HOW TO UNCLOG DRAINS
Clogged drains are a nuisance but unfortunately tend to be a common occurrence. These helpful tips will help mitigate clogged or slow draining pipes, as well as help prevent any from ever occurring.
Prevention
The best way to keep pipes clean is to prevent the buildup of hair longer than an inch. Try to avoid letting any long hairs go down the drain, when possible. Plugging the sink with your pop up stopper will help you remove any troublesome hair before draining the sink. The same goes for any haircutting or shaving of any longer hair like a beard. Toothpaste and soap can also cause some issues if not dealt with properly. If a larger bit of toothpaste or the last bit of soap is given the chance to sit in your drain, it can solidify and cut off an area of your pipe for water flow. An easy preventative measure for this is to run the water on hot for a couple of seconds to completely liquify the substances, helping them drain properly.
Maintenance
Even though prevention is very useful, proper maintenance of your pipes will help ensure a clog free existence. There are many different home remedy methods, the most widely used being ½ cup of baking soda followed by ½ cup of vinegar. After the baking soda, pour in the vinegar and use a rag or stopper to keep the foaming reaction from coming upwards, instead keep it down so it can scrub those pipes. After around 5 minutes run hot water for a minute. Careful to NOT use boiling water as it can melt and warp ABS and PVC pipes. Any kind of chemical drain cleaning product suited for the specific pipe will also work here, but be careful not to use these chemical products if your drain is fully clogged. It may not work and if not, you or a plumber will have to deal with the sitting chemical when disassembling and clearing out the pipes.
Unclogging
It's clogged, it's ok, these things happen. The first tool you will want to use in this scenario is a sink plunger. A sink plunger is a smaller version of a regular toilet plunger. Be sure to fill your sink up with a couple inches of water at least, allowing the plunger to fill with water and be effective. With firm force (don’t overdo it now) use the plunger until the blockage clears and the water in your sink begins to drain. If that doesn’t do the trick you will want to remove the stopper and try to remove the blockage if possible, using a plumbing snake or even an old coat hanger can sometimes do the trick. If this is all well outside your comfort zone, have no fear, your local plumber will be more than equipped to handle this issue.