We’ve all done it. When our tubs or sinks get clogged, our immediate reaction is to grab the chemical drain cleaner. But is it doing more harm to your home’s plumbing system than good? If you’re thinking about DIY drain cleaning in Manitoba, you might want to think again.

The Truth About Store - Bought Drain Cleaners

While some store-bought chemical drain cleaners may seem like the cheaper more convenient option in comparison to professional plumbers in Winnipeg, Manitoba, it can actually be doing more harm than good. What the companies who manufacture these products don’t tell you is that the chemicals (sodium hydroxide or sulfuric acid) that are used to create these drain cleaners can actually be harmful to your home’s pipes and cause damage to them over time. This even goes for the ones that claim to be “safe on pipes.”

There are many different alternative liquid-based drain cleaners you can try if you want to try clearing minor clogs on your own. All-natural enzymatic products can break up organic material and bacteria that may be clogging your pipes, but they are not strong enough to break down especially tough clogs. For more stubborn clogs, we recommend professional drain cleaning in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Proper DIY Maintenance for your Drains

With All of that being said there are still some DIY drain cleaning methods that won’t cause harm to your pipes. You will find 5 options below you can do in order to fix some minor clogs.

Baking Soda and Vinegar - Pour half a cup of baking soda down your drain, followed by half a cup of vinegar. Cover your sink and let it sit over night or for at least 8 hours. The next day, flush out the drain using hot water and they should work just like new! Repeat this process as required.
Baking Soda and Lemon Juice - If you prefer the smell of lemon to vinegar use the same measurements as the “ Baking Soda and Vinegar Method”. Pour the baking soda down the rain followed by the Lemon Juice. Let it sit for an hour and then flush it with boiling water.
Salt, Borax and Vinegar - Use a half a cup of table salt and half cup of borax, pouring the mixture down the drain. Similar to the first two methods let it sit anywhere from 30 minutes to 8 hours. Use boiling water to flush out the pipe.
Hot Water - Believe it or not, hot water is all you need sometimes to clear a minor clog in the pipes. This especially works well for backups or clogs caused by grease build up. Use two liners of boiling water and slowly pour it down the drain. Doing this will heat up the grease in the pipe and will allow the backup to properly be flushed down. This may take a few tries, but you can also add a few tablespoons of liquid dish soap to your boiling water to speed up the process.
Plunger - This method works best for kitchen sinks. Sometimes food gets stuck in the curve of the pipe under the sink, which can be very difficult to snake or auger. Fill your sink with warm water from the tap and plunge it. A rubber plunger is recommended.

Unfortunately, most of the above DIY drain cleaning options are only used for minor clogs. For more serious issues, you will have to contact your local Plumber.