How to Fix a Slow Drining Sink – Simply and Effectively

If you find that water is slow to drain away in your sink and want to know how to fix a slow draining sink then our simple yet effective huide will show you in simple, easy to implement manner.

This is a very common plumbing problem that can be fixed easily by yourself without having to call out a plumber.

If you have already read our post on How to Unblock a Drain Yourself, you will already know some of our tips and tricks on how to clear a blocked drain. However, these are some additional tips which can be used for sinks

Bathroom and kitchen sinks are often getting clogged up with hair, food, dirt, soap scum and anything else that people put down their drains. However, simple maintenance can solve your problems quickly, easily and effectively.

Pop-up Plugs for Sinks

Pop-up plugs are very popular are an excellent way of keeping the things from going down the drain and into the pipes. However, over time the plug itself begins to have a build up aof all those things which have gone down the drain and been trapped by the pop-up plug.

Regularly clearing the pop-up plug will get rid of all those potential blockages which will arise from not keeping it clean.

If your sink has a pop-up plug and it is slow to drain the water away you’ll need to remove the pop-up plug and clear it out.

There are a couple of ways to do this. You may be able to just screw off the top part of the plug and have access to the drain and pipework. The other option is they are held together by a nut under the sink. If you rremove the nut, you will then be able to pull out the pop-up plug from the sink and be able to clean it.

Use Your Drain Snake

If you don’t already have a drain snake, then you should invest in one. They are cheap to buy and are very effective in removing obstacles from a drain that are otherwise hatrd to reach with your hands alone.

Use a Zip-It Tool

If you haven’t heard of a Zip-It tool, then it is like a very handy version of a drain snake. You can use this to clear out hair and debris just in the same way that a drain snake does but it is a relatively small, simple tool to have around the house for quick easy cleaning.

Your Zip-It tool can be used to clear out blocked drains without even taking the pop-up plug off so this makes for very quick and efficient cleaning. Even something which you can easily do on a weekly basis to keep your sink from blocking,

Clear the Sink Overflow

The circular hole on the side wall of a sink just below the taps is called an overflow. This is required if your sink is blocked or the plug is in and the water conntinues to run. The overflow then prevents a flood as the water is diverted away once the water level risis up to its height. Basically this is a saety feature built in to your sinks to prevent flooding. It also helps air get into the drain when it’s filled with water. This helps it drain more effectively.

However, just like a drain, the overflow can also get a build-up of hair, dirt, food and whatever else goes down the sink. Clearing out the overflow can be the hidden problem if you have a slow draining sink

Scrape the Drain

One of the most effective solutions to a slow draining sink is simply to scrape all the hair or food debris away from your drain. Most blockages are caused at the drain level long before they problem goes further down the pipes. This easy and straigh forward method couldn’t be any simpler or more effective.

Use Your Handy Plunger

Yes, the handy plunger. A plumber never leaves home without it. An effective plunger is sometines all it needs.

A plunger is particularly effective when the blockage is further down the pipe and you are unable to reach it with your hands.

Remember and cover up the overflow or the plunger won’t be able to form an air tight seal and won’t work.

If you still have problems, look at our post on How to Clear a Blocked Drain

If you have a slow draining sink in East Kilbride which you can’t clear yourself, give us a call 24 hours a day, every day on (01355) 202656.