The Most Common Causes of Clogged Drains | Tips from Your Trusted Katy, TX Drain Cleaning Service Provider

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Clogged or slow-running drains are no fun, but that's a problem most homeowners are likely to encounter at some point. Whether you have a buildup of scum in your shower or bathroom sink drain or there's some kind of food clogging up your kitchen sink, there are a lot of ways to clog a drain in your Katy, TX, home. Even worse, you can end up spending a fortune having drain cleaning services come to your home over and over again. If you want to keep your drains clean and avoid calling plumbers all the time, check out these common causes of drain clogs.

Toilet Paper

Toilet paper is designed to break down in your toilet and drain pipes so it doesn't clog things up, but that's only if you don't use too much. Using too much toilet paper is especially a problem in households with small children, but it's something plenty of adults are guilty of too.

While using too much toilet paper probably doesn't warrant a call to a drain cleaning service, it may be the reason your toilet seems to be clogged most of the time. As the toilet paper breaks down over time, your toilet will eventually unclog and function normally again.

Flushable Wipes

As great of an idea as flushable wipes are, the fact of the matter is they aren't as flushable as they're made out to be. While toilet paper will eventually break down in pipes, flushable wipes are known to be some of the biggest culprits when it comes to clogged drains. Even if a wipe is marketed as flushable, it's best to avoid products like that altogether.

If you do use flushable wipes for a long period of time, you're almost guaranteed to have to call a drain cleaning service to remove a clog at some point.

Hair and Soap

When it comes to the bathroom drains in your Katy, TX, home, chances are you're dealing with clogs caused by hair and soap. Whether you've got people shaving in your shower or bathroom sink or simply a lot of people using the shower, hair and soap clogs are always a risk.

The only real way to prevent having to call a drain cleaning service for hair and soap clogs is to put a strainer over drains where these clogs are a problem. You can find cheap strainers that fit over your shower drain to keep it clean, but you may want to consult a plumber when it comes to preventing clogs in your bathroom sink.

Grease

Grease clogs are one of the most common reasons people call drain cleaning services. As much as professionals stress the importance of not putting grease down any drains, there are a lot of homeowners who still do it. The fact of the matter is, grease will eventually harden in your drains and it's almost guaranteed to cause a clog.

If you have a clog in your kitchen sink and you commonly dump grease down it, you need to call a drain cleaning service. In the future, you should keep a jar on hand that you can fill with grease and dispose of in the garbage. While rinsing a bit of grease out of pans is inevitable, you should get as much of it in the garbage as you can.

Food

Many homeowners think having a garbage disposal means you can simply put anything in your kitchen sink, but that's not the case. If you want to avoid spending a fortune on drain cleaning services, you should do your best to put as much food in the garbage can as you possibly can. As easy as it may seem to put everything in the garbage disposal, you should consider it a last defense for any food you do get in your kitchen sink drain.

There are some foods you should very specifically avoid putting down your garbage disposal, such as animal bones, stringy foods and coffee grounds.

Roots

While you can do a lot to prevent drain clogs, there are times you'll have to call a plumber where you couldn't have prevented it. Aside from putting the wrong stuff down drains, physical obstructions are one of the most common causes of drain clogs. Often times, these clogs are a result of a root that's grown into a pipe in your plumbing system.

The worst part about clogs that are caused by roots is that they can be tough to diagnose. You may have a plumber clean your pipes and remove what seems to be a clog, but the problem persists. This is a problem you need to have fixed right away.

Mineral Buildup

Although the things that go down your drain are what usually cause clogs, you may also have a clog in a pipe because of a mineral buildup. When there's a thick enough mineral buildup on the inside of the pipe, the inside diameter of that pipe reaches a point where water flow is severely restricted.

If you've got pipes with a lot of mineral buildup inside, it's best to replace them instead of calling a drain cleaning service. On top of that, you might want to consider installing a whole-house water softener if you've got hard water that's causing that mineral buildup.

A Last Resort

Hopefully you're taking good care of the drains in your Katy, TX, home and preventing clogs, but you never know when a clog will strike. The best thing you can do is take preventative steps to reduce the risks of clogs in your home.

If you do have a clog that you simply can't seem to take care of, the folks at bluefrog Plumbing + Drain of Northwest Houston are here to help. Our drain cleaning services experts can get your pipes unclogged in a hurry so you can resume business as usual. To get your drains flowing smoothly again, give bluefrog of Northwest Houston a call at (346) 222-5848.