When you have a clog in a sink within your home, your first instinct is very likely to reach for a plunger… or that bottle of store-bought drain cleaning solution you keep on hand.
A plunger is always a good start. If the clog is superficial enough, you may very well be able to relieve your drain pipe with the plunger and a little bit of “elbow grease. The latter option though—the store-bought drain cleaning solution, is no solution at all.
We’ll dive into the “why” behind this a bit more below, but for now, we’ll just say that store-bought drain cleaners have a lot of caustic chemicals in them, meaning they eat through the clog, then keep on going to eat through the lining of your plumbing pipes over time. Read on as we uncover some more reasons this is no solution.
Our professional plumbers have been in the trade for a long time, and we have seen what can happen when you have the wrong home services “professional” in your home, whether it be for your HVAC, electrical, or plumbing needs.
Think you don’t have to worry about drain clogs? Figure that when one happens you can just reach for a bottle of store-bought liquid drain cleaner? Think again!
For the average homeowner, and even for an inexperienced plumber, plumbing problems can be hard to detect without the right equipment. Most of your plumbing system is hidden from view, after all, and the problems that usually affect plumbing are subtle in the beginning. For this reason, we recommend scheduling preventive maintenance for your plumbing at least once a year.
Overall, our winter was relatively mild this year, with the coldest of temperatures lasting just a few days at a time. Still though, we did have freezing temperatures, and with freezing weather comes frozen pipes.
Most homeowners are likely used to dealing with minor household problems and tasks on their own, and that can easily extend to certain plumbing issues. We’ve all at one time or another had to unclog a toilet with a little “elbow grease” and a plunger, or had to fish a clog or two out of a sink. This can lead many homeowners, especially those on a budget, to attempt bigger plumbing repairs.
With temperatures still hovering in the high 80’s and low 90’s last week, it’s hard to imagine the need for a discussion around frozen pipes. However, the official start of fall is here in just a few days, and with the seasonal change comes a change in temperature. In fact, our temperatures drop to below 30° Fahrenheit—below the point of freezing—by late October, on average.