A backed-up drain
Prevent and Clear Blocked Drains
Clogged drains and blocked drains are more than just an inconvenience, they can quickly cause expensive damage to your home. If you have running water in your home, here are a few essential things you need to know about your drains!
Signs of Blocked Drains
When your sewer is plugged or your septic tank needs pumping, here’s what could happen:
- Water backs up out of your tub drain when you flush your toilet.
- When you empty your bathtub, the water stops flowing and bubbles back at you or bubbles into the toilet.
- When you empty your kitchen sink, the sink water backs up into the toilet.
- When you flush your toilet, sewer water backs up through an outside downspout, patio drain, driveway drain, or the lowest floor drain in your house.
- When you run a load of laundry, soapy water comes up into a toilet, shower, or floor drain.
How to Unclog a Drain and Prevent Clogs
- Let plenty of water run down the drain by keeping the faucet open for up to half a minute each day.
- Sink lines commonly plug because not enough water is flushed through them, especially after the garbage disposal is used. Run the faucet for about five seconds after you turn off the disposal. This helps flush the line.
- Never pour hot oil or grease down the sink—whether or not you have a disposal.
- About once a month, fill the sink to the top with very hot water. Using a fork or other kitchen utensil so you don’t scald your hand, remove the sink’s plug. As the clean hot water swirls down through the sink line, it takes much of the grease buildup with it.
- Drain-cleaning chemicals, if used improperly, can solidify in a drain line and aggravate the blockage. If the chemical doesn’t eat through the blockage, therefore not flushing down the drain, the chemical sits in your sink line. It crystallizes, and then there is no way you can easily clean a sink line after chemicals harden in it. Always be sure to follow the instructions
- It’s a good idea to keep a simple plumbing snake in your home. The snake can help you unclog your sink, bathtub, or shower drain if hair and other gunk happens to block them. A simple plumbing snake can be bought at your local hardware store or online for only a few dollars.
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To Keep a Toilet from Clogging
- Don’t put anything foreign down the toilet except toilet paper.
- Items such as dental floss, Q-Tips, baby wipes, feminine hygiene products, or any other paper product cling to the roots in the sewer and cause an immediate blockage.
- Always have a plunger on hand, and don’t wait until you need one to buy one—by then, it’s too late!
More Helpful Household Hints:
Catherine Boeckmann
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We are renting a house for 650.00 a month here that's high. Our plumbing went crazy and everything backed up into the bathtub. We tried everything liquid fire, draino, snaked it. We told the landlord he refuses to fix it. Children's service was called and they made my 6 children leave. We have no one here that can keep the kids while we battle the landlord. The air has since gone out and we have been served an eviction notice because we with held the rent. I am on disability and can't afford to just up and move. Any advice
As Judge Judy says, MOVE!!
That’s called “ landlord retaliation “ what state are you in ? It’s very illegal but you need to get proof on paper and then answer the evection notice, you can get a stay if you handle it correctly. You will take the evection notice down to the court and you will respond in writing you answer the evection notice turn into the court so it’s “on file “ your side of what’s going on. You’re going to put in there the house is uninhabitable, a copy of your rental agreement highlight who is responsible for the repairs in the rental agreement. Take pictures attach them to the file. If it’s too late to answer and stay thereThen you need to call code enforcement Immediately ! If you have any bare wires hanging out of the wall they will red tag him! if you use the phrase the house is uninhabitable with the code enforcement, the children can’t be there because of the filthy conditions yada yada yada. They will shut you down red tag the house and all windows... lock it up and that Immediately ... Make sure you do NOT tell them that you have an evection notice at any time Or they may not come out and say it’s already a civil matter. You’re not breaking any laws by not telling them that since it’s retaliation it doesn’t count anyway so just don’t say you have one they’re never going to find out they don’t care.Once the house is red tagged You will be allowed to come back in after 15 days and collect all your belongings whatever your law allows so don’t worry about your stuff... So then code enforcement will call your landlord, Notify him you have been locked out of the house and that he is responsible to put you in equal if not better conditions and pay for it immediately For as long as it takes him to fix the House Up to their code LOL, or You can opt for him to relocate you first last and security in a moving truck you have to settle on the amount. Code enforcement is who you need have no conscience about it at all he cannot evict you if you have reached out to code enforcement! and the house is uninhabitable then he’s got a felony charge for retaliation if you choose to press it on him.
