I have a bathroom sink that is extremely slow in draining and backs up. I've heard of certain things like boiling water and dishwasher soap poured down as a possible remedy. However, that did not work. Does anyone have any more ideas? I'm just a homeowner trying to save money. Thank you.
Pour straight clorox down the drains. The clorox will eat away anything that is is the pipes stopping them up. DO NOT ever use clorox IF you have a septic tank though, the clorox eats the good bacteria in the septic tank and can cause your septic tank to back up in your house through the drains (my aunt learned this the hard way). Good Luck to you and keep us posted on what you end up doing and how it turns out for you.
I've found that pouring anything down the drains doesn't do much good unless I take a clothes hanger and get all the the hair and gump that's built up.
The overflow pipe that vents to the top of your house will get clogged with hair, grease, lint, and other debris. Have your hubby, or other responsible adult, go on the roof and pour drain opener down that. My mom had this problem and every time Roto Roter came they did just that and it always worked.
My bathroom sink does the same thing. My husband cleared it the first time by pushing a straw down into the drain which cleared it up for several weeks. I keep the straw under my sink and now do it myself when it becomes sluggish. My spouse thinks mine is mostly due to me cutting my bangs every ten days or so which combined with the soap and toothpaste causes a buildup of gunk in the drain. My drain has the a fairly long (about five inches) plastic type of stopper that you open and close with a lever on the faucet. There is a metal cross bar at the bottom of the plastic piece and that is where all the stuff acccumulates to cause my drain problem
First I would get something to poke down the drain, like an open bobby pin and check to see if there is any hair blocking the drain. You'd be amazed how much hair can be in there, then do the following
Use a 1/4 cup of baking soda and 1/2 cup of vinegar. Pour the soda down the drain and then quickly pour in the vinegar and close the drain. Let is sit for @5 minutes and then flush with hot water.
Try using one cup of ammonia, poured into each drain, then follow with a pot of boiling water (be careful not to spill on yourself or kids, or pets!). I read this tip somewhere here, to remove the sticky soap scum that clings to drains--it worked wonders!
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Request: Clearing a Sluggish Sink
Archived on 07/21/2009
How do you clear a sluggish sink?
Larry from Elgin, IL
Feedback:
RE: Clearing a Sluggish Sink
I have a small size plunger that I use regularly on our kitchen and bathroom sinks. I've never had to use any chemical decloggers. It's not always pleasant to see what comes up when you plunge, but it's better than putting all those pollutants into the water supply. And it saves a lot of money. You can buy a sink-size plunger for under five dollars. (11/24/2008)
My plumber suggests that once per month I put Dawn dish washing liquid in the drain of the sink and follow it with a large pot of boiling water. It must be Dawn; other brands aren't as good. This works for me and I have never had another slow drain since doing this. I squeeze about 1/4 cup of Dawn before the boiling water. (11/24/2008)
1/2-3/4 box of baking soda and 1/2 gallon of white vinegar. Let it foam and do it's magic and leave for an hour. Follow it with lots of very, very hot water. Does wonders for our sink. (11/25/2008)
The baking soda and vinegar is a secret ingredient that a lot of plumbers use. Make sure you do not stand right over the sink drain when you pour the vinegar in over top of the baking soda because the fumes do come up and it's not a pleasant experience. (11/25/2008)
By floridagal
RE: Clearing a Sluggish Sink
You definitely don't want to use "any" chemicals (Drano or similar) unless you have all PVC pipes. The chemicals corrode metal pipes. (11/25/2008)
