Plumb It Right!
Plumbing problems are considered to be one of the
major problems that each household can experience at
least once in a lifetime. Although most would opt to
call a professional plumber to do the dirty work for
them, most plumbing repairs are actually minor ones
that even you can do without having to pay a plumber
some notable amount of cash.
Be Vigilant
One way to fix major plumbing problems is by
prevention. Keeping a sharp eye for sluggish or slow
drains is the key. It is way much easier to fix and
unclog a slow drain than opening one that has wholly
stopped from functioning.
If your drain is slow, you can fix this by simply
pouring scalding water down the pipe. Do this to
loosen any grease buildup. Additionally, you should
clean the drain screen or stopper. This should do the
trick.
However, if it doesnt, then try to locate the problem
by checking out other household drains. Do this to
know whether the clog is present in only one fixture.
If it turns out that other drains are clogged, then
you may have a problem with your main drain pipe.
Sinking In
Fighting a sink clog automatically means getting a
bathroom plunger. In picking a plunger, make sure it
has a large enough suction cup that can completely
cover up the drain. It should also be able to create
an airtight seal around the surrounding sink.
Next, you should fill the fixture to completely cover
the plungers suction cup. Do this by using water or
coating the cups rim with petroleum jelly. You should
create a vacuum by trying to seal off other outlets,
like overflow drain in sinks. Then, push out any
trapped air underneath the cup. After this, do 15 to
20 forceful up-and-down pumping blows to jerk loose
the clog. It may take you three to five times of this
cycle to do the trick.
Snake It Out If using the plunger doesnt work, then
you would have to resort to another technique. In this
remedy, you would need to have a plumbing snake. You
can get one at your local hardware. These can work
their way through your drain pipes and physically push
out the clogs.
Plumbing snakes are considered to be one of the most
dependable tools for fixing drainage problems. All you
have to do is push the snake in until you hit the
clog. Once you hit the clog, hook it up by twisting
your snakes handle. After hooking it up, push your
snake back and forth until you feel that the
obstruction has broken up. Then, flush out the pipe
using cold water. Main Drain Cleanup
If you detect that more than one of your draining
fixtures is clogged up, then your main drain line may
be the problem. Thus, you have to clean it up. You can
start off by locating the clean-out plugs of the large
drain pipes. You can find these in your crawlspace or
basement.
Main drain lines can also be found in your garage or
somewhere outside, along the foundations of your
house. You can see that each plug has a cap on it that
has a square fitting on the top. Use a wrench to
remove the cap.
Make sure that you have a bucket with you to catch
some dripping water. Also, be sure that nobody will
use the facilities while you the main drain line is
open, or else some serious problem can come your way.
Once you have everything in place, use a plumbing
snake to break up any obstructions in the main line by
running the snake in all directions of the pipe.