How to Keep Your Home Drain System Running at Home
A home drain system is more important to maintain than you care to realise. Your drainage system’s main feature is to carry away used water to a sewage network and, by the forces of gravity, to carry waste water away from the drain pipes. The closer to a vertical pipe your drainage system is, the faster and easier the used water will flow away. On the one hand, having a vertical pipe is ideal and desirable to have in a home but is often difficult to achieve due to standard household architectures; however, most drain pipes are at an angle to keep the used water flowing to the sewage constantly.
On the other hand, a horizontal drain pipe usually gets blocked by soap and grease residues and develops issues, such as slower water drainage, and eventually creates obstructions which can cause many catastrophic events in your home. With this in mind, here at Draincall, we are going to discuss what you can do to keep your home drain system running correctly at home which can be detailed below:
Drain Fundamentals:
Firstly, there are some fundamentals in which you should never put down your home drainage system if you want it to function properly. They are:
–Cooking Grease – Leftover fats and grease from cooking can block drains and allow other debris to cling onto the inside of the pipes. This leads to the increased risk of clogs and any other unwanted drain problems to occur.
–Coffee Grounds – Coffee grounds are not completely water-soluble, which means when they mix with butter, oil, grease or any other substance already coating the pipes, there’s a risk that there will be blockages in the home drain system.
–Hair – Hair has an annoying tendency to stick to the sides of drains causing build-up over time. Hair isn’t water-soluble and even the strongest of drain cleaning chemicals cant dissolve it to where it doesn’t become an issue.
–Soap Scum – When minerals in hard water react with fatty acids that are in soap, they create lime soap or otherwise known as ‘soap scum’. Scum builds up over time, attracting mildew and mould and is a major nuisance because it can clog your drain. Not to mention, it can be a breeding ground for bacteria so is actually very unhealthy to have around your living space.
–Pasta/Rice – Pasta can absorb water pretty well. When they do so, they begin to expand. If pasta is still present in your home drain system after being filtered down by your sink, they will continue to expand and will block up the pipes when they come into contact with water. As for rice grains, they can easily slip down the drain and once it reaches your internal pipes, it will absorb waste water and begin to swell consequently causing an obstruction in your drains.
What You Should do (Solutions)
With the list above detailed why you should never put down your drain, we have come up with solutions on how to prevent your drain from becoming blocked and damaged
–Cooking Grease – With cooking grease a countermeasure to make sure it is not discarded down your drain is to collect leftover grease in an old jar/ tin and dispose of it in the rubbish bin. This will ensure that it never has to come in contact with your home drain systems.
–Coffee Grounds – The simple solution to prevent coffee grounds from entering your drain network is to simply put them in a designated bin/ compost bin.
–Hair and soap scum – To combat hair and soap scum from blocking up your drains, you should consider purchasing a mesh sink strainer to cover your sink drain. This will prevent any hair or scum from developing in your drainage pipes. Just remember to soak the strainer in some warm, soapy water for a while or even overnight, and then clean it with a brush in order to maintain it effectively.
–Pasta/Rice – Identical to the hair and soap scum solution, by purchasing a sink strainer you eliminate the possibility for pasta and tiny grains of rice from passing through your drain and cause potentially inconvenient problems in the future.
Alternatively, if you have mild problems occurring with your drain system, the three step advice listed below could be an ideal solution to clear your drains and help dislodge any leftover grease or debris lurking in your drain.
1. Boil a large pot of water
2. Pour half the boiled water down the drain
3. Wait 5 minutes then pour down the rest.
Call us For Home Drainage Maintenance
If all else fails, it is certainly time to call the professionals. Here at Draincall, we are experts in drain unblocking and troubleshooting any problem you might have before they arise. Our teams of highly trained, fully qualified experts are bound to have the ideal solution for you to unblock your drain. For more information regarding our services, why not gives us a call on 08000 157 823 or email us at office@draincall.co.uk
