How to clean the clog in the bathroom
Usually, a person is not interested in the way sewage works, but it lasts only as long as it functions properly. Otherwise, you have to figure out why the trouble happened, how to clean the blockage in the bathroom, and what it would take. Answers to these questions can be obtained by reading the article.
Causes of blockage
In fact, there are many reasons that can contribute to the slow descent of water from the bath, so in order for actions to be focused, you need to know what you may encounter.
Incorrect installation of pipes
It often happens that when installing the sewage with their own hands, the apartment owners do not attach importance to the correctness of the location of the sewer pipe, namely the angle of its inclination. The consequences of such neglect will not be long in coming, and the pipeline will quickly become clogged with various deposits. Cleaning helps fix the problem for a while, but soon the water stagnates again in the bath. If something like this happens to you, then you should check the installation of the pipes, and if a problem is detected, install the pipes, adhering to the building codes.
Unfortunately, it is not always possible to observe the minimum slope due to the fact that the entry into the riser is high. In this case, you can:
- pick a more suitable siphon;
- insert in the riser a little lower;
- set the bath higher.
If the connection of your bath is very similar to how it is performed in the photo, then there is nothing to hope for a stable work of the drain.
Siphon and trash pipe
What kind of garbage can we talk about? It is clear that there are few people who wash their shoes in the bath, but it can be washed carpet or something like that.
Sometimes the stock is clogged for other reasons. Even the thinnest person on the skin accumulates fat deposits, from which he gets rid of with bliss while bathing. It is this fat with skin particles and sticks to the walls of sewer pipes and siphons. With an increase in deposits, the lumen of the pipe decreases, and this leads to the fact that water passes very badly.
Another concomitant cause is the accumulation of hair that a person has not only on the head. The slightest unevenness and roughness inside the tube is able to hold the hair, resulting in a strong cork. Especially the problem is aggravated if people and animals bathe alternately in the same container.
Methods for cleaning
Depending on the type of blockage, this or that method of cleaning can be effective at home.
Depilation
Wool and hair are often the cause of blockage. To remove a shred of hair from a siphon, in many cases it is enough to make a hook out of a thin but stiff wire and use it to pull the blockage through the grate inside the bath.
When there is nothing suitable at hand, you can get rid of the hair using the back side of the bicycle knitting needle, using it as a hook.
If it was not possible to pull out the hair ball using the described method, you will have to disassemble the siphon and manually clean it.
How to clean the trash
It so happens that by completely clearing the siphon with the wire from the hair, we do not get the desired result. In this case, do not do without a plunger.
This simple device is very effective in those cases if the pipe is clogged with sand or other debris that is still mobile, that is, it has not taken a lump. A plunger is a kind of pump through which pressure and vacuum is created in a pipe, thanks to which water moves at high speed along the pipe, taking the litter with it.
It is important to be able to properly operate the plunger and take into account that its efficiency can be very low if the overflow hole remains open. Therefore, in one hand it is necessary to take a wet rag and close the overflow hole located at the top of the bath as tightly as possible, and use the other hand to work with a plunger, completely blocking the drain hole with a rubber part. Movement should not be smooth, and as the water goes, it needs to be poured into the bath. After cleaning the sewage, the bath will have to be thoroughly washed, as the plunger not only pushes the garbage through the pipe, but also pulls it into the bowl.
The plunger is recommended to be used periodically to prevent blockages, without waiting for a problem to occur.
Fatty deposits
If the pipe is not fully clogged, then you can cope with fatty deposits using household chemicals. The choice of drugs is very large, but it is this factor that can be confusing. Let us consider in more detail the features of tools for cleaning.
Drugs sold in a liquid state will cope with the blockage faster, but, unlike bulk drugs, their cost is significantly higher.
To choose a suitable drug, you need to know for what purpose it is needed. Then you should be familiar with the principle of its action, and with the instructions for use.
What to look for? First of all, that the drug was branded, not fake, and only then for what kind of blockage it is intended. Check the originality of the drug is not so difficult as it may seem at first glance, just need to ask the seller to present a certificate of conformity of products. It is best to purchase a tool in a reputable specialty store - they will be consulted there and given a guarantee.
Means for cleaning sewage can have a different basis - alkali or acid. Alkaline drugs cope well with fatty deposits, and acidic? with blockages of organic origin (hair, etc.). Often it is necessary to combine drugs, using them alternately.
We conducted a comparative analysis of the most popular means for cleaning the sewage system, and you can see the result in the table.
A drug | Description | Mode of application |
![]() | As part of the drug acid. The tool is very popular because it is inexpensive, but very effective. This drug can destroy waste in a short time. | A small amount of money is poured into the drain hole (its quantity is indicated on the package), then it is poured with a glass of water. Now you can not use the bathroom for two hours. After the required time has elapsed, water is let into the bath, with which the drug is washed off. |
![]() | In the composition of the means sodium hydroxide. Means cleaned plastic sewer pipes. The drug contains antibacterial components. | The drug is poured / poured into the drain hole and 200 ml of warm water is poured. After half an hour everything is washed off with water. Judging by the reviews of people, the tool is intended for prophylaxis, as it is ineffective with strong clogs. |
![]() | Available for use with both hot and cold water. It is preferable to use a tool designed to fill with hot water, since the reaction is faster and more efficient. Getting the drug on the skin causes a burn. | The contents of the package poured into the drain hole and filled with 200 ml of hot water. After a quarter of an hour the pipes are washed. The tool can be used for cleaning, and for the prevention of blockages. One of its features is the ability to create a protective film on the inside of the pipe, to which no fat sticks. |
![]() | This Polish product is produced in a liquid state. The smell is unsharp. Does not destroy the pipe. The drug is selected depending on the type and degree of blockage. | The specified amount of chemical is poured into the pipe. After a few minutes you should rinse the drain with water. |
| Expensive, but effective tool that is designed to clean any sewer pipes. When working with the drug should be especially careful, as well as air the room. | It is necessary to measure a glass of granules and pour them into the mouth of the siphon. All this is filled with hot water. After three minutes, rinse with plenty of cold water. |
You can also use folk remedies, such as soda and vinegar. It is these two substances that are required, as they must react. Separately, neither soda nor vinegar will help.
This method of cleaning sewer pipes is completely safe, but it can not cope with every blockage. The action algorithm is as follows:
- A pack of baking soda need to be ignited in a skillet - this will enhance the reaction.
- In the drain neck of the siphon (it is better if there is no water there) soda pours out.
- Now there is a glass of vinegar poured there.
- In order for the reaction to continue inside the pipe and bring maximum benefit, it is better to close the drain hole tightly with a stopper, holding it.
- After 2–3 hours, hot water flows into the bath to rinse the pipes. If the water flowing from the tap is slightly warm, then it is better to heat it.
The use of other folk methods is less effective, and in most cases is the translation of products.
Since the action of such a solution is not potent, it is quite possible that it will be necessary to apply a combined method of cleaning.
Mechanical cleaning
A combination of several cleaning methods is required if the application of the methods described above did not produce the desired result, or a blockage of such a type that even an acid could not destroy it. Now we proceed to the mechanical cleaning of the blockage with the help of sanitary cable. It is often possible to clean the pipe without disassembling the siphon. Consider just this way.
- The end of the cable is inserted all the way into the drain hole.
- Starting to rotate the cable clockwise, you need to try to shove it further, without making much effort, because you can pierce the plastic pipe.
- Such actions will help this device not only to go deep inside the pipe, bending around all obstacles, but also to wind various debris on itself.
- When the rotation is given with difficulty, then you should pull out the cable and, after clearing it of debris, continue to work.
- If the blockage is broken, and the water began to leave, then it must be poured (the bath should not remain empty), without stopping work - this will help to wash off the remnants of solid garbage. On this clearing is over.
It is important to realize that cleaning the cable from the inside of the bath is not always possible, so you need to remove the siphon to provide access to the sewer pipe hole.
Purify the siphon
The process of assembling and disassembling the siphon can be found here, but we will dwell in more detail on the process of cleaning.
- If no ladder is installed next to the siphon, then it is better to stock up on a rag that absorbs water well.
- When the distance between the siphon and the floor allows, it would be good to substitute some kind of vessel, such as a bowl or chafing dish.
- Now you can disassemble the siphon. Usually there is no difficulty with this, and the nuts are unscrewed freely by hand. If the nut does not give in, then it can be grasped by putting a rag on - this helps to prevent the hand from sliding over the nut.
- By loosening all the nuts, you can unscrew the removable part.
- Now siphon clean. In this position, it is convenient to clean the sewer pipe with a cable.
After clearing the clog, the siphon is collected. It remains to let the water in the bath and check for any leaks.
Prevention
Many problems can be avoided if you take care to block access to the garbage in the sewer. For this, it is enough to purchase and install a bath net. Do not confuse - the mesh for cleaning the kitchen does little to help, as it does not miss only large debris and part of the hair.
Clogging is easier to prevent than to clean. For example, soda and vinegar can be used as prophylaxis - for these purposes such an inexpensive mixture is more suitable than for cleaning.
Using these simple tips, you most likely will not face the need to clear the blockage due to its absence.