Your drains are vital to your home's ecosystem, sending water and waste into the local sewage system. Clogged or slow drains can deeply impact your quality of life and that of the people around you. They can also cause mold, pests and potentially even disease.
As such, leaving your drains clogged is not just an issue of convenience — it is a very real health issue, and those issues can compound on one another if the problem is not resolved quickly. In this article, we will take a look at the real damage a clogged drain pipe can cause and what you can do to prevent drain clog.
Immediate Consequences of Main Drain Clog
Plenty of things can clog your drain — food scraps, hair, coffee grounds, soap, grease and numerous other items. The immediate effects of a clog include:
- Slow or no drainage
- Flooding and water damage to walls, floors and other surfaces
- A buildup of dirty dishes, silverware and kitchen utensils
- Unpleasant odors
- Exposure to rotting food or human waste
Perhaps the worst consequence of clogged drains is that they make basic utilities unusable. If your shower is clogged, it can be difficult to keep yourself clean and healthy. If your sink drain clogs, you may be unable to perform basic tasks like dishwashing, cooking and washing your hands. These utilities are vital parts of daily life, and their loss can impact your immediate quality of life, destroying convenience and even hurting your overall health.
Long-Term Effects of a Clogged Drain
Leaving your drain clogged for a long time can have repercussions far worse than a bad smell. The longer the drain stays clogged, the more likely you are to experience negative consequences for yourself and your plumbing system in the long term.
If left long enough, a clogged drain can:
- Develop mold, mildew and bacteria: The combination of sitting water, food and other waste in your drains is just what bacteria and fungi are looking for. Clogged drains are a prime environment for these microorganisms to thrive, and they have the potential to cause a variety of health issues, including respiratory problems and allergic reactions.
- Attract pests: Much like mold and bacteria, pests such as gnats and drain flies are attracted to clogged drains. There, they can feed and reproduce, potentially infesting other parts of your living space.
- Damage your plumbing: Clogs present a very real threat to your plumbing. They can exert tremendous pressure on the pipes and joints and even corrode the metal itself. If not dealt with, your pipes and joints may start to crack and leak, which often requires more expensive repairs.
These problems are not mutually exclusive. Mold and mildew may exacerbate the pest problem, which may lead to even more bacteria, which can further corrode the plumbing. To prevent this snowball from getting worse, you should care for your drains and do what you can to avoid clogs in the first place.
If you are not sure what's causing your drain blockage, check out your local water quality reports to see if you have hard water. Water hardness is a measure of the number of dissolved minerals in your water, and these can build up over time in your drains to cause clogs or exacerbate the buildup of soap scum and scale.
Should a clog occur, you should deal with it as soon as possible. In many cases, that involves hiring plumbing professionals to evaluate your clogged drain since they have the tools and experience to unclog your drain efficiently.
How to Prevent Clogged Drains
The best thing you can do to fight clogged drains is to prevent them in the first place. In this section, we will go over some do's and don'ts that can preserve the health of your drains and keep you safe from other hazards of clogged plumbing.
What Not to Do
Each of your drains was built with a particular function in mind — sending specific types of waste into the local sewage system. Using the drain in ways it was not intended can clog and damage your plumbing.
A few items you should never pour down your drain include:
- Fat, oil or grease
- Paint or paint thinner
- Coffee grounds
- Flour
- Pasta and rice
- Cat litter
- Bones
Even if you have a garbage disposal, you should also avoid disposing of large or tough food scraps down the drain, like banana and potato peels, egg shells and onion skins. If you do not have a garbage disposal, use a food catcher over your drain and empty it regularly.
Once your drains are free of these types of waste, they will be far less likely to clog. Other disposal methods may be less convenient, but they will protect your plumbing and save you a whole lot of time, money and stress spent trying to unclog or fix your drains.
What to Do
Developing good drain care habits can make a big difference in extending the life of a drain. To keep your drains clear, you need to:
- Run cold water while using the disposal to keep things flowing and clean it out regularly
- Use drain catchers in showers and sinks without disposals to catch waste and hair
- Clean out drains every month with a non-corrosive cleaner, like a baking soda and vinegar mixture
- Pour hot water down the drain once a week to clear out any muck
If you practice these habits while avoiding the ones we talked about in the previous section, the overall health and hygiene of your drains will improve. Clogs may still occur, however, and when they do, you may need professional support to clear them out while keeping your drains intact.
Call Mr. Rooter Plumbing of Oneida for High-Quality Drain Cleaning
Mr. Rooter Plumbing offers clogged drain services near Oneida and all throughout the Greater Syracuse area. Our plumbers are licensed and trained to address clogged drains, leaks or any other plumbing-related project you can think of. We can provide the emergency or routine maintenance you need to get your drains up and running again. Whether your clogged drain is in the kitchen, basement or bathroom, we have the tools and experience to get in there and get the job done so you can focus on what matters.
To learn more or request an appointment, fill out our contact form or reach out to our Oneida location at 315-363-1565. Unclogged drains and all your plumbing needs are only a call away.
