If you own a home it is very likely that you have or will have a clog of some sort, at some point. Sometimes it will present as a slow shower drain or a toilet that won't flush, washing machine that floods the room when it empties, garbage disposal that won't spin or in the more serious cases it fills a tub or shower with dirty water when a toilet is flushed or the laundry is run. Any one of these conditions is going to give you a bad time and potentially ruin your day. So should you run to the phone and call a plumber at the first sign of a backup or slow drain? That depends on your personal ability, mobility and knowledge of how a plumbing system works and is built. Here I will try and give you some insight into those areas so maybe you can save yourself some time and money while avoiding a pretty shitty day (pun intended).
Let's start with the simple stuff, sink clogs. Every drain in the house has what's called a p-trap (link at the bottom). This serves to slow the flow of the water and capture debris while providing a smell barrier from all the lovey smelling things you flush and wash down the drain. If you lost your wedding ring down the drain, the first pace you should check (after immediately stopping the flow of water) is the p-trap. This is a U shaped piece of pipe under the sink. It's always full of water and sometimes it's where you will find your missing valuables. This is also a common spot for things to slow down and settle causing a clog. In most houses it's held together with some nuts and compression washers. You loosen the nuts completely (ideally with something under the trap to catch any water) and pull gently down and it should come right off. Water and material may come out at this point so keep some towels or similar handy. Now look inside the trap, is it full of stinky pasta noodles or fried rice? If so scoop that nasty paste out and throw it in the trash. Now check the pipe coming down from the sink drain for debris and clear it. Take the piece going back into the wall out and check and clear that also. Is the pipe entering the wall packed solid also? Scoop it out best you can and reassemble everything. If you think remember the orientation of everything will be too hard, take a picture with your phone for reference. Once it's all back together run some real hot water on full blast down the drain. If it begins to fill I recommend you call a professional. You may have a hand snake and are welcome to try it but in my experience most of the homeowner accessible snakes don't work very well if at all. Spending money on one would probably be better spent on someone who has much better equipment that can clear it quickly and with confidence it will not return barring some deeper issue.
When that shower drain starts slowing down I recommend pulling the drain trim off and checking it for hair. More often than not when I inspect a shower/tub for a drain issue it is just full of hair and just takes a few minutes to clear up. A coat hanger or needle nose pliers work nicely to fish it out. For showers the drain is usually either screwed down with visible screws or it may pop in and pop out with a small screwdriver. Tubs usually also have a screw or if you have a pop up it may spin off but there are many designs. After you clean it all out, run that hot hot water for a minute or two to flush any remaining debris further down the line and into larger diameter pipe.
When that toilet won't flush I think we all know to grap that plunger (link at the bottom) and start splashing that nasty water all over the bathroom. However I would like to offer some advice as to the technique and what to look for to avoid causing a bigger issue. Once the plunger is in the bowl and you've committed to bathing in poo feel the weight of the plunger once it's made the seal. Does it feel like you are moving or trying to move a very large column of water or does it feel tight and close? If it's heavy don't plunge like it owes you money. You may have a blockage way down the line and creating pressure will likely just blow out the wax seal at the base of the toilet. This will release all that stinky sauce all over the bathroom floor and require you to pull the toilet to fix or call a plumber to fix. If it's tight and light hit it with your purse and blow it out of the toilet trap into the 3-4" line waiting below. After you clear it either way give it a few empty flushes and run some hot water somewhere in the bathroom to flush it all out. If it's a deep clog or if it comes back somewhere else in the house, including an entirely different bathroom. Call a professional who can easily assess the location and the best way to clear it.
If that garbage disposal won't spin. There are two ways I know of to clear them. With both methods I recommend you unplug the unit for safety. I once got my hand caught in a blender on Christmas eve but thats a different story for a different blog and although not a garbage disposal, you can trust me when I say it wont be fun to get tangled in one. Some disposals have a spot on the bottom where you can insert a supplied Allen key and try to force the thing to move. If yours has this option start there after unplugging. Try and get it to spin a few rotations and once it feels free plug it back in (after removing the key) and try and run it. The other option is a tool of some sort through the opening in the sink. There is an inexpensive tool you can buy that works nicely or you can give it a try with a long screwdriver or broom handle. For the cost I recommend having the tool (link at the bottom) sitting in a drawer in the kitchen for easy access. If neither of them work or they are not your cup of tea please call a professional and be ready for the possibility that the unit is beyond the ability to fix and may need replacement.
If all or most of the drains in the house are clogged don't even try to clear it yourself. The line is likely very very blocked and cleaning it without a professional using commercial grade equipment is very unlikely. Avoid all drain clearing chemicals. Many of them cause damage to specific types of pipe and can cause much bigger more expensive issues down the line. I do recommend using something like Rid-x (link at the bottom). An enzymatic drain maintenance treatment that will coat the pipes in living organisms that will eat the debris in the pipe as it is deposited. You want to follow the directions and put it down at the end of the day when you are done using the plumbing so it can sit there and establish instead of getting flushe out. If done correctly and routinely it should prevent most leaks caused during normal use. It won't stop aunt Edna from clogging it with an entire roll of toilet paper but it will prevent clogs caused by typical buildup in a working drain system.
If you feel frisky always try the easy stuff like a block at the drain or the easy to remove sink trap. However if it's larger than one fixture or something you don't understand please call a professional and have it sorted right the first time. I have posted links to the tools and products that I recommend below.
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