Hair, Soap Scum Common Causes of Backups
This customer had a slow drain problem in his bathroom sink. He tried snaking it, but that only made the problem worse, and it ended up being completely plugged. He then took apart the trap below the sink but was still unable to fix the problem.
Having a slow-draining bathroom sink is not an uncommon problem, with all the hair, debris, and soap that gets caught in the drain. When all of that builds up, it reduces the size of the drain, slowing the progress of draining water.
If you don’t know how to fix a problem like this, it is possible that you could make it worse – resulting in potentially higher repair bills for you. However, there are a few steps you can follow that will help you successfully fix your slow drain.
- Clear out any hair and debris: One way to do this is to get something called a “Zip-it tool.” This tool can be put into the drain to catch hair and debris which can then be easily pulled out.
- Remove the pop-up: The pop-up, used when you don’t want to drain your sink, can often collect debris and other products. If you couldn’t get all the debris out from step one, then the next option would be to remove the pop-up and clean it out. To remove it, reach behind the drainpipe under the sink to find the pop-up nut. Once you get it out, clean it and put it back.
- Clear the sink overflow: The overflow is there to allow air into the drain when the sink is filled with water. The air helps that water to drain faster. If steps one and two don’t solve the problem, try cleaning the overflow to see if that clears it.
- Use homemade drain cleaner: Once you think you’ve gotten all the larger pieces of debris out, a homemade drain cleaner can be used to clean the drainpipes. Half a cup of baking soda and half a cup of vinegar become an easy way to get any remaining gunk out of your pipes.
- Use a plunger: A plunger can be used to loosen and dislodge hair and debris that is collected in the pipe.
If you have tried the above steps and nothing changed, or you’d like to have a professional come out and fix it for you, call 3 Mountains Plumbing today.
