One common plumbing problem that often occurs at the most inconvenient of times is a clogged drain. Many home owners are tempted to reach for a bottle of their favorite drain cleaner as they are easy to use, supposed to be quick, and you don’t have to get your hands dirty.

These drain cleaners are strong chemical products, therefore needs to be handled with care otherwise can cause a lot of damage. Always read all the instructions mentioned on the bottle before use. Also, make sure the drain cleaner you choose is safe to use with your septic system.

Many a times, these liquid cleaners does not help, then you can go for some plumbing tools. Plunger is the oldest and a convenient tool to use. It basically works on the principle of suction. But, usually a kitchen or a bathroom sink drain has several other outlets also, thus making the plunger less effective.

The next step is to try and remove the sink trap. If you had previously attempted to clear the clog using a chemical drain cleaner, you need to be careful here as there may still be residue in the sink, pipes, or trap. Before removing the trap, make sure to drain as much of the sink water as you can.

Clogged drains are the most common plumbing issue at homes. But, many a times it is quite simple to fix them. The first thing is to identify where exactly the clog is. Once you know the clog location, you can try out many simple solutions yourself to repair it before calling a plumber.

Whenever you have a clogged drain, the first step is to open the drain strainer completely so that you can see and remove the particles that were causing the clog. The most common reasons behind a clogged drain are hair, food particles, sediment build ups etc. So, the drain stopper should be cleaned regularly to remove all these materials otherwise it can lead to major clog.

Another easy solution that you can try out at home is to pour 1 cup of baking soda and 1 cup of vinegar into the drain. Leave it for some time and then put plenty of hot water. This can break the clog and can help clearing the drain.