When most people experience a clog with the drains in their home, the first thing they do is resort to store bought drain cleaner. If you want your drains to stay in good condition for as long as possible, you will not do this. Store bought drain cleaners operate by using extremely caustic materials to melt whatever is causing the clog. They’ll clean out your drains, sure, but using them over a long period of time will also damage the drain pipes.
The best thing to do when you encounter a drain clog is to have a professional plumber take care of it for you. Professionals use non-corrosive means to clean drains, solving the problem for you without creating new issues down the road. If you aren’t sure whether or not you even need drain cleaning services, check out our list below.
Slow Drainage
We strongly advise against waiting for a drain to completely clog before calling for repairs. Drain clogs happen slowly, as waste sticks to the walls of the pipe and builds towards the center. This restricts the water flow, causing the drain to drain more slowly than it normally does. If you notice this happening to a drain in your home, it’s a very good idea to call a professional and have them take care of I as soon as possible.
Bad Smells
Though more common with kitchen drains, bad smells can affect any drain in the home. This is often due to waste sticking to the pipe walls in sufficient amounts to start giving off a strong stench. If one of your drains smells like an open sewer, you should definitely have a professional look at it sooner rather than later. In all likelihood, the drain just needs to be cleaned out to resolve the issue. However, please note that if you have foul smells coming out of multiple drains in your home, you might have a deeper underlying issue with your drain and sewer system. It’s probably going to take something more severe than drain cleaning to resolve whatever that issue is.
It’s Been Longer Than a Year!
Even if you have seen (or smelled) absolutely nothing to suggest that your drains are experiencing some kind of issue, we still recommend that you have a professional clean all of them out at least once a year. This is to address any issues that may start to develop in the drain system, before they have the chance to develop far enough to actually start impacting the operation of the drains. Annual preventive drain cleaning services are a great way to save you money, and give you peace of mind. So, it doesn’t matter when you schedule it during the year, just as long as you have it done on a consistent basis.
Performance Plumbing offers a full range of drain cleaning services in St. Louis, MO. If you need help with your drain and sewer system, contact us today to schedule an appointment with one of our expert plumbers.