How do you unblock a badly blocked drain?

5 tips to quickly fix the blocked drain, Northampton

Cause blocked drain, in Northampton

What is typical about clogs in your drains is that you are always faced with them completely unexpectedly and at the least ideal times of the day.

For example, you are longing for that refreshing shower after your hard day’s work, you open the tap but notice that the water does not flow away. There you are! The drain is clogged.

With the following handy, eco-friendly and easy tips, you can solve the problem permanently or temporarily. 

Tip 1: use the unblocker

Because usually a clog is caused by a stubborn plug of dirt, accumulated in the siphon. Using the classic unblocker (suction cup on a stick), you are going to vacuum your drain so that all kinds of dirt and clogs will come loose from your drain. You can then flush this dirt immediately.

Method:

• Seal the overflow of the wash or sink basin with tape. You can also ask someone to hold the hole of the overflow closed with a cloth so that no air gets in.
• Make sure there is a little water in the basin to enhance the suction cup effect.
• Place the plunger over the drain and make a few firm, pumping motions up and down the drain.
• Now pull the suction cup loose and check that the water now flushes away smoothly.

Tip 2: cleaning the siphon

You can clean the siphon perfectly yourself. The Emergency Plumber Northampton recommends that you do this on a regular basis. By doing so, you will avoid unpleasant odors and, above all, a worse blockage.

Working method:

• Open the window, as foul odors will be released that are otherwise held back by the water in the siphon by the water trap.
• Put on cleaning gloves if necessary.
• First, place an empty bucket or container on a mop and under your siphon.
• Unscrew the siphon completely with water pump pliers and empty it completely.
• Remove the dirt from the siphon and also immediately clean the drain pipe between the siphon and the drain.
• Screw the siphon back on and check that everything is screwed in tightly.
• Check that the drain is now flowing deftly.
• If tips 1 & 2 did not produce the desired result, it means that the blockage is further down the pipe. You can solve a blockage further down the pipe with the following tips.

Tip 3: Unclog the blocked drain, Northampton in an environmentally friendly way

With the kettle 

• Method: pour boiling water down the drain and perhaps the grease build-up will literally ‘melt away’ due to the boiling water.

• With baking soda and vinegar
  If the mechanical way does not succeed in unclogging your drain, you can try using baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and vinegar (this usually works, unless there is something stuck in it that cannot dissolve).

Ingredients:

• One cup of baking soda.
• One cup of vinegar.
• Hot water.

Procedure:

• First pour the cup of baking soda down the drain.
• Then carefully add the vinegar — watch out! This will fizz, foam and bubble, so be sure not to hold your face above it.
• Let this porridge soak in for 15 minutes.
• Then pour boiling water over it.

This is typically efficient enough to solve the blockage. If this still doesn’t fix it, feel free to repeat it again. It couldn’t be more environmentally friendly.

There are 2 other equally serious dangers lurking when using such chemical unblocking products:

Explosion hazard: if you start mixing different chemicals, you increase the risk of explosion due to the unforeseen reactions the chemicals can trigger on each other.
Damage to airways up to burns: suppose that after treating with a chemical unblocker, the blockage is still there. You now turn off the siphon to see where there might still be blockage. You accidentally inhale the released fumes of this dangerous product. The consequences could scar you for the rest of your life.

Tip 4: the unblocker spring

This tip is again if the unblock age is further down your drainpipe. You can use an unblocker spring to clear the drain pipe back in a place you can’t reach right away.

Method:

• Disconnect the siphon again.
• Push an unblocker spring through the drain pipe.
• Make long strokes with the unblocker spring and push it as far into the drain pipe as possible.
• Tighten the siphon again and check whether the water in the wash or sink can now drain.

Tip 5: Prevent with a simple strainer

Putting a small sieve made for that purpose in your drain can prevent a lot of clogging. You have them nowadays in all kinds of materials: plastic, rubber, stainless chrome, … and perfectly fitting in your beautiful sink or shower.

Emergency Plumber Northampton really hopes that by following the 5 tips above, you will be able to solve a clog yourself. Of course, if it turns out afterward that your drain remains clogged, there is a more serious problem that needs to be dealt with professionally right away. You can read more about this on our unclogging service page or calling us.

We collaborate with: Emergency Plumber 24h. Emergency Locksmith 24h, Emergency Plumber Wolverhampton, Emergency Plumber Dudley and Emergency Electrician Derby.