I thought about this morning when I was in a hurry to get out the door. The water in the bathroom sink was taking too long to drain. Having two teenage daughters in the house who are always doing their hair in front of the mirror, it’s not too hard to guess why the water’s slow to disappear. I’m a busy guy and I’ve got plenty of other tasks to do, yet I know from experience that I need to make time this weekend to clean out this drain.
So how does one go about doing that? First, remove the pop up plug. It’s the thing that goes up and down when you pull that lever by the faucet, opening and closing the drain. Take out the pop up plug. With a flashlight, take a look into the drain. Remove any debris that you see. If there’s a lot of hair, a needle nose pliers works well to pull it out. Another handy tool is one you can find at your local hardware store or in the plumbing department of your department store. It’s called “Zip-it”. You slide it down into the drain. When you pull it out, the plastic teeth on the strip grabs the debris and pulls it out.
The plunger is rightly called “the plumber’s helper”. It’s a simple and effective tool. Here’s what you do. Plug the sink overflow with a hand towel. Make sure it’s snug. (The sink overflow is that hole toward the top of the sink that attempts to keep your sink from overflowing). You can also put a piece of duct tape over it. This is to make sure the suction of the plunger is maximized.
Secure the plunger over the drain and forcefully move it up and down. This should clear any remaining clog. Don’t be surprised if the suction frees other “gunk” from the pipe. That’s a good sign that you’ve dislodged the obstruction in the pipe. Finish by running a lot of water down the sink to be sure it’s free flowing and draining properly. Put the pop up plug back in and you’re good to go.
For clogged drains that can’t be handled with a needle nose pliers and a plunger, call the experts at Sinclair. We’re always here to make sure your pipes flow freely! Call us today at 806-749-COOL (2665).