The rule is if you reached out to somebody to help you with your with your land rights tenant rights and the landlord tries to Evict you Because you reached out for help It’s retaliation ! Felony charge now he’s got a criminal case went from civil to criminal.
But you can’t be weak and you cannot hesitate for any reason pick up phone call code ... You have everything to gain and nothing to lose that’s why they’re there. That’s what they do. You have rights ...
Ask me how I know I’m a single mom 10-year-old boy I paid $850 a month for five and half years I completely bought the house for my landlord with my rent paid it off… He had three apartments on my electric bill and was forcing me to give Electric to all his tenants. But a $1300 bill after five years I went over and I discussed it with them the house in the renovation and his sister move to people in on top of my bill without asking me permission and I could no longer pay the rent and electric it was an abusive situation. Instead of fixing the meter like the law says or adjusting my electric bill making it fair by dividing it between all the adults even though that it’s still illegal I was willing to do it he absolutely refused and he Evicted me. I didn’t have a lawyer I didn’t know what to do I didn’t understand the process my little boy and I had to move out the judge was completely ludicrous they lied about everything and I didn’t even get a chance to tell my side now 30 foot motorhome with four dogs , Although I had paid first last and security 5 1/2 years when I moved in they told the judge that I old them money and I did not in fact they didn’t say it was for rent they said they’re gonna be nice to me and not even charge me the back rent that I owed which was nonexistent and just charge me for it for damages or unlawful Detainer. I was destroyed I could not believe that that could happen in America when I was 100% right and he was 100% wrong I didn’t know the courts are correct I just kept thinking they had been my friends for all that time and was it really necessary to call code and throw everyone out of tour homes ? to lock up their house well Van answer was YES that’s why they are there to protect your rights and the last thing The judge said to me was “because I never had code enforcement come out He’s Ruled for the landlord! I lost the case and now I have the evection when I had a perfect record and I can’t even get a mortgage even though I have money pretty decent credit no one‘s going to give me a mortgage because of what they did.
On the upside I’m going to sue for $10,000 for the electric bill in civil court it’ll be done within 30 days , The unfair Bill added up to well over $30,000 that they owe me.. Everyone’s telling me just to do small claims court not to mess up that give me 10,000 and walk .
I believe that I’m going to listen this time.
Check the rental laws in your area. There are certain basic living conditions the landlord has to provide, or he can lose his rental license. I'm certain working septic is on the list, as well as HVAC (heating & cooling). Why would children's services be called BC of a household issue? It sounds like there is more going on than just the septic tank. Many states you can not withhold payment. It is up to the renter to use common sense & check into what a landlord is responsible for & who you need to contact when the landlord fails to uphold his end. If you haven't taken steps to find out what he's responsible for, do so immediately & contact whichever dept handles rental/landlord problems. Good luck
I purchase a house in the country and I have septic system, my question is, how do I unclog pipes without putting harsh chemicals down the drain, the pipes are smaller in diameter and the regular snake does not work, please help, Thank you!
Pour one cup of baking soda into the drain. Slowly add one cup white vinegar, allowing to bubble for a few minutes. Follow with a teakettle of boiling water. Do this once per month & you'll never have to worry about a clogged drain!
hi,
We live in duplex unit and we have a issue of drain water backing out of the ground floor toilet whenever we flush, use shower or use water in any of the sinks. the only place water comes out is the ground floor toilet that has a outlet on the floor. Irrespective where we use water, it comes out of that outlet. And the water is dirty and smelly. We don't know where to use plunger or put vinegar, etc. What should we do?
Every so Often I have to snake the main line at the point it drains into my septic tank. I have been getting clumps of what seems to be wax. Is this because I use the laundry detergent pods? Also,if I stop using the pods and have my tank pumped,will I still have this problem?
Thank you
Over time waxy substance can collect in the drain from coagulated grease, oils, etc from dishwashers and washers draining into the same drain. You can try to pour a gallon of white vinegar into the kitchen sink drain about once a month to see if that helps. The vinegar will disolve any grease that’s in the drain.
When I do laundry my bathroom floods out of the toilet and bathtub all over my floor we've snaked the pipes under my trailer 3 times this week but it happens every time I washcloths, bath or potty my hubby is a do it yourself kinda guy so what would be your best advice
