Drain Cleaning Tips
One of the most common plumbing problems at home is drain clogging. Drain clogging occurs when the flow of waste water is inhibited in your home drainage and sewer system. Drain clogging is mainly caused by blockage inside the drain or sewer pipes. This is where you have a solid obstacle lodged inside your drainage or sewer lines thereby blocking the flow of waste water and other household waste from the house into the private septic tank and onwards into the municipal sanitary system. Drain cleaning refers to the process of cleansing or clearing out all debris from the inside walls of your drainage and sewer pipes. Drain cleaning services are offered by professional sewer companies as part of their sewer line repair and maintenance services. As a homeowner, there are several things that you can do to prevent or fix clogged drains in your home plumbing system. The following drain cleaning tips will help you maintain the health of your home drainage and sewer system.
Preventing Drain Clogs
One of the main causes of clogging in your home drainage system is poor waste disposal habits. This is where you dump all kinds of waste into your home sewer system without considering whether it is flushable or not. You should never dispose of non-flushable waste using your home drainage and sewer system. This means that you should avoid dumping and flushing insoluble waste like gum, pieces of cloth, paper towels, female hygiene products etc, in your sinks and toilets. You should dispose of this kind of insoluble waste in your garbage bin for collection by your local garbage company. And when it comes to food waste, you should not use the sewer system to eliminate hard fruit sees, highly fibrous foods, and fats and greases from your home. If you wish to dispose of your fibrous food waste using the kitchen sinks, you should install garbage disposal units underneath the sinks. The garbage disposal units are designed for shredding solid food waste for sewer line disposal but they are not meant for eliminating fats, oils and greases from your home. To prevent accidental disposal of insoluble waste through your sewer system, insert waste filters and drain traps over all your drain pipes. You should take care of your drainage and sewer system to prevent breakdowns caused by the roots of outdoor vegetation. Prune and eliminate huge trees that grow above your sewer lines to prevent root invasion.
Unclogging Drains
When your drains are clogged, there are several recommendable do-it-yourself (DIY) remedies that can solve the problem without necessarily having to call a professional plumber. You can start by trying to unclog your clogged sinks and toilets with a plunger. You should also pour hot water down your drain pipes to melt any oils and greases that might be trapped in there. If the hot water does not work, you can pour a vinegar and baking soda solution down your drains. Otherwise use commercial enzyme drain cleaners to unclog your drains.
Hiring Professional Drain Cleaners
If all these DIY drain clogging remedies fail, then you have to hire a professional plumber to unclog your drains. Nowadays most established DC sewer companies offer DC camera inspection as part of their drain cleaning and sewer services. You should hire a competent and highly rated plumbing company to clean your drains. Make sure that your choice DC sewer company is properly licensed by the DC Board of Industrial Trades and that it is properly insured and bonded as required by the law.