Our San Gabriel Plumbing Contractors Home Drain Preventative Maintenance Tips

The main causes of drain clogs are cooking grease, human hair and objects entering the drain system. The good news is our San Gabriel plumbing contractors know that there are a few things that can be done to help prevent them. Follow this list and your drains will stay clear for years at a time.

Never pour grease down the kitchen drain. This can be a tough sell for those of you who rinse your taco  plates down the drain before putting your plate in the sink. Scrape off as much of it as possible into the trash can first. This is because the grease cools as it runs down the sink and sticks to the inside walls of your drain pipes to start building up a clog.

It will take much longer for a full sink to drain as these clogs build. There are commercial cleaners that can be poured directly into a slow drain to open them up, but they are a temporary fix and don't often clear the clog entirely. If you do accidentally pour grease down the drain, run cold water behind it. This will cause the grease to congeal and not stick to the side of the pipes.

Place catches or strainers over all the tub drains in the house. This will help prevent hair from going down the drain and tangling up around the plug. It will also prevent hair from catching on the interior piping. Once hair is caught it will begin to grab soap residue, dirt and other debris that is washed off during a shower. This build-up can cause slow running drains that are hard to clear. Usually a professional San Gabriel plumber will have to be called to clear a tub clog.

Clogs can also be clogged by items that shouldn't be placed down a drain. This usually happens when a toddler decides to take a toy for a ride in the toilet. The only good way to stop this from happening is to teach your children that the toilet is not a toy. Don't worry, you'll probably still have to call in a plumber to retrieve a toy at some time or another.

Tree roots can also cause major clogging in your main line. If you are seeing a rash of slow running drains throughout your home, the main line is probably clogged. Tree roots can be removed by an San Gabriel plumbing contractor with a power auger or hydro jet. There are commercially available chemical cleaners, but they are often hazardous to use and hard on the city water treatment system. It is best to avoid them if possible.