It is unlikely that anyone notices what place clean pipelines and sewers occupy in our lives, but when they become clogged, a real collapse arises. The only thing that comes to mind at that moment is how to quickly call the plumbing. Unfortunately, experts are not in a hurry to call citizens. They are sometimes generally difficult to find within reach.
What to do? Popular methods of cleaning clogged drains come to the rescue. Today we will tell you how to use soda with vinegar to clean sewer pipes. Such components are likely to be found in the house of each mistress. Cleaning pipes with soda and vinegar will not only help to quickly deal with clogging, but it will also become an effective preventive measure.
Why are pipes clogged?
Every housewife periodically notes that the water in the sink leaves much worse. At the same time, an unpleasant odor of dampness and decomposition appears. This means that it is time to clean up the drainage system.
Most often, a similar situation occurs in the kitchen. When washing dishes, small pieces of food, fat and other components fall into the drain. And if a special mesh is not installed in the sink, designed to retain solid particles, the pipes will have to be cleaned much more often. In order not to bring the situation to a critical point, from time to time carry out preventive cleaning of blockages in pipes with soda and vinegar.
The drain in the bathroom is no less often clogged. The fault is the hair falling out during washing. Mixing with soap foam, they turn into a real cork, which eventually clogs the drain hole.
The toilet clogs much less frequently. Firstly, the drain hole in it is wider, and secondly, it can clog tightly only from improper operation. Rags, plastic bags, personal hygiene products, felt-tip pens, small toys and so on become the reason for the clogged closet. In such a case, cleaning pipes with soda and vinegar may not be successful.
In what situations does acetic soda solution help?
It turns out that you can not always use the tool. Sewer pipes and soda and vinegar can be cleaned when you clearly know that no foreign objects that caused the blockage got into the drain.
You can use home remedies if organic debris is stuck in the pipe: hair, fat, food particles. If the drain is contaminated with solid objects, it is better to use a plunger or sewer cable.
What to do when a pipe is clogged?
Blockages occur in pipes made of any material. If you think that after replacing metal pipes with plastic, you will permanently get rid of the problem, then you are deeply mistaken. What if the pipes in your house are clogged? There may be several options:
- call plumbing;
- use a plumbing cable;
- apply aggressive store chemistry;
- use improvised tools and home methods.
That's just the last we will dwell on in more detail.
How to clean the sink with vinegar and baking soda?
Cleaning pipes with soda and vinegar is a simple and quite effective method. For work you will need rubber gloves and a cloth, preferably terry. The size of the cloth should be such that it can tightly plug the drain hole.
The proportions of soda and vinegar for cleaning pipes will be as follows:
- soda - 1/2 standard pack, approximately 250 mg;
- vinegar - 120 ml at a time, about half a glass;
- boiling water - about 3 liters.
To make the result of work more tangible, it is better to disassemble the siphon and remove all unnecessary from it before cleaning. Sometimes such a simple action eliminates more than half the problem. Before starting the procedure, do not forget to put a basin under the sink. Dirty water from a siphon will merge into it and garbage will be dumped.
When everything is ready, collect the siphon back and proceed to cleaning:
- In the drain, carefully pour the prepared amount of soda. It is important to ensure that as much powder as possible gets deep into the pipe, and not left at the bottom of the sink.
- We warm the vinegar a little and immediately pour it into the drain hole.
- Now you need to quickly plug the drain with a rag and leave it in this state for 30-40 minutes. Extreme caution is essential. The combination of vinegar and soda will cause a violent chemical reaction with the release of a large amount of aggressive foam. It is very important that the spray does not get on the skin or eyes.
- While the mixture in the pipe dissolves the greasy plug, boil the kettle.
- After the specified time, remove the napkin from the drain hole and pour a few liters of boiling water there. Hot water will wash away the remaining cleaning solution and most of the dirt.
- If the blockage is very strong, you will have to apply soda plus vinegar to clean the pipes several times in a row.
Solution cleaning
If the indicated method did not help, the blockage may have formed very deeply and the soda simply cannot get to the right place. In this case, the pipe should be cleaned with soda and vinegar a little differently:
- Drain about 3 liters of boiling water into the drain hole. This will help rinse off excess fat and soften the cork from the remnants of food or hair a little. Wait 25-30 minutes.
- From 1 cup of soda and 3 cups of boiling water, prepare a solution. Pour it into the drain and wait 5-10 minutes.
- Now take a glass of vinegar and carefully pour it into the drain hole. Plug the drain with a rag and leave for 2-3 hours.
- After the specified time, rinse another 3-4 liters of boiling water into the sink.
A little tip: before you start the specified procedure, use a plunger. This will help to make the blockage more loose, and the cleaning agent will work better.
Salt and soda will help
There is another way to clean pipes with home remedies. It will help in cases where there is no vinegar in the house, and a serious blockage has formed. In this case, cleaning the sewer pipes with soda and salt will help. The procedure is best performed at night, so it will be more effective and will not cause inconvenience to households. You need to act like this:
- Using a plunger, loosen the cork and remove the trash.
- Disassemble the siphon and clean it.
- Take a pack of soda (0.5 kg) and 200 g of salt. Stir the dry ingredients and add a glass of water to them.
- Place the resulting slurry in the drain hole and pour a glass of boiling