Clogged Drain Home Remedy

When most people need to clean their clogged drains, they usually want something else to do the work. You want those solidified slimy and grimy things to turn into goo but not with your own hands, right? So, you need to know this clogged drain home remedy – salt, vinegar, baking soda, and more.

If you want to remove those slimy, greasy things that clog your drain, mix 1/2 cup baking soda and 1/2 cup table salt. Then pour this mixture down to your drain. Allow this mixture to work its way to the solidified matters for around 30 minutes. Then pour a pot of boiling water on the drain.

This potent mixture, together with gravity, will surely remove the solidified food and kitchen waste out of the drain pipes and unclog it completely. These everyday organic products can unclog your drains naturally. However, if the clog is tough, you may need to use a commercial product designed to unclog drains.

Read on to learn more about unclogging drains using household items such as vinegar, salt, baking soda, and others and how to use them for this purpose.

Combine Baking Soda and Salt

Home remedies for a clogged drain are also effective. You can use everyday products like salt, baking soda, and vinegar to unclog your drains. Just mix 1/2 cup of baking soda and 1/2 cup table salt in a bowl. Then pour this mixture into the clogged drain.

Wait for Around 30 Minutes

Wait for around 30 minutes to allow the mixture to work into the clog. And then pour one pot of boiling water into the drain. Hopefully, this will melt the solidified slimy things that clog the drain and turn them into liquid goo that you can easily flush out with water.

Use a Commercially Available Product

The potent mixture of baking soda and salt, plus the pressure brought about by the boiling water, should be enough for the solidified messy goop to break up into goop. However, if the clog is tough, you may have to use a commercially available product designed to unclog drains.

Alternative to Baking Soda and Salt

An alternate way is to heat 1 cup of vinegar before pouring it into the drain. You also have to let the hot vinegar stay in the clog for about 15 minutes to do its work. The clog may give way. It will cause the clog to foam and bubble and let go.

According to a plumbing professional, if you mix baking soda with salt with a 2:1 ratio, you will create a potent cleaning agent that can unclog your drain. The trick is to soak the solidified materials for a reasonable time before flushing them with tap water.

How Baking Soda and Vinegar Remove Clog?

Many people know about the sanitizing power of baking soda. When used as a cleaning agent, it can also work wonders for removing drains clogged with solid slimy matters from the following:

Grease,
Oil, and

Fat residues from food and kitchen waste.

Try using baking soda first before using commercial products that contain harsh chemicals. Your health should use organic substances and only use commercial cleaners if natural products can’t do the job. Baking soda, vinegar, and other natural substances are cheaper, and you most likely will have them in your kitchen.

Baking Soda Dissolves Grease and Oil

NaHCO3 or baking soda is a slightly alkaline substance usually available in powder form. It is a mineral compound that is found in nature. This substance has the power to dissolve mineral deposits and organic substances such as grease and oil, which are slightly acidic substances.

Baking Soda Has Disinfectant Properties

Baking soda also has some disinfectant properties. So, you can use it to remove fungi and bacteria that produce foul odors. Use baking soda and these other natural everyday substances in cleaning your drains. You will prevent the accumulation of kitchen waste and food matters inside them.

Chemical Reaction Between Vinegar and Baking Soda

Vinegar is an acid composed of acetic acid and water. Meanwhile, baking soda or sodium bicarbonate is a base. If you combine these two, an acid-base reaction will happen.

This mixture forms carbon dioxide, which will break up the solid matter into loose materials.

Boiling Water Adds Pressure to the Drain Pipe

Your drain pipes lack pressure in water pipes where water is continuously flowing. So, with boiling water, pressure is added to the drain pipe. That pressure is enough to push or force the loosened clog particles down the drain.

Baking Soda Removes the Smell Associated with Clogged Drains

Since baking soda also has sanitizing power, it will also remove the smell associated with clogged drains. The acidity of vinegar disintegrates the solidified greasy matters.

Reaction Between Baking Soda and Vinegar Breaks up Solid Matter

Vinegar adds the needed chemical reaction that breaks up the solid matter into little pieces that can easily travel down the drain pipes. Hot water is the final element that softens the small solid particles that stick on the sides of the pipes.

With a little push from the hot water, there is no way those solid particles can hold on to where they are in the drain pipe. So, you will have a clean drain and drain pipe after performing this procedure.

Again, what is an effective clogged drain home remedy? An effective clogged drain home remedy involves baking soda, salt, and hot water. Combine baking soda (1/2 cup) and salt (1/2 cup), then pour this mixture down the drain. Allow this mixture to work for around 30 minutes. Then, pour boiling water down the drain.

How Do You Unclog a Kitchen Sink with Standing Water?

How to Unclog the Drain with Baking Soda and Salt

Now that you know the power of natural substances in unclogging your drain, you can put your knowledge into practice. You can make a homemade drain cleaner using these substances.

Materials

Before doing the actual unclogging procedure, you should first prepare the following tools and materials:

Funnel

Cooking pot
Baking soda
Salt

Water

Steps

Here are the steps you need to take to unclog your drain:

1. Pour Baking Soda

Get a reasonable amount of baking soda, just suitable for the size of your drain and the severity of the clog. If the clog is not that tough, 1/2 cup of baking soda will do. Pour it into the drain.

2. Pour Salt

Get 1/2 cup of salt and pour it into the drain. Allow the baking soda and salt mixture to sit on the clog for at least 30 minutes; if you could let it sit there overnight, much better.

3. Pour Boiling water

Once you know that the cleaning mixture has done its work, get a pot and fill it with around two cups of water. Bring it to a boil, and then pour the boiling water into the drain. You can use more water if you think the clog is huge.

4. Flush the Drain

You’ll not fail to notice it when the clog in the drain starts to give way. If it starts to drain, flush more hot water down the drain. Meanwhile, suppose you notice no movement inside the drain; you must repeat steps 1 and 2.

When the clog is still intact, you may need to use a commercial product for unclogging drains. Or, you may need to disassemble the drain tap and remove the clog.

How Do You Clear a Deep Pipe Blockage?

Can You Use Vinegar Instead of Salt to Unclog Drain

Alternately, you can use white vinegar in place of salt. The process is quite similar to the method described above. Here are the steps:

1. Pour Boiling Water

In this process, you will start by pouring boiling water into the drain.

2. Pour Baking Soda and Vinegar

Pour baking soda (1 cup) and vinegar (1 cup) down the drain.

3. Wait for 5 to 10 Minutes

Cover the drain to allow the mixture of boiling water, baking soda, and vinegar to do its work. Let the mixture soak the clog for 5 to 10 minutes.

4. Pour Boiling Water

Again, bring a pot of water to boil. Pour a sufficient amount of boiling water on the drain just right for the clog. There will be a reaction from the vinegar and baking soda. This will help loosen up the solid matters that clog the drain. Hopefully, your drain will clear up.

How to Prevent the Drain from Clogging

Regularly Clean the Drain

You can prevent the drain clogging by cleaning it up regularly—Flushing the drain weekly can do the trick. You should use boiling water every time you flush the drain. Boiling water mixed with some amount of liquid dish soap and baking soda powder is good enough to use.

Pour a Mixture of Dish Soap, Boiling Water, and Baking Soda

When you notice that the draining of the water is slower than usual, you should pour this mixture into the drain. Continue doing it until the draining of the water returns to normal. You can also keep this schedule as your regular preventive maintenance for your drains.

Utilize Used Baking Soda

Using a used baking soda can also work. So, after using baking soda to deodorize your fridge, you can still use it to unclog your drains. Use it as a part of the mixture described above.

How to Clean a Drain Using Vinegar and Baking Soda

You can also use a mixture of vinegar and baking soda to clean your drains. It could be your cleaning material whenever you do your regular drain maintenance.

Here is how you can use this mixture for this purpose:

1. Bring Water to Boil

Boil a sufficient amount of water in a pot.

2. Pour Some Dish Soap into the Drain

Pour a small amount of dish soap into the drain. This should work against the grease that is not washed out during regular flushing of the drain. Let it stay there for a couple of minutes.

3. Pour Boiling Water into the Drain

Pour boiling water carefully into the drain. The cleaning properties of the dish soap plus the heat from the boiling water will break up whatever small amounts of grease and grime inside the drain pipes.

4. Pour Baking Soda into the Drain

Measure one cup of baking soda, and pour it into the drain. You can use a funnel not to mess up the drain as you pour all the baking soda into it.

5. Follow It Up with Vinegar

After the baking soda, pour one cup of white vinegar into the drain. There will be some noise coming from inside the drain when you do this. Don’t be alarmed. It is just the reaction of baking soda with vinegar, as the alkali reacts with the acid.

They will neutralize each other, and this reaction will cause the clog particles to detach from where they have attached themselves in the drain.

6. Flush with Hot Water

Wait for around five minutes for the whole reaction time to complete. And then use boiling water again to flush the loosened clog particles. This procedure will prevent the accumulation of slime and grease inside the drain.

Conclusion: Clogged Drain Home Remedy

If your drain is clogged with solidified kitchen and food matters, you can remove them by using a mixture of 1/2 cup baking soda and 1/2 cup table salt. Pour this mixture into the clogged drain and wait for around 30 minutes for it to work on those slimy and greasy things.

Then pour a pot of boiling water on the drain. This will hopefully turn the solid matters into goo and unclog your drain. To prevent your drains from getting clogged, you can also use baking soda, salt, and vinegar to clean your drain regularly.