How to Keep Your Drains Clean

We all know the signs when there are problems with the kitchen drain. Perhaps you notice the water is draining just a little too slowly. At first, it’s easy to ignore. Unfortunately, a dirty drain tends to escalate in severity.

Nobody wants to go through the hassle of cleaning a drain, but even fewer would like to call in a plumber for backup. However, calling a plumber is sometimes your only option if the drains are untended for too long. To prevent any plumbing problems in the future, be proactive in stopping clogs before they have a chance to form.

Here are some hints on how to keep your drains clean:

Don’t dump grease

Any kind of cooking grease should not be poured down the sink. Often, people think they can pour it down the sink as long as they run hot water. All that does is make sure the grease hardens further down the pipe. Instead, keep the grease in a container until it hardens. Then, throw it in the trash.

Trash the coffee grounds

An old wives’ tale says that dumping coffee grounds in the sink was good for clearing it out. Unfortunately, this is untrue. In fact, putting coffee grounds in the drain can damage your pipes. The potential clogs can be so severe, and you must call plumbers like Gold Medal Plumbing and Drain to fix the problem.

Even if you have a garbage disposal, you should avoid doing this. A much better use for coffee grounds is to use them in your garden. This way, the coffee grounds still do some good, and they stay out of your pipes.

Cover your drain

Try to be diligent about using the food trap in your kitchen sink plug to catch stray food. In the bathroom, try lining the plug with a mesh cover. This cover will catch long hairs, big clumps of product, and other things that would have been pushed down (and likely caught in) the drain.

Hot water

On a regular basis, pour hot water down the drain. This is a great way to keep things clear for the future. Do this even when you’re not having sink problems to ensure that the sink is getting cleared out consistently.

Add baking soda

In some of your regular hot water dumps, consider adding a couple of tablespoons of baking soda in the mix. Baking soda is beneficial at helping to flush out debris that gets caught along the side of the drain and the pipe. Adding it to your regular drain maintenance routine will contribute to the prevention of future clogs.

Scrape it clean

Since we can’t see it, we don’t think much about cleaning the insides of our pipes. However, cleaning should be done to maintain healthy pipes for a long time. Approximately twice a month, use a wire brush to scrub clean the sides of the pipes.

Plungers matter

You may think that all plungers are the same, but that isn’t true! A good quality plunger can be a crucial addition to your home, especially if you struggle with clogged drains. A heavy-duty, quality plunger is going to give you the suction you need to properly evacuate your pipes from whatever is clogging them. Cheaper models could worsen the issue.

Keep hair away

We don’t notice all the hair we lose in the shower and bath. Brush yours before hopping in the shower or tub to rid yourself of as many loose hairs as possible. Pet hair counts too! Wash them outside whenever you can.

Table salt and vinegar

One natural way of cleaning out a clogged drain is to use a couple of things you probably already have around the house: table salt and vinegar. First, pour about a tablespoon or so of table salt down the drain. Afterwards, follow up by pouring about a quarter cup of vinegar. 

Let the solution sit for an hour or so, then pour (or run) hot water down the drain to help finalize the cleaning process. You can repeat this process a couple or a few times until all the gunk is really gone.

Dish soap and boiling water

A couple more ingredients you should have around your home are dish soap and boiling water. This is especially useful for a greasy kitchen sink drain. You need to put some of the dish soap down the drain first, then splash freshly boiled water after it, a little at a time. 

The heat helps to loosen grease, but it may not actually dislodge it from the sides of the drain. That’s where the dish soap comes in. The dish soap helps to break down grease. Meanwhile, the combo of dish soap and boiling water softens it, loosens it, and flushes it out.