Drain clogs are a bummer! Stopping those yucky clogs from ever happening helps keep your bathroom and kitchen fixtures ready for action anytime. Plus, you won’t need to waste sunny Saturdays trying to unblock pipes. Oh, and your plumbing system will keep working better, longer!

Guess what? You can stop clogs without spending any money. Awesome, right? The smartest things you can do to prevent clogs won’t make your wallet lighter… plus they’ll save you a bunch in the long term. Here are a few super easy, quick tips to remember so you can say “bye-bye” to blockages in your house’s sinks and bathtubs.

1. Say No to Flushing Food Down Your Kitchen Sink

Hey, you might think this is obvious, but when I say no food in the sink, I mean zero, zilch, nada. Like, don’t even think about it! The usual suspects – grease, oil, coffee grounds and all those leftover foods – can be a total disaster for your kitchen sink’s pipe. Got a garbage disposal? Great! It can chop up most food but remember to use it right.

Got a garbage disposal? Rule of thumb: Never flush oil, grease, or coffee grounds. Yuck, they stick to the inside of your pipes blocking the flow. And then? You’ve got a clog. Scrape off your dishes, toss leftovers into the trash, and pop grease and coffee grounds into a bin. Flushing them? Big no-no!

2. Try a Sink Drain Screen or Drain Grate

Ever tried a grate or screen for your drain? Slap it over the drain in the sink. It stops anything that’s not liquid from sneaking into the drain and causing a clog. It can stop stuff like food scraps, hair, and dirt – no entry! But water? It flows through easy-peasy. But remember: oil and grease will still slip past most grates.

Bought a grate? Make sure you clean it out regularly. A dirty grate can become a health risk. With removable grates, you can move them around to cover different sinks when you need to. Grates are simple, cheap, and you can pick them up at any local hardware store. Cool, right?

3. Brush Your Hair and Shower

I’ve learned a life hack I’m eager to share because many folks don’t know this trick. Before hitting the showers, comb your hair. It’s super simple and safe. This takes out all the loose strands that would otherwise float away with the shower’s water.

Ever found a soggy heap of hair blocking your shower drain or sink? How do you avoid these streams of hairs from jamming your drain? By brushing pre-bath.

4. Check Stoppers for Hair and Buildup

Now, let’s uncover another brilliant tip to avoid clogs. Typically, globs of hair, soap scum, and dirt gather around your drain stopper. It’s common. Your regularly used sink washes off pieces of this grime down the drain. That’s when it all begins to clump together, forming a clog.

Schedule a fortnight inspection of your bathroom – that’s every two weeks. When you’re tidying beyond the tiles, take a peep into your sink. Remove the drain stoppers fully and check underneath. You might find damp strands of hair mixed with pale, waxy soap chunks or other natural filth like dead skin, muck, and dirt. Your sink could use a clean-up! Get that hair and scrub the stopper real good, maybe even with an old toothbrush and some detergent.

Think of getting a shower drain hair trapper. It’s like a tiny cage beneath the drain that grabs hold of falling hair. You’ll find it at your go-to hardware store. And it’s easy to fix in. Just one little note: Don’t forget to clean it occasionally!

This way, your hair brushing and cleaning routine can not only result in impeccable personal hygiene but also avoid any inconvenience caused by a clogged drain. And what’s more? You feel content knowing that your grooming efforts are also contributing towards maintainance of your bathroom.

5. Say No to Chemical Cleaners

You know the fancy cleaners that promise to de-clog your drain in a snap? Beware!

They’re mostly acid-based, which means while they obliterate the clogs, they’re also gnawing at your pipes. It’s like inviting a pacman who gobbles up the good with the bad. The cleaners speed up pipe corrosion, leading to a crumbling of the inner pipe walls. These tiny crumbs could band together to form a new blockade. Worse, corroded pipes have thinner walls that might leak because they can’t withstand the water pressure.

Got a clogged pipe? It’s a pain but usually not a lasting one. But corroded pipes? They’re forever. And if the corrosion sets in, even a pro can only do as much as swap out the shrunken pipe. And swapping can drain your wallet a lot more than a simple de-clog.

6. Cold Water is Cool for Disposal

Switch your garbage disposer on? Make sure there’s a steady flow of cold water co-rushing with the waste. Going dry will only hamper the system and might cause damage.

Hot water? Wohoo! It helps to melt stuff like grease that gum up your disposer. You don’t want that gloopy mess, do you?

Cold water keeps the greasy stuff firm, letting the disposer’s cutters mince it before it whirls down the drain. Pre-disposal tip: Turn on the cold water about 2-3 seconds before you start. Post-disposal tip: Let the water run a bit more. To clean your disposal, toss in some ice every now and then.

Don’t Let Your Albuquerque Drain Clog

Do follow these lessons, and your drain will thank you with fewer clogs. And hey, we’re not done yet!

If a stubborn blockade hamstrings your day or another plumbing poser perplexes you, ring up Day & Night Plumbing today. No matter how tiny or tough your Albuquerque drain clog plumbing problem is, we’re on it, ready to fix things up for homes in and around Dallas. So don’t sweat it; you’re in safe hands.