Tips on Declogging Tub and Floor Drains

Did you know that having a clogged drain can mean that your home can experienced sewage flood? The big pipe of your plumbing system is responsible for carrying the wastewater from your home to the main sewer line. When this line becomes clogged or overloaded, then you are facing the condition of a backed up sewage that can flow to the lowest available drain in your home; the floor drain. So how can you unclog tub and floor drains?

Tub Drains

It is a very rare occurrence for tubs to be clogged overnight. Normally, it takes some time for the blockage to accumulate with the efficiency of the tub drain becoming less efficient every day. This is not a hopeless case though as long as you know the proper way to do it.

Begin by unscrewing the screen cover from the tub drain so you can fish out any soap scum and hair accumulation. When there is a pop-up drain, simply raise the lever to move it to the open position and grab the stopper to pull it out of the drain hole. Clean the stopper thoroughly.

If this does not restore drain functionality, you can start using a plunger. Make sure that you cover the overflow plate using a wet rag before plunging. After a couple of plunges and the drain remains sluggish, you can move to using a cable auger.

To use the cable auger, you have to remove the overflow plate. Feed around 30 inches of the cable into the overflow tube. Continue to crank the handle to push the cable forward until you reach the blockage. You will know this when you feel a bit of resistance. Do not stop there, continue to crank the auger to break through the blockage.

Once you have done this carefully retrieve the cable and proceed by running several gallons of hot water into the drain. Make sure that you properly replace the overflow plate.

Floor Drains

Clearing floor drains can be quite challenging. One of the best ways to do it is with a power auger. Make sure that you feed several feet of cable into the drainpipe. Continue to do this until a resistance is reached.

When this happens, stop the motor and begin a reverse rotation for a few feet. Turn the motor back on in a clockwise rotation for a couple of feet to feed it down the drain. Do this back and forth process until the blockage is cleared. Retrieve the cable and proceed by flushing out the drain using a couple of buckets of hot water.

If the drain remains sluggish, run the power auger again for about two feet directly into the trap.Make sure that you wrap the threads of the cleanout plug with Teflon tape before replacing it. If the cleanout plug is not replaced there is a possibility that toxic sewer gases can get into your home.

It is important to realize that floor drains will collect tremendous amounts of laundry lint, soap scum, and greasy bacteria over time. These waste often line the length of the drainpipe in crystallize form. To successfully remove these types of tough blockage more power is needed. This is why power auger is preferred over hand-cranked ones. It is ideal for the power auger to have at least 50 feet of cable to ensure that it has enough reach.

To ensure that you have no difficulty in removing the plug, use a wrench. Removing the strainer covering the drain hole allows you to sidestep the trap and directly feed the cable down into the drainpipe. What if there is no cleanout plug? Then you will have to do it via the trap, which is just as efficient, but a bit more difficult.

If these tips do not unclog your drains, then you must seriously consider calling Scott English Plumbing to help solve your plumbing problems.