Preventing Clogs in Drains

Here at Plumbing Paramedics, we spend a lot of time helping Calgarians unclog their drains. This probably isn’t a big surprise since most drains clog up eventually, but it does remind us that many Calgarians just don’t know proper clog prevention. Once a drain clogs it’s often a lot of work to clear completely. However, it takes very little time to keep a drain from clogging in the first place. You can help us just following a simple procedures of preventing clogs in drains.

A Weekly Flush. We hope we didn’t make anyone cringe too strongly at the idea of a new weekly chore, but we promise this one is quick and easy. Just turn your tap on as hot as it can go and leave it for two minutes. The hot water will dissolve (or melt) many fats and solids in your drains and flush them out of the system. After the hot water has done it’s work, let the tap run cold for another couple minute just to make sure everything is washed away.

A Bi-Monthly Cleaning. We’ve covered how to unclog a drain using these handy household chemicals before, but they actually do a great job of cleaning a drain before it clogs as well. Toss a quarter cup of baking soda down the drain and follow it with a stream of very, very hot (but not boiling) water. When that’s done pour a cup of vinegar down as well. Give the vinegar half an hour and then run some hot water for a minute or two.

Hair Catcher. If you find that you regularly having problems with drains becoming clogged, you may want to purchase a hair catcher. They’re usually quite affordable and help prevent hair and other debris from causing problems. The catcher will have to be cleaned once or twice a month though. It can be a little gross the first couple times, but with rubber gloves, it’s not so bad and often means you’ll never have a clogged drain again.

Preventing clogs in drains is always the best place to start whether you’re talking about drains or your leaks in your roof. While Plumbing Paramedics will always be here for when things do go wrong, we hope that this article — and every article we write — will help you take better care of your plumbing at home and save you time and money.

Have a plumbing question or emergency? Plumbing Paramedics are the Calgary plumbers to know! Call us at (403) 452 – 2911.