My dear 14 year old daughter has poured melted candle-wax down the plughole in the bathroom.?

Question

Why did she do it? Because she is 14, I suppose! However, my wash baisin is now blocked. I have tried pouring boiling water down it and have also used Mr Muscle drain cleaner but nothing is working. The wax seems to provide a very efficient seal. Has anyone any ideas how I can clear the pipes of wax?

Answer 1

Boiling water.

Or uncouple the waste pipe and ram it out with wire.

Answer 2

Removing the U bend would be the best solution, but you could try filling the basin with hot water (which won't drain away, because of the wax) and heating the U bend to see if that will melt the wax enough to get the flow started. You could use a hairdryer, or prop up a bowl of hot water so the U bend is submerged. Once the basin begins to drain, pour lots of boiling water down the plughole to clear the residue.

Answer 3

You need to get as much heat as possible into the u bend. If the u bend is plastic , you may get it hot enough using a large hairdryer. If you still have metal piping under the sink you might be able to use a blow torch. You could try heating a flexible drain cleaner with a blow torch and pushing it through the wax . Otherwise it looks like a complete strip down - straight forward but very messy.

Answer 4

Yes. Under the sink the pipe will go into a U bend (water trap). This should have a srewed portion which you can undo by hand - put a basin underneath before you remove it to catch the residue water.

Take off the U bend and in there you will find most if not all of the wax. Scrape this out (with all the rest of the gunge that will be in there) and wash it with hot soapy water. Reasemble and test for leaks.

Easy - if a bit dirty.

Good luck

Answer 5

Heat a knitting needle repeatedly & wiggle it into the blockage - you need to break through the wax before any other things (like the hot water) can have an effect.
Once you have managed to get through then boiling water (not from the tap - from the kettle) should break it down fairly quickly!

My gran poured melted candle wax down the drain (many years ago) - I'd never seen my mum turn such a brilliant shade of red when she tried to drain the potatoes into the sink - only to discover the water was going nowhere! Hee hee! It's not ONLY 14 year olds that do that sort of thing!!

Answer 6

Boiling water mixed with Salt and soap

salt is for extra friction to hopefully scrape away at the rims of the candle wax and the soap to let it slide down the pipes easier. You could probably substitute soap for your Mr Muscle..... but that'd be an expensive waste of Mr Muscle cos you'll need a lot of it. (lot of salt too, the more the better.... but if you start to see an undisolved pile collecting then stop.)

Answer 7

It happens.
Dissolving the wax is not a good option.
Hot water may melt some but just make it worse when it resolidifies.
I just cut to the chase , ran cold water, removed the trap from the drain pipe.
it came out in pieces , & you will probably find all kinds of things stuck to it.
I got away with it, but if it got past the trap & hardened it's time for the plumber.
Best regards

Answer 8

The only way to clear it is to remove the trap under the basin and clean it out with a thin sharp blade or something similar. because the trap hols water, be careful when taking it off. The wax will be in the bottom of the trap as it solidifys on contact with the water in the trap.

Answer 9

If you have a medal hanger, unfold it and push it down the drain. It will unclog it a little at a time. When you get it through the wax you can pour boiling water down the sink and it should unplug it, just make sure you pour lots of it. Then pour some drano or liquid fire down it . It will help.
I have done this myself and it worked for me. I just wasn't thinking and thought liquid, don't need pour down drain. Later I realized I just had a real blonde moment. Duh, wax cools of and clogs drains.

Answer 10

Acetone - nail-varnish remover
Chloroform
Methylated spirits.

Even a curious mixture of all three should dissolve candle wax.

WARNING - only do this WITHOUT a naked light AND with adequate ventilation.

You should be able to obtain the necessary from either a pharmacist or a DIY store.

Nitromors - the pain stripper may also work, as it contains dichloromethane.

Turps (or Turps substitute) will not work.

be VERY CAREFUL

Answer 11

what about heat? a lighter to melt it but then it might get stuck dwn the pipe and become solid further along the line? why not get a screwdriver to unblock the stuff in plughole, wiggle it through the holes.