How To Unclog Pipes At Home | Clogged Pipes Home Remedies

Have clogged pipes that are bothering you? Read on to find out how to unclog pipes at home. 

Clogged or blocked drains do not allow water to flow away easily. Pipes and drains can get blocked in houses due to different reasons. When drains are clogged, water starts collecting and does not go down the drain. 

What causes clogged pipes? Some of the things that can clog the kitchen drain include food and grease. Hair, solid debris, soap scum, and foreign objects can cause the bathroom drains to clog.  

If you think that the water is stagnant and is not going down the drain, there are some hacks that you can try to help you unclog the drains. 

Once you know that your drains are clogged there are three simple steps that can help unclog the drains:

1. The first step is to locate the blockage. Sometimes the blockage is too deep and may not be visible easily
2. The second step is to identify the kind of blockage there is, only then can the blockage be removed effectively
3. Once the blockage has been removed, you need to assess whether the pipes are intact or have been damaged. If they are damaged they may need to be lined properly or in some cases they might need  to be replaced 

How To Clear Clogged Pipes

Most of these hacks use inexpensive everyday materials to clear pipe blockage.

Does Baking Soda And Vinegar Unclog Pipes?

This is basically sodium bicarbonate. It is widely used for cooking and it is also used for its medicinal properties as well.

When sodium bicarbonate is mixed with acid, carbon dioxide is released. This property is also what makes sodium bicarbonate an exceptionally great cleaning agent. It can be used to scrub off stains that refuse to go away and remove bad smells and blockages in drains.

Baking soda is a really weak base that can neutralize acids easily. It has no smell of its own. It is completely odorless and it is not toxic. There are several advantages of using baking soda over other products to unclog the drains. Using baking soda means that we do not have to use other toxic materials.

The cleaning process using baking soda is very clean and simple. Best of all, the entire process is quite economical. Baking soda can unclog drains almost immediately and leaves no residue. 

How To Unclog Pipes With Baking Soda And Vinegar

1. Take a mug full of water and heat it
2. Run the hot water through the drain to clean up physical debris that might have lodged itself in the drain
3. Pour a cup of baking soda down the drain along with a cup full of a mixture of hot water and vinegar. When an acid like vinegar is mixed with the base, it produces salt, carbon dioxide, and water. Another great thing is that the combination does not produce anything toxic 
4. Close off the drain for 10 minutes and then pour in hot water after

The baking soda and vinegar can help loosen the clog and the warm water can help flush out the material that has been clogging the drain. 

Clearing Clogged Pipes And Drains With A Plunger

You have got to wear easygoing clothes first, then fill half a sink with water. When using the plunger, just make sure that no air gets trapped under the plunger as we need to use the water pressure to unclog the drain. You have got to position the plunger completely on the hole and press down gently but with firm hands.

Once you feel like the plunger has been locked in the correct position and there is sufficient water and not just air, pull it out with firm hands. The water pressure will help clear the blockage. 

Bent Hanger For Clogged Pipes Under Kitchen Sink

Loose hair and soap scum can be removed using a bent hanger if they are about 5 to 10 cm deep. The bent part of the hanger serves as a hook.

The hanger needs to be shoved way past the blockage and then pulled out with force to dislodge the obstruction. If you find that the water is flowing down easily, you can clear it up more by pouring boiling hot water down the drain to clean up the clog.  

Drain Snake For Clogged Pipes Backing up

A drain snake is basically a metal wire that is coiled and it has several spaces between the coils. It is attached to a long and flexible cable made of metal. In short, there is an auger on one end and a handle on the other. The handle can be twisted and turned to remove the substances that are blocking the drain. 

These drain snakes are used to clear a clogged drain with standing water or when it is embedded too deep inside the drain. 

Hot Water – Clogged Pipes Home Remedies

If you feel like grease or oil buildup is clogging your drains, the simplest solution is to pour boiling hot water down the drain. Normal tap water is not effective in removing the grease – the water needs to be piping hot.

If the blocked drain is made of PVC then pouring boiling hot water down the drain can cause damage to the pipe and should be avoided at all costs. For complete removal of the blockage, you need to pour down cold water in between the hot water. 

Combination Of Salt And Baking soda

Sometimes, the easiest methods can be the most effective. The process of clearing the blocked pipes using a combination of salt and baking soda is very easy.

How To Unclog Pipes With Baking Soda And Salt

1. You need to first pour down half a cup of salt down the drain
2. Next, pour down half a cup of baking soda down the drain 
3. You need to give the two substances about 10 to 15 minutes to react and then pour about a liter of boiling water down the drain. 

Just like in most cases, prevention is better than cure. Try to put drain traps on all your drains so that all insoluble material is prevented from flowing down the drain and consequently blocking it. All such material can collect on the drain traps and can be physically removed to ensure that the drain remains unblocked.