According to HomeAdvisor, the average cost of snaking a drain is $134-299, depending on the region. Moreover, any additional issues caused by the clog will cost you at least $200 an hour for work alone. Now, remember that clogs can result in cracked pipes, and that replacement and repair will go into thousands.
Obviously, you would want to avoid these expenses, as well as other issues caused by drain problems. Proper drain maintenance is the key to their prevention.
Drain Maintenance Step-by-Step
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Keep some things away from the drain
The main cause of clogs is the waste going down the drain, and food remains are the main offenders. Therefore, you need to know what exactly to keep out of your drain to ensure your pipes stay as clean as possible.
Things that should never make it into the drain are:
- Pieces of food.
Regardless of how small they are, these things can get stuck to the insides of pipes and accumulate creating a clog. Therefore, be sure to clear your plates thoroughly before washing them. Use a drain0grate to catch smaller pieces you might have missed. - Cooking grease.
This is drain enemy number one, so you should do everything possible to minimize the amount of grease getting into the pipes. You can drain it into an empty milk box and dispose of it with the trash. - Coffee grounds.
Compost your coffee or throw it away with the trash, but never wash it down the drain. It’s the same for tea leaves.
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Inspect the drains every season
Regular drain inspection will help you not only make sure that your drains and pipes are in mint condition but also minimize your plumbing costs. That’s because you will be able to catch any issues early and get them fixed fast. The drain camera inspection cost starts at $150, which means it definitely isn’t as expensive as pipe repair and replacement. Plan your budget to include this expense if you can.
The thorough check with a camera is best done every season. But if it’s too much, you can minimize the number of inspections to 1-2 a year. Wherever possible, inspect the drains and pipes for integrity yourself. You should do this every month to catch any leaks early.
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Do a soda clean every month
To keep the clogs away you need to clean your drains regularly. It’s an easy thing to do and you don’t need any expensive solutions for this. Just pour a couple of spoonfuls of soda down the drain and follow up with hot water. Do this every month and after especially greasy washups.
To boost the power of this cleaning, pour a glass of vinegar after soda and leave them for about 30 minutes. Then, run the hottest water you have for several minutes.
Vinegar is a fantastic natural solvent and soda is one of the best natural cleaner agents you can find. Together, they will dissolve the greasy buildup inside the pipes. A nice side effect of this cleaning is that the nasty smell from your drains will disappear or at least become less obnoxious.
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Clean garbage disposals with vinegar ice cubes
If you have a garbage disposal in your kitchen, you should handle it with extreme care. Also, you need to clean it every month or even more often, depending on the level of use it gets.
Use the same old vinegar to clean this part of your plumbing system as well. But for this, you should make some vinegar ice cubes (add a bit of water or it won’t freeze). Then, just turn on the disposal and throw in a tray full of ice cubes into it.
In Conclusion
Drain maintenance is easy but it’s only effective if you do it regularly. So, be sure to make it a part of your monthly home inspection routine.
