Drains and pipes in your sewage system may get blocked. This is not that unique. Clearing blocked drains are recommended once every few months. You will generally hire a plumber to clear out blocks and repairing them.
If left unattended they may result in leakage of wastewater in your basins and drain chambers. This could lead to poor hygienic conditions around your sink or chambers resulting in water overflow. You should avoid such scenarios as it could also pose the risk of a health hazard.
Causes of blockage
Blockage in the sewage pipes can be caused due to unwanted plastics, small stones, grease, and other waste materials, mineral deposits like iron and calcium, and even hair that get stuck inside the pipes.
Methods implemented to clear blocked drains
Hiring plumbers is an obvious idea but you should also know some of these basic tips for clearing blocked drains..If you are in an emergency situation then these tips will surely come in handy for you.
- Boiled water
This is one of the simple techniques that you can try out at home when your kitchen sink suddenly overflows due to blockage in the pipes.
Usually, this is enough to clear out some minor blocks. This is a quick way and thus also does not need any further opening of the pipes for repairing and maintenance. But there is one problem. You should try out this method only in ceramic pipes as they are highly resistant to heat. If you use hot water to clear a blockage in the PVC pipes the joints may be loosened. But still, if you intend to use hot water for clearing blocked drains make sure that the water temperature is not too high.
- Caustic cleaning agent
It is a chemical which you can easily buy from the supermarkets. It composes of caustic soda and some other chemicals mixed to form a unique solution. It is enough to remove grease, hair, or food particles that get stuck in the drainage pipes.
But you must know that caustic soda is highly basic and may even dissolve your pipes if a concentrated solution is used. They are also very dangerous to use. So, maintain some precautions while clearing blocked drains. You should generally dilute a few drops of the caustic cleaning agent in water before pouring it on the drains.
- Use of plungers
These are also highly used in the house and commercial toilets. The repetitive up and down movement of the plungers causes enough pressure inside the drains and a vacuum-like situation as a result of which the dirt particles get removed. It is best for clearing out solid blockages. But clearing blocked drains due to grease and dirt other methods and chemicals like caustic soda should be used.
- Hydro jets
This involves a stream of water at high speeds that are flown through the blocked pipe and drain. It is used for cleaning blocked drains at homes and even used by commercial cleaners for clearing community underground sewage pipes.
It is a very simple yet effective way to clear out drains. Usually, it can remove micro blockages as well. But again, it is ineffective in clearing out blockages due to mineral deposits.
Final verdict
For clearing blocked drains, you need to find out the extent of the blockage and its reason first. There are a few techniques that are highly effective in removing certain blocked particles. Here the four major processes have been mentioned. Some of these processes can be tried out at home without taking help from a plumber. Sometimes these methods are also used for underground sewage drains and pipes. Follow these only if you are in an emergency situation or else you can get in touch with the plumber.
