Have your pipes started giving off a terrible odour? This could be the sign of blocked pipes. Read more for our 3 top tips on how to unblock your pipes.
Blocked pipes can be annoying and a bit of a hassle. Drain pipes are designed to carry water. But inevitably, that’s far from all that goes down them. Plug holes in particular are susceptible to all sorts of slipping down which they weren’t really intended to carry.
In your kitchen sink, it’s stray bits of food from dirty pots, pans and plates that are likely to be carried down with the wastewater when the plug is pulled. In your bathroom, hair is a major offender, along with dead skin (especially if you’re fond of a loofer) and lumps of soap.
Whether it’s your sink, shower or bath, the end result is the same. Too much solid stuff finding its way down your plughole will eventually lead to a blocked pipe. This is a problem for two reasons. First, left for any length of time, all that built-up gunk will start to smell. Two, if left for long enough, the blockage will become big enough to stop water passing through the pipe, and then you stop being able to drain your dirty water away.
Both of these scenarios are less than ideal, but neither should they cause you too much concern. The key to dealing with a blocked pipe is to act early - don’t leave it to become a bigger problem. If you do, there are plenty of ways to resolve the issue yourself. Here are some of the best DIY tips for unblocking a drain pipe.
How To Unblock Your Pipes
1. Try an unblocker
Drain unblockers are chemical solutions that are intended to break down whatever is clogging up your pipes so water can move freely down them again. There was a time when you would have had to have bought a selection of fairly volatile and not always pleasant chemicals to mix yourself to try this method, but now off-the-shelf ready-mixed products are a common sight in the cleaning aisle. They come in a variety of liquids, gels and foams, with some claims that foams, with their fizzing, expanding action, are most effective shifting the most stubborn build-ups.
Whichever you choose, make sure you follow the instructions, rinse thoroughly with plenty of water once any recommended time period for leaving the product has passed, and don’t be tempted to mix different products.
2. Use a plunger
We tend to associate plungers with toilet blockages, but the principle works on any type of pipe. Push the rubber edge of the plunger firmly down around your plug hole to create a tight seal. By pumping the handle of the plunger up and down so the rubber dome moves with it, you create air pressure that has nowhere to go but down towards your blockage. With a bit of luck, this should be enough to dislodge the problem. Follow this up by flushing plenty of water down the pipe.
3. Remove the sink trap
Finally, if you’re confident with your DIY skills, you could try unscrewing the sink waste trap. Contrary to their name, waste traps are not designed to catch solids - they are actually there to ‘trap’ a pool of water in your drainage system which prevents things like insects, bacteria and even bad smells from getting inside your home from the external sewers.
However, the U- or bottle-shaped design of sink waste traps means they inevitably attract a build-up of solid waste over time. Unscrewing and replacing this section of pipework to empty out whatever has built up in it is straightforward, the main difficulty is getting at it in the first place.
Fast Reliable Plumbing Repairs
If you have tried all of the above without success or don’t fancy your chances of reaching the sink trap to unscrew it, it’s probably time to call out a plumber. Call us free to arrange a visit from a local professional and we’ll have your pipes unblocked in no time.
Go Assist offer plumbing repairs on all types of plumbing faults including shower, tap, toilet, leak radiator and emergency plumbing repairs. So no matter what your plumbing fault is Go Assist is here to help. Book your repair online now.