It is the early hours of a Monday morning. You wake up and go to the toilet and the moment you flush, horror strikes. Instead of flushing down, your toilet starts to flush up. This is a clear indication of a blocked toilet drain. Nobody wants to be in this situation, especially on a Monday morning. Dealing with a blocked drain is very frustrating and requires a certain amount of expertise. So, if you are planning to go all DIY on your kitchen sink, you might want to take a step back and call the professionals. Over the years of constantly having to deal with blockages, we have come across a few common myths about blocked drains.

1. Boiling water will fix it all

Pouring down a pot full of boiling water down your kitchen sink might give you the feeling that this will fix a blocked drain; it might even improve the drainage, but this doesn't really fix any underlying problems. If hot water could fix a blockage, washing your dishes with hot water should ideally fix the drain!

2. It’s okay to pour oil in your sink or toilet

If you think that pouring down any sort of liquid down the drain will not create any problems, you are highly mistaken. Oil will easily go down the drain and then get stuck in it. Not just that, the smallest amount of food waste, hair, miscellaneous items, dirt, will get stuck to that big lug of oil in the drain. Clearing this out is very painful, indeed.

3. The solution is in your kitchen cabinets

Like boiling water, the use of ingredients such as vinegar and baking soda is not the best solution for clearing out drain clogs. It can be used for very small blockages; however, this does take a lot of time. Even though this may not be the most effective way to get your drains to clear out, making use of this method for soft blockages is very effective.

4. Store-bought chemicals do the job

These may fix the problem for the time being, but eventually, add up to the gunk stuck in the drain. Moreover, chemicals are never good for you or the environment. In fact, putting chemicals in your kitchen sink drain means that you might be contaminating your food and the utensils in the process. Constant inhalation of these chemicals can also lead to major health problems. So, it is best if you avoid chemicals for your sake and for the safety of your environment as well.

5. Blocked drain cleaning is SO expensive

This is NOT TRUE. Blocked Drains are some of the most common plumbing issues in most households. This is the reason why drain cleaning services are always affordable. Most plumbers use equipment that is eco-friendly and effective.

6. Electric eels can unclog any drain

Electric eels or drain snakes are a very effective way to literally chop-off any debris stuck in your drains. However, they are not very effective with hard blockages and would not be able to cut through the dirt that easily if it's too much. Additionally, they can also very easily damage the pipe and create a different problem while trying to fix the first one.

7. Regular cleaning of the toilet unclogs blocked drains

Regularly cleaning your toilet is a normal thing. However, the cleaning process does not include the cleaning of the toilet drain as well. Using a simple bleach tablet can do the job for you. It will not clear out a blockage, but it will help keep things clean. So, if you recently had your toilet drain cleaned, the best way to maintain it is to throw in a bleach tablet every two-three weeks to avoid another blockage.

8. All plumbers can unblock drains

Even though your local plumbers can fix your blocked drains, there are certain plumbers who specialise in blocked drain cleaning. A blocked drain specialist will not just clear out the drain but will also use the right kind of technology to look for the cause and location of the problem. They can also fix any breakages or leaks within your drainpipes.

Calling for professional help to clear out a drain, no matter how big or small it is, is important. They can use technology such as CCTV inspectors to look inside pipes that are unreachable. This simply allows them to have a better understanding of the problem and fix it in the best way possible for you. Moreover, you now have the option of calling in eco-friendly drain cleaners who utilise technology that does not harm the environment and also consumes less energy.

***Guest blog post by 24Hour Melbourne Plumbers