When it comes to preventing clogs, some people have gone to accept some skewed misconceptions. Your garbage disposal or bathroom drains can only handle so much, and it doesn’t help when you dump things down the drain.
When you experience a clog you can’t seem to diagnose, you should contact plumbing services. Let professional plumbers work on your Millcreek or Provo home to see how much of these nine culprits have clogged your pipelines.
Eggshells
Many people believe eggshells can sharpen the blades of garbage disposal, but this could not be more inaccurate. Garbage disposals come with impellers that mash, not slice, leftover food, so there is nothing to sharpen. Plus, the egg’s membrane might get tangled into the impellers and cause damage to your disposal.
Soap scum
While not dumped on purpose, soap scum can still clog your bathroom drains. What happens is that the fatty acids from soaps react with hard minerals and other refuse like hair, forming solid clumps that can cause a real problem.
Coffee grounds
Every coffee lover is guilty of this at least once. Coffee grounds dumped down the garbage disposal shouldn’t be an issue in itself, but what could happen is it might mix with the grease build-up in your drain line, eventually causing a clog.
Bleach
While it doesn’t technically cause a clog, pouring bleach down your drains and pipes to hopefully get rid of obstructions isn’t doing them any favor either. Not only does it not clear clogs, but it can also damage the integrity of your pipes’ inner walls.
Potato peels
But they’re biodegradable, right? Nope, and that’s not the case. Potato peels, no matter how thin they are, can still cause your drain lines to be clogged by creating a mushy, pasty mess down there, just as most starchy produces do.
Wet wipes
There’s a reason public bathrooms constantly remind us of this: when you throw used paper towels or moist towelettes down open drains or flush them down a toilet, they don’t disintegrate no matter how flimsy you think they are. They only break down, but they remain inside pipelines, causing problems down the road.
Leftover pasta
Most people think they can get away with dumping pasta down the disposal, considering how soft they are, but what happens is the opposite. Even after they are boiled and cooked, pasta continues to expand, so if they swell down there, then you’re going to have a problem.
Medication
Sure, you can crush up your expired medication and dump them down the drain or flush them in the toilet without running into problems. Still, the chemicals in them will leak back into the environment almost certainly, or worse, pollute municipal waterways.
Grease and oil
We have to wash our greasy pots and pans somewhere, so we can’t exactly blame ourselves. However, unless your house has installed a grease trap, then this will cause a grease build-up in your pipe system. The best thing you can do is to routinely clean your pipes, with or without an obvious clog.
Now that you know what can clog your drain beyond your knowledge, it’s time to change your washing habits.
