In any part of the country, you can take advantage of countless plumbing services, solutions, and home remedies capable of keeping drains operable and completely free of clogs. The problem is that this does not mean that you can blindly use anything you find and expect great results.
Contrary to what you might believe right now, drain cleaning is not so simple. And a huge part of the reason why is that instead of trusting drain cleaning services, people trust articles published online.
Homeowners have countless misconceptions about drain maintenance and cleaning. We will talk about the really common ones so you can avoid them and make the best possible decisions.
You Only Clean Drains When They Do Not Work
This is one of the most widespread and important drain cleaning misconceptions out there, the idea that you just need to inspect your drains or go through maintenance tasks when you notice buildups, leaks, or clogs. In reality, you need monthly assessments and inspections. This needs to be done regularly so you can prevent the appearance of countless negatives. For the drain to run effectively and smoothly, prevention is much more important than fixing.
While most homeowners fail to understand the importance of prevention, you can easily avoid the mistake. By simply checking your pipes once per month, you can prevent the appearance of clogs. Performance has to be regularly checked, just like every other part of home plumbing. This has the extra advantage of helping you save money.
Thinking All Clogs Are The Same
Never think that all clogs are exactly the same. In fact, every single clog is different. Every individual problem has a specific individual solution and requires specific attention. All this basically means you cannot apply the same clog remedy and expect success.
With drains, there are numerous circumstantial factors that appear. They change how clogs need to be handled. Examples include pipe materials, home water pressure, pipe configuration, water temperature, and what material clogging the drain.
Plumbers never use a specific solution when they encounter clogs. They first try to figure out what type of clog they deal with. You should do exactly the same.
Thinking All Plumbers Are The Same
Every single homeowner out there needs to understand that there are huge differences between drain service professionals and plumbers. There will be several cases in which you will need to contact a plumber since the drain cleaning project is not as easy to tackle as you might initially think. Due to this, you need to always be aware of all the professionals you could contact. Remember that how your drains operate is not something that you want to have taken care of by second-rate plumbers.
When you choose your plumber, the most important thing at the end of the day is making sure he/she can do quality work. This means that you have to assess the experience of the plumber. Just take a look at past projects and you will quickly figure out that plumbers are not equal.
Thinking You Cannot Prevent Clogs
Another common misconception is that clogs always happen and they cannot be prevented. The truth is that clogs are not impossible to prevent. In fact, there are many different ways in which you can counter problems and many preventative measures that can be taken so that you limit or avoid grease concentrations and drain clogging.
As a very simple example, one highly effective way to prevent the appearance of clogs is to use drain screens. These are great since they catch food waste, loose hair, and objects that might be loose before they actually reach the drain pipe. You can even run some water along with the garbage disposal without using it so that you can move waste that might have appeared or build around the drain. Good waste and grease disposal will go a long way to prevent the buildups that appear in drains.
Another thing you should seriously consider is hiring a plumber to inspect the pipes and drains before the appearance of problems. This assures that the entire pipe system is installed properly and intact. There are many cases in which clogged drains appear because of other reasons, not due to waste or hair being collected in them. Structural issues present inside drains can easily inhibit the way in which waste moves.
Thinking You Only Need Chemical Drain Cleaners
If you take a look at all the ads, it is very easy to think that the only way to get rid of dirty drains or clogs is through the use of chemical drain cleaners. This is incorrect. In reality, there are many different options available and the truth is that many of the chemicals used can actually ruin your drains. Also, chemical reactions might appear.
When drain reactions appear, they can be hazardous. Sometimes, these reactions are much more dangerous than all the possible alternative cleaning methods possible. In fact, if you are unlucky enough to combine some specific chemicals, you can end up with toxic fumes that can even cause death.
When you want to take care of your drain clogs, grease buildups, and dirtiness, both those that appeared and that will appear, alternative approaches have to be considered. Some of the most common and effective ones are:
• Home baking soda combined with vinegar.
• Hot water cleanses.
• Boiled water flushes.
• The use of the standard plumbing plunger.
To keep things simple, you need to be aware of the best possible solution for the drain problem you experience. All this comes down to you understanding pipe and drain layouts, the material that causes the current problem, and some other things. Also, it is always worth trying green options first. Chemical cleaners should actually be seen as a last resort.
Thinking The Garbage Disposal Can Handle Anything
So often we see homeowners thinking that their garbage disposal is capable of processing all organic waste and food. We even see people throwing anything down the sink drain as long as it is liquid. The big problem is that this is a misconception that leads to the appearance of several other drain issues and clogs.
For instance, when you throw away fibrous food products, it is a mistake since they cannot be efficiently ground and processed by garbage disposals. The buildup that appears can easily put way too much stress on the waste drain. Eventually, it will lead to the appearance of a very strong clog. Also, fatty materials and grease, together with several other organic products, will stick to the walls of the train. The result is a greasy, thick clog that is very hard to remove.
The last thing to know about this problem is that drain cleaning products are capable of causing clogs themselves. This happens when you send them through the drains in very large quantities. There is even an extra problem since cleaning product concentrations will lead to more drain pipe damage since it causes erosion.
Thinking You Do Not Have The Tools You Need
In many cases, homeowners use chemical drain cleaners and they hire drain specialists in order to get rid of simple clogs as they lack the necessary proper tools. Every single experienced plumber out there will tell you this belief is incorrect. As a very simple example, the drain snake can easily be bought at any home improvement store. And you would be able to get exactly the tool that all plumbers use to get rid of most drain clogs.
Go to the local home improvement store and see what plumbing tools are available. See if you can buy one that would be able to deal with the problem you have.
Keep in mind that the drain snake is just so much better to deal with drain clogs than all the chemical remedies on the market.
Thinking Professional Drain Services Are Very Expensive
The last very important drain cleaning misconception is avoiding the professional-grade drain and plumbing services because of a perceived high maintenance cost. Contrary to what you might think, such services will only cost a small part of what you anticipate. The return you make on the investment as you choose really high-quality services will lead to long-lasting results, which will actually save you money.
When the drain buildup you deal with is severe, you need to contact a professional plumber, one with very high experience. But thinking that you cannot afford the service can easily stop you. In reality, plumbing service prices are lower than you think right now.
Final Thoughts
To sum up, if you deal with drain problems, it is really important that you discuss them with licensed plumbers. Do not believe the misconceptions presented above and whenever you have a question related to plumbing, the best thing you can do is to talk to a professional. Most likely, you do not know as much as you think about plumbing. If you believe or believed any of the misconceptions, it is better to let someone with experience handle the project.
By Andrew Simmons
Bio – Andrew Simmons is an experienced digital marketing consultant and a passionate blogger. He has a vast knowledge of search media and online advertising to promote online branding and reputation. He loves to share his industry knowledge and experience with readers.