How To Unblock a Drain Yourself

Here are some simple tips and tricks from the professional plumbers on how to unblock a drain yourself at home or in the office without calling out a plumber.

Nobody wants to deal with a blocked drain but they are very simple to prevent and often easy to deal with if you have some basic plumbing skills which we will teach you here.

How Do Drains Get Blocked?

Most drains are blocked because of what people are putting down the drain in the first place. 95% of blocked drains can be prevented with some simple practices on using your sinks, baths, showers, dish washers.

The golden rule is what goes down often stays there. If you are pouring fats down the sink or letting scrap food get washed down the sink then often they will stay in the pipes and over time this build up beings to narrow the pipe allowing less water to flow until eventually it gets completely blocked. 

This is also true for bath and shower drains. It is mostly hair which causes the problems here again building up over time until the blocked drain stops allowing water to flow through it.

So the number 1 rule is to prevent what is going down the drain in the first place. Prevent putting anything down the drain except for the water which should be flowing. Put food scraps in the bin. Pour fats into an old food can or bottle and let it solidify before putting that in the bin.

Buy a shower drain guard. For a few pounds you can save yourself from having to unblock the shower yourself or having to call in a plumber when the problem gets worse further down the line.

Showers can also be blocked due to a build-up of dirt, minerals and soap scum, which over time can start clogging the pipes.

How to Notice Your Drain Getting Blocked?

There are 2 types of blockage. A complete blockage and a partial blockage.

A complete blockage is the worst situation where no water can pass in either direction so a backflow of water can be seen building up. In a partial blockage, some water can still pass through but this is limited and usually being more and more restricted as the blockage builds up.

In a partial blockage, often forcing water through the drain or pipe can start to disperse the blockage allowing more water to pass which then helps clear the blocked area.

If you can see the blocked area, then get your fingers in there (assuming that it is not broken glass causing the blocked drain) and try to physically clear the blocked drain.

However, often the blockage is caused further down in the pipe rather than at the drain.

Once you notice these symptoms of a blocked drain, you should try to clear it as soon as possible before a build up starts. The longer you leave the problem, the worst it gets.

 

 

Try Pouring a Kettle of Boiling Water Down the Drain.

The boiling water helps wash away fats, soap or grease that has built up in your drain. Just be careful to protect yourself and wear gloves and protective glasses when doing this. Pouring boiling water from height uses mechanical force to try and dislodge the blockage and the hot water helps to melt it away. Just make sure that if there is too much splash back then you should lower the height of the kettle so that you are not being burned in the process.

 

 

Use Baking Soda and Vinegar

Pour half a cup of baking soda down the drain. Then pour in half a cup of vinegar.

The alkaline baking soda mixed with the acidic vinegar will cause a chemical reaction and begin to fizz immediately. This chemical reaction of the baking soda and vinegar should break down any hair, fats,  grease and soap scum residing in the pipes. Let this sit for 30-65 minutes before washing it away with boiling hot water.

 

 

Get Out Your Plunger.

Every home should have a plunger to hand. These are very cheap and effective ways to clear a blocked drain

However, a plunger  won’t work well if the blockage is mainly due to hair or is further down the pipe.

To use a plunger, make sure that there is a small pool of water underneath the plunger then cause an air tight seal and being plunging continuously and firmly. This action causes the water to be forced into the blockage and will hopefully remove it.

 

 

Look Out Your Drain Snake

You can also use a metal coat hanger and improvise.

Manually scrape out the blocked area.

If you don’t have a drain snake then you can use a metal coat hanger and uncoil it  so that you can get it down the drain as far as possible.

Take off the drain cover if you can. Get a torch and look down the drain as far as you can to see if you can physically see the affected area

If you can’t reach the blockage with your hands, use your drain snake or metal coat hanger to try and scrape out the hair or debris that is causing the problem.

 

 

Call in a Professional Plumber

If all else fails, it’s time to call in a professional plumber.

We have all sorts of machines, and apparatus from water jets to industrial chemicals to clean out blocked drains

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