Did you know that drains can quickly and easily get accumulated with hair strands? If left unattended for a long period, this hair buildup can lead to clogs and cause some serious plumbing problems. This is why drain cleaning is important, which must be performed regularly. Whether in your kitchen or bathroom, they must be properly taken care of.
If you aren’t sure how to proceed with drain cleaning, fret not as we’ve got a rundown of several effective methods. Before you hire a plumber, here’s our guide to removing hair strands from your drains:
1. Using a household solution and a plunger
For your household solution, you will need a dish soap, vinegar, baking soda, boiled water, and plunger. Here’s what you need to do:
- Apply some dish soap down the drain.
- Immediately put a cup of baking soda and pour a cup of vinegar right after.
- After five minutes, boil some water and pour it slowly down the drain.
- At this point, start plunging. Use a cup plunger as if trying to get rid of a clog.
- Repeat this process a few times, especially if you have a stubborn block.
2. Utilizing a zip-it tool
A zip-it tool is made of a long, flexible plastic used to clean a drain. It is readily available in hardware stores and is very affordable, which can be reused, or disposed of. Here are the steps you should follow:
- Pour down the drain with hot water. You may also apply the household solution mentioned above.
- Insert the barbed length down into your drain.
- Twist or contort the tool as you insert.
- Do the same as you try to pull it out, and expect the barbs to catch any hair in the drain.
3. Removing the drain stopper and using tweezers
For this method, you will need a screwdriver, rubber gloves, a flashlight, and needle-nose pliers. Here’s what you need to do to accomplish this process:
- Remove the drain stopper using a screwdriver and also clean the one in your sink.
- Use a flashlight to check the hair blockages.
- Wear your gloves and use your needle-nose pliers to grab the hair strands.
- Once done, pour hot water down the drain.
- Install and replace the stopper with a new one.
4. Getting rid of the entire drain
If the first three methods don’t work, you’ll need to remove the entire drain and do the needful. In doing so, you will need a flat-head screwdriver, plug wrench, adjustable wrench, locking needle-nose pliers, standard pliers, and gloves for this extensive work. Follow the steps below:
- Remove the stopper.
- Loosen the drain (insert the plug wrench into the drain opening, grip it using pliers, and turn it counterclockwise), and remove the plug wrench.
- Insert the needle-nose pliers, lock them in place, grip them as low as possible, and slowly rotate them counterclockwise.
- When the drain is loose enough, turn the needle-nose pliers by hand until you can pull the entire drain out.
- At this point, wash it thoroughly in a sink or bucket.
- Replace your old drain with a newer version.
Conclusion
At this point, you now know how to effectively clean your drains and remove the hair strands out of them. Sure, the cleaning methods may look a little unpleasant and messy. This is why you should follow some of the steps outlined above. Ultimately, cleaning your drains will prevent severe plumbing problems from arising in the future that can lead to costly repairs or replacement.
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