Alternative to Drano ?

Question

I'd like to unclog my bath without using chemicals. Is there anything I could use that is environment friendly ? Thank you for all the tested, tried and true answers !

Answer 1

Vinegar and baking soda always works for me. I pour about 1/2 cup of baking soda down the drain and follow it with a cup or so of vinegar. If I suspect there is body oils, bath oil etc. that is causing the clog, I heat up the vinegar in the microwave before pouring it in there. It foams up like a witches brew but usually clears out whatever is causing the clog.

That being said, I once had a tenant in one of my rentals whose child put some kind of little toy down the drain. For that, I used a snake connected to my drill to literally drill it out of the drain.

Answer 2

the tool that 'dresden6' is thinking of is called a "Zipit" and get 2 or 3 of them...it says on the package to throw it away after each use, but I've found that it can be cleaned off and reused a few times....usually. Push it into your drain and twist it 1/2 a turn, then pull straight up and out. You might do that 2 or 3 times...and be amazed at all the hair that comes up! Do the same for your bathroom sink. Just to be sure, if the shower/tub and the bathroom sink have an 'overflow' hole, stick the Zipit in there too.

One of the problems with Drano is that it's extremely caustic...if anyone has to work on the plumbing later, they'll get the Drano on them; and if there's a leaky or loose pipe, you'll have Drano leaking everywhere. bad stuff.

You might look for a little drain-cover to keep the hair from getting into the drain in the first place...one looks like a little white hat, makes it easy-peasy to clean off the hair.

Answer 3

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RE:
Alternative to Drano ?
I'd like to unclog my bath without using chemicals. Is there anything I could use that is environment friendly ? Thank you for all the tested, tried and true answers !

Answer 4

Get an enzyme drain cleaner such as Draincare by Zep. Enzyme cleaners cling to and eat organic clogs. Caustic cleaners eat a hole and run down the pipe leaving a partial clog to restart the process. Enzyme cleaners use bacteria just like a septic system. No harm to pipes or the environment. Draincare comes in liquid or powder and costs about $8 for a multi-use jug.

Answer 5

Bunged-up bath discharge pipes are usually full of human hair, a chemical like Drano will only make matters worse,as it is designed to transform grease down the pipe into a soap-like paste which will wash away ( kitchen sink )
Your best bet is to have someone remove the trap from under the tub, and physically remove the "tail " of hair.

Answer 6

Absolutely there is. But I forget the name of it. It uses enzymes/bacteria to break down whatever is in the way. Course, if it's hair that's clogging your pipe, you may need to bring it up and out of there. Go to your local hardware bazaar and ask either for a snake, which is very long, or for this white thing that is about three feet long, made of plastic, with barbs all along both sides of it. You dip it into the pipe and extract all of the gunk, if you can stand it. Forget the name of this thing, too. They'll know what you need! Just wanted to tell you it was out there.

Answer 7

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under the sink is a p-trap take it apart put a bowl under it the problem might be that your trap is plug dont use drano it messes up your plumbing put the trap back together and see if that did it if not take it apart and snake your drain LVTHEPLUMBER GOOD LUCK

Answer 8

I use vinegar mixed with baking soda - it fizzes down the drain and dissolves some of the gunk. But don't wait until it gets really built up or this won't work, and you'll need a snake.

Answer 9

June Bug I had the same problem
I took my shop vac and sucked out the drain while holding a wet wash rag over the overflow hole. I let it vacuum out the drain for a good five minutes and I have a big wet/dry sears shop vac. That fixed it.

Answer 10

Take a garden hose, wrap a wet rag around the end of it (like a donut). stick the end down the drain and stuff the rag in the drain around the hose tight, hold with your hand pushing downward as hard as you can, Yell out to your helper "LET HER RIP" ! turn on the hose FULL ! hold the hose in the drain as hard as you can for a 15 seconds, then pull it (the hose) out. You are done !