issues, the adage of prevention is better than cure applies every time. This means that the people in the household should avoid doing the things that cause many of the issues in the first place. We’ve included a breakdown of the top three problems that can lead to blocked drains.
- Blocked Toilets
Blocked drains and toilets don’t always happen inside your home. If flushing your toilet leads to water and possibly sewerage flowing up into your drains or pipes outside, it means that these pipes are blocked somewhere close to the house. If this issue isn’t resolved quickly, you may end up with the sewage flowing up into your toilet.
The number one reason for this type of blockage stems from people believing that just about everything can be flushed down the toilet. It’s essential to point out that just because an item appears to be flushed away and you can’t see it anymore, doesn’t mean that it’s made it successfully down the pipeline.
Instead, items such as nappies, wet wipes, and other items get stuck on twigs and branches in the drain system and if they don’t wash away, will start creating a blockage. Some items, such as nappies, become enlarged with all the water they absorb and then become harder to move along the pipe.
Avoid this by making it a house rule that items such as nappies and wet wipes aren’t flushed at all. Rather place a nappy bin in the bathroom for these items to be discarded correctly.
- Hair and Soap Build-Up in Bathroom Sinks and Showers
No matter how long or short your hair is, every person experiences a significant amount of hair fall every day. The vast majority happens in the bath and shower when you shave or wash your hair.
In addition to this, soap suds from the various body washes, shampoos, and conditioners that you use also run down the drain forming a slimy mess in the pipes. One or two showers won’t cause a problem, but over time, the gunky mess that builds up in there will start creating a massive problem.
The solution here is to not let your bathroom sinks and drain pipes reach the stage where they have become clogged up. In many instances, these blockages are just below the surface and will eventually start flowing up into your bathtub, shower, or basin.
Here are a few simple steps to get a handle on the bathroom drain problem before it gets out of hand:
- Check the drains during your other cleaning routines and remove any build-up that you can reach. It’s a good idea to invest in a drain snake or make one out of an old wire coat hanger. This is a cost-effective way to pull stuck hair out of the drain.
- Pour a solution of boiling water, vinegar, and baking soda down the drain to help break down any built-up soap scum.
- Where possible, avoid using hash chemicals as in many instances these can cause damage to plumbing pipes.
- Cooking Oil Build-Up in Kitchen Sinks
Plumbers across Australia will agree that the number one cause of kitchen-related drain blockages is caused by the cooking grease and oil that many people pour down the drains. While it may seem harmless to pour oil down the drain when it’s hot and liquid, it’s essential to keep in mind that it doesn’t remain that way.
Cooking oil hardens when it cools down and as it builds up, it becomes stuck to the pipe walls. This gooey mess then becomes a hard fatty mess which doesn’t wash away. Rather, additional oil that clings to an existing fat mess will only make the problem worse. Eventually, water won’t be able to pass through it at all, creating a blockage.
Avoid this problem by refraining from pouring oil and grease down the kitchen sink, even in its liquid form. Instead, bottle it up and drop it off at your local recycling centre. As with the bathroom sink, make cleaning the kitchen drain part of your daily cleaning routine. Pour boiling water down the sink every evening after you’ve done the dishes.
Final Thoughts
Use our simple tips to avoid the unpleasantness of blocked drains. Doing this will not only keep harmful drain bacteria at bay, but it will also keep them as clean as possible. You’ll also have peace of mind that everything in your pipes is flowing the way it should be!