Clearing Drains: 3 Signs to Look For When Analysing a Drain
If your drain maintenance isn’t having the intended results, you may be looking for the wrong things in your home’s drainage and plumbing system. From misdiagnosed issues to deceptively large drain problems, there is no shortage of potential pitfalls for amateur drain observers.
These three tips can help you successfully recognise, diagnose, and eliminate any problems in your home’s drainage system. Before you get out the caustic soda and toilet brush, make sure that you’re dealing with the same problems as you expected by applying these three simple tips.
1. Look for poor or inconsistent drainage speed.
When your drain fails to clear at any speed, it can be an indicator of excess debris and normal wear and tear. If your drain clears, albeit inconsistently, it’s likely to be an indicator of unsettled items in the drain itself. These can often be removed with an extended brush or toilet plunger.
2. Check the outlet of your drain, not just the inlet.
While most drainage issues are the result of blocked inlets, it’s not that uncommon to see a drain outlet that’s blocked over by leaves or excess dirt outside. Before you diagnose your problem as completely internal, check to make sure that there’s not an external object blocking your drain.
3. Have you flushed any inappropriate items recently?
Sometimes the cause of your drain problems isn’t a hair build-up or a blocked outlet, but a discarded sanitary napkin or toilet freshener. Think back over the past two weeks – have you flushed anything down the drain that’s supposed to be disposed of alternatively? Condoms, sanitary pads, and scented toilet fresheners are often flushed without thought, leading to expensive drain repairs.
October 21, 2010 at 8:14 am Comments (0)