November 29, 2022
How to Keep Kitchen and Bathroom Sinks Clean & Clear *Infographic*
5 Tips To Clear Your Drains and Keep Your Sinks Clean
Bathroom drains routinely slow from substances like toothpaste, shaving cream, and hair. Kitchen sink drains tend to clog from food waste and oil and grease that solidify over time. With all this constantly going in your sinks and down your drains, how do you keep them clean?
From boiling hot water to DIY drain clearing solution, there’s a good chance you have the sink drain maintenance tools you need to keep your drains clean and clear right at home! When you maintain free-flowing drains, it’s easier to keep your sinks looking shiny. We’ll show you how to keep your sink drains clean and avoid gross buildup in your sinks.
Why Keeping Drainpipes Clean Is Important
When your kitchen and bathroom sink drains become clogged and dirty, it’s not just a nuisance. Build up within pipes can damage your plumbing and harm your health. Some of the issues of dirty drains include:
- Health Issues. Blocked drains can exacerbate existing problems in a person’s health. The additional microbes and bacteria with the potential to grow mold irritates those with asthma, for example.
- Structural damage. Clogging weakens the structural integrity of pipes and can cause them to leak, or breakdown. Some homes may suffer flooding that warps floorboards and rots wall supports.
- Pests. Stagnant water attracts pests like mosquitoes and drain flies.
Clogged drains are one of the most common issues we deal with everyday. Unfortunately, poorly cared for pipes can lead to much bigger (and more expensive) problems. Take good care of your plumbing to ensure it lasts a long time. Address clogs when they happen and make sure that your pipes are properly cleaned out regularly.
How To Keep Your Drains Clean and Clear
Fortunately, it’s easy to treat and prevent your drains from clogging up, simply by using items you already have at home.
- Use a DIY pipe cleaning solution.
For cleaning bathroom drains, ordinary table salt can be very effective. Pour at least one tablespoon of salt into your bathroom drain followed by ¼ cup of plain white vinegar, and let it sit for an hour. Then, run hot water to clear out the loosened substances from the drain. For best results, do this a second time.
- Maintain clean pipes.
After you use your table salt clearing solution, it’s important to maintain cleanliness to prevent another clog. To do so, pour a little bleach into the sink from time to time. Let it sit for at least an hour (the longer the better) and then run water down the drain.
- Clear out grease clogs.
To clean out a kitchen sink clogged with grease, use liquid dish detergent and a lot of boiling water. Put a big pot of water on the stove and bring it to a boil. Squirt at least a tablespoon of dish liquid directly into your drain. Pour the boiling water into the drain, just a little at a time. The rapidly boiling water will melt grease deposits while the detergent helps to dissolve grease and oil and allow the boiling water to flush it away. If your grease build-up is substantial, repeat this process two to three more times.
- Use hot water
Simply pouring hot water down your kitchen and bathroom sink drains once a week can go a long way. For the kitchen sink, hot water will help melt and flush away light grease deposits. Bathroom drains benefit from very hot water because it can remove excess residue and gunk.
- Use cold water… wisely.
When running your garbage disposal, continuously run cold water down the drain. Cold water will keep oils and grease in a solid state so your disposal can break them up. Hot water will only melt and soften grease and encourage it to coat the garbage disposal.
Your Denver Area Clogged Sink Plumber
If you have a clogged kitchen sink or clogged bathroom sink and you’ve tried the above tips without success, it’s time to call in the pros. When your clog won’t go away or continues to return, Applewood’s licensed plumbers can help. We’re experts at opening slow drains and repairing damaged drain lines. Get in touch with Applewood today to schedule your professional drain clearing.