Blocked drains can be a a problem no more with these no-frills tips

Amongst the worst kinds of household emergencies are the ones related to blocked drains. The worst thing is that they come without any notice. However, the most unpleasant aspects of  blocked drains are that they can cause nasty odours, flooding and loss of power in the home. Blocked drains can also effect your business prospects by cutting down on the sales and productivity and reducing the number of customers.

Listed below are some easy steps you can take to minimize the chance of a drain becoming blocked, whether due to the introduction of foreign object or a structural fault.

Remove hair clumps that collect in the waste plug hole on a regular basis.

Keep small objects such as combs, medicine bottles and toilet rolls away from places where they could accidentally fall into the toilet.

Flush out the wash basin and bath areas with disinfectant and hot water regularly to prevent soap sludge from lining your pipes.

Do not put away baby’s nappies, commercial wrappings, sanitary towels or similar large items down the drainpipe; they may clog it.

Instead of disposing the waste food scraps and cuttings down the drain they can rather be used as a compost.

Suppose any food wastes fall into the basin unintentionally, pull them out of the hole instead of trying to flush them away, or this may clog along with many other materials and finally pose you a greater issue in removing the blockage later.

Cooking fats congeal and solidify when they mix with cold water, so never pour them down the kitchen sink unless you want to encourage blocked drains!. But if you really have to do that, then do so after breaking up the fats with a little detergent in hot water. It is a good practice to keep water running into sinks for a minute or so after flushing fats as it helps to maintain a smooth flow of water and prevent the fats solidifying.

There are also a set of regular maintenance activities which can reduce the likelihood of a blocked drains problem.

Check the house roof gutters and rain downpipes twice a year.

While trying to remove the gathered leaves and debris using a trowel, you should be careful that you do not fall off the ladder.

Make sure you can access the inspection covers of your drains easily and open them regularly to ensure free flow.

Make sure that the external drain grids are protected from garden materials, fallen leaves or accumulation of moss in autumn.

External drains can also be washed by using disinfectant and hot water in a manner similar to the internal drains.

For complete peace of mind and to reduce the chance of blocked drains, particularly if you are running a business, you can request a regular drain surveys and get your drainage system checked regularly by a CCTV drain inspection service. The CCTV will inform you of any impending blockage and the likelihood of blocked drains, you can also check the condition of the drainage system regularly by using this type of service.

Blocked Drains – A Stellar Worry!.

You might notice the blocked drains when you are in shower and suddenly the water level starts rising up. Is there anything as inconvenient and messy as a plugged or blocked drains pipe!. Or while brushing your teeth by the sink, all of a sudden the sink starts to fill up. Clearing blocked drains is something everyone wants to avoid because it’s such a messy task and the defective drains make one appear unhygienic (and that’s what those drainage are). However, most household bathrooms will experience a clogged up drain at some time and one time or another. The best way to manage blocked bathroom drainage is to learn how to unblock them.

Why Do They Happen?.

Most often, when the dirt,sand and debris that we wash off from our bodies combines with the hair that we shed in a bath, all those entangled clumps accumulate within and eventually block the drain. The problem aggravates when bathroom products like soap, shampoo, conditioner, detergent, and the like begin to accumulate on the mass. Finally the accumulation becomes too thick to allow any water to pass through and it is then that the drainage get completely obstructed resulting in the flooding you see from blocked drains. If the water has started building up quickly in your tub or sink, then without delay you should unclog the drain.

Clear Up Your blocked drains fast.

If you want your water to start flowing freely and to solve the blocked drains issue then there are a few things you can do to rectify the problem. First of all the plug should be removed. In case of a bathroom sink, the plug can be removed easily with a simple pull or it might need the complex effort of unlocking the hook keeping it in place from under the sink. With respect to the bath, the screws have to be loosened to remove the stopper or the overflow plate has to be dismantled.

You might be able to see the reason for the blocked drains after you have successfully taken the stopper out. Those greasy lumps of entangled hair and residue can be seen sticking to the sides and corners of the drain pipe. Reach down into the pipe and pull out as much as possible. You may find it difficult to get at the blockage, in which case you could use something like a wire clothes hanger to fish the material out from the blocked drains. Removing the hair, detergent residues and the rest of the material will surely solve your problem.

If you need to disassemble the blocked drains and notice that the blockage is not even within reach of a wire hanger, you will have to try another method. A plunger will be helpful next step in removing clogs that are out of the reach of your hand. Begin by covering the overflow drainpipe with a wet towel so as to create a stronger suction from the plunger. Now put the plunger over the drainpipe and move it up and down continuously at an even pace. As soon as you release the plunger, the trapped water may drain away immediately.

You may have to turn to a chemical solution, if the plunger fails to do the job. Chemicals should be applied only after all else fails because they are risky and can damage your bathroom hardware.

Bring in the Pros for a professional drainage solution.

If you are unable to unclog the blocked drains even after trying all the methods, it is only advisable to call a professional plumber who has experience of drainage work. Plumbers are equipped with tools that can remove clogs from blocked drains with great speed and efficiency. Calling in a plumber does cost money, but you can then rest assured that your drains are completely cleared and will not hassle you in the near future, a good plumber will also clean up any mess created as a bonus.

Accumulated sewage from leaking waste pipes can be highly hazardous to your health.

A plumber should be phoned instantly if drainage is backing up into your bath tubs, showers or toilets. This drainage will contain bugs so it should be cleaned at once and your plumbing system should be repaired so as to prevent it from happening again.

As you wait for the plumbers to reach your location, start sanitising the affected area with a mixture of bleach and water with a ratio of one cup to five gallons respectively. Wear eye protection, long trousers, gloves and boots and seal the area to prevent entry by kids, the ageing and pets. Wash your hands afterwards with antibacterial soap and clean warm water. As another temporary measure, if you can limit the water going into your drain pipe you can prevent the volume of sewage backing into your home.

The main sewage drainpipe may have plugged up, or it may just be the pipework joining the toilet and shower that is clogged. Your first concern, without worrying about the cause, should be protecting your family from detrimental waste.

A family member affected by the drainage-borne germs may suffer from fever, vomiting, stomach aches or diarrhea. If any of these symptoms occur to you or your family, particularly the small or older, seek medical attention without delay.

Use a disinfectant (1 cup bleach in 5 Imperial gallons water)to sanitise any toilet items, toys, fixtures or other items that may have been polluted by the drainage. polluted food items should be thrown away immediately, also throw those items that cannot be cleaned like mattresses, baby toys, stuffed animals etc.

If the sewerage back flow is in the shower area, try using a snake. A plumbing snake that is a quarter inch thick and twenty five feet long will be the best choice. You can move a quarter inch snake easily inside the drainage line. It’s possible that your shower fills up with drainage without the toilet in the same bathroom being affected. This is because shower sewers are typically installed level to the flooring, whereas the toilet trap is usually about 5 to 6 inches above.

If you are unable to clear this backflow yourself, you must call in professional plumbers. A good team of plumbers or waste pipes services operator, like Dynorod, will clean and disinfect the contaminated area and identify and repair the plumbing fault quicker and better. Be absolutely sure that you know what you are doing when you are attempting to fix your own plumbing, otherwise it’s always best to contact the experts to do the task.

What would be more miserable than a plugged waste pipe!.

You are standing under the shower for a relaxing time, and all of sudden you realize that water is rising around your feet. How disgusting! the drain pipe is clogged . Or you’re in front of the toilet sink, brushing your teeth and before you know it – the sink is halfway full. Everyone hates choked drains because they not only create problems but are also unhygienic and can create a mess. Yet many residential bathrooms or kitchen will suffer from a clogged drain incident at one particular point or another. The most preferred approach is to prepare ahead of time for such a predicament by educating oneself on how to fix bathroom drainage when the drainpipe pipes become clogged up.

Why Do They Happen?.

Hair, dust and other particles getting stuck in the space between the drain pipe and the pipes are the main cause. Residue from daily use of shampoo, conditioner, soap, cleaners and other products tends to further aggravate the sticky build up. Eventually the clumps of accumulated matter prevent water from draining out quickly or may even completely seal the drainpipe hole. If you notice water getting accumulated in your tub or sink, you definitely have clogged drains.

Clear Up Your drains fast.

If you want your water to start flowing freely then there are a few things you can do to rectify the problem. The first thing you will have to do is take out the plug of the blocked sink or drain. You can easily remove the plug by pulling it off from the bathroom sink, however if it’s fixed under the sink then you need to unscrew the nuts. For a bath you may be able to simply take out the plug, otherwise you might have to take off the overflow plate in order to get at the assembly.

It is important to remove the plug because only then you can view the things that are clogging the drain inside the drain pipe. Whilst messy, it is nothing, but a mound of hair and fragments around the components of the bathroom drain pipe. Try to get as much of this out as possible by hand, this could solve the drains problem. If the debris is further down than your hand can reach, push in a bent wire or coat hanger and coax the clumps out. As soon as the clog is got rid of, water will start flowing freely through the drain pipe.

However other methods can be used in case the clog is unreachable even with a hanger. A drain pipe plunger can help you get rid of blockages that are too deep down to reach by inserting your hand. First, cover the overflow drain with a wet cloth in order to make the air suction from the plunger stronger. Then, put the plunger over the drain and push up and down half a dozen times. As soon as you release the plunger, the trapped water may drain pipe away immediately.

You may have to turn to a chemical solution, if the plunger fails to do the job. This method should only be used as a last resort because the chemicals used are dangerous and can be harmful to your bathroom fixtures.

Call in the drains Professionals.

If all the steps outlined above fail to clear the plugged drain pipe, then it is best to call in a crack team – a qualified and experienced plumber or drainage contractor from your area. Alternatively experienced drainage contractors like Dynorod have all the necessary equipment required to unblock the drains and inspect the interior with a CCTV inspection or drains camera. Though it won’t come cheaply, an experienced plumber’s help can provide peace of mind.