How to unclog drains without toxic chemicals

Trying to unclog drains without resorting to Drano or another heavy-duty product can be really tricky. Clogged drains by nature are stubborn to more natural gentle techniques.

What's wrong with good old-fashioned Drano, you ask? My simple response to this question is, do you really want to pour a product that is strong enough to melt your hair away into the water system or risk getting some on yourself? I still have an unused bottle of Drano from before I knew of better methods. The bottle warns, "Keep out of reach of children, harmful if swallowed. May burn eyes, skin, and mucous membranes on contact." The warning label also mentions that if it is mixed with other cleaning products it could "release hazardous gases or cause violent eruption from drain." Yikes. Interestingly, the bottle does not seem to include a full ingredient list. It mentions that it contains sodium hydroxide and sodium hypochlorite. A few highlights from Wikipedia on these substances:

* "Sodium hypochlorite is a strong oxidizer. Oxidation reactions are corrosive, solutions burn skins and cause eye damage, particularly when used in concentrated forms."

*Solutions containing more than 40% sodium hypochlorite are considered hazardous by the NFPA (NFPA 430, 2000).

*"Chlorination of drinking water can oxidize organic contaminants producing trihalomethanes, which are carcinogenic."

*The slippery feel of bleach on your skin is due to caustic irritation or burns due to "defatting and saponification of skin oils and destruction of tissue."

*"Mixing bleach with other household cleaners can be hazardous."

*"It is estimated that there are about 3300 accidents needing hospital treatment caused by sodium hypochlorite solutions each year in British homes" (RoSPA, 2002).

*A recent European study indicated the sodium hypochlorite could react to generate chlorinated volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are emitted during cleaning and are toxic and probably human carcinogens. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_hypochlorite)

Now that you know to avoid Drano and similar products at all costs, how can you unclog drains in a safe way? There are some natural methods that I've read about online and tried. One method calls for pouring 3/4 cup baking soda down the drain followed by 1/2 cup of vinegar. Then you plug the drain with a rag or something to keep the erupting concoction in the drain, wait 30 minutes, then pour boiling water slowly down after it. I didn't have much success with this technique even after trying it about three times in a row. I'm guessing that with big clogs, this won't be effective. However, I do think that it would be a good thing to do on a regular basis to keep stubborn clogs from forming.

If it's too late for that, though, and the stubborn clog is already upon you, I recommend using a wire hanger technique. This takes a little time and muscle but it really is satisfying to yank the clog right out of the drain. All you have to do is untwist a wire hanger. You probably need a pliers or some such tool to do this. Then form the end of into a little hook. Some drains have a stopper that you can unscrew- see if yours does, otherwise you'll have to snake the wire down around it. Once you've got the wire in the drain, twist it around and pull it up periodically to see what treasures you find. I know this is probably really gross to most people, but I found it strangely satisfying to pull a giant ball of rotting hair out of my drain. I just stared at it with wonderment and repulsion for a few minutes. I didn't have the where-with-all to take a picture so the following photos come from a more recent unclogging experience and don't even come close to the atrocities I pulled out of the drain at my old apartment. However, they should give you the idea.

Sorry- I know that's really gross but I think it's good to have an understanding of what really is down in your drain- it's just your hair! It's not some strange scary thing mysteriously clogging your drain that you need to combat with chemicals strong enough to melt your face off! You can just pull out the hair-clog yourself! Another thing to keep in mind is the use of hair-catchers over your drains, especially in the shower, to avoid clogs from ever forming. By the way, this technique is very similar to that "drain snake" product you may have seen advertised on TV (should have patented this idea I guess), but why waste your money on that when you can make your own!