The Importance of Drain Cleaning and Maintenance

The Importance of Drain Cleaning and Maintenance

During the regular flow of life, we turn on the faucet, flush the toilet, take showers, and wash both dishes and clothes without much thought about the drains. Often, we mistreat drains by disposing of grease, food scraps, and too much TP. Hair, along with a constant supply of soap, shampoo, and toothpaste creates a sticky coating on the drainpipe. When drains slow to a crawl or clog, it creates a minor family emergency.

The first thought might be normal DIY solutions, such as plungers and chemical drain cleaners. Beyond this, there is little in the average toolbox to deal with stubborn drain clogs. If you experience a difficult clog, it’s time to call a professional.

What To Expect

A call to Doctor Cool Plumbing will begin with an inspection of all the home’s drains to discover how well each drain functions. One sink might be clogged, but an inspection might uncover scaling in more than one location. If more than one drain has poor drainage, a larger problem may also be looming. Various tools will be used to look as far as possible to discern the severity of localized pipe scaling and to locate a visible clog.

Drain Cleaning: Clearing a Clog

Manual pipe auger. The first tool of choice is usually a small, manual pipe auger or snake; it has a limited reach of about 10 feet. A long cable with a corkscrew-shaped end is inserted into the problem pipe and rotated as needed to remove a relatively soft clog. In comparison, a plunger attempts to do the same thing with a little air pressure, and chemical cleaners are very ineffective.

If this tool does not reach the clog, the next available tool is a power auger. This consists of a much longer drain snake, 150’ long, to reach a more distant clog. An electric motor turns the hook on the end with considerable force; the combination of a larger diameter cable and the power assist will handle any size clog as far as it will reach. The power of this tool will handle any tangle of roots growing inside the lateral line it can reach.

High-definition Camera Drain Cleaning

If these techniques are inadequate to locate a problematic clog, the technician has another tool available. A high-def camera attached to a long cable can be sent into the drain to explore difficult problems. A problem greater than a simple clog may exist; an example would be a break in a pipe or a total collapse of a lateral line.

Drain Cleaning

After the clog has been cleared and the water flows freely, the technician can use a hydro-jet to clean the accumulation of nastiness that coats your pipes. A stream of water at 35,000 psi will remove the most stubborn buildup. Removing the scaling will avoid further immediate problems. But remember that over time, this buildup will return, since the drains are still a receptacle for hair, soap, oils, and food items.

The buildup that develops in drains can continue to produce clogs if not removed. Clogged drains can cause overflows that result in serious damage to your home. Doctor Cool Plumbing offers a regular drain cleaning service to remove the scaling buildup; the water jet will clean the nasty coating away and prevent clogs from developing. Our service can save you money and the inconvenience of a smelly remodeling project to repair the mess after a major sewer overflow.

Let Us Answer Your Drain Cleaning Questions

Let Doctore Cool help with your Drain Cleaning questions. Call Doctor Cool & Professor Heat today at 281-338-8751 or email Doctor Cool and let our professional Residential Plumbing Contractors assist with all of your Drain Cleaning questions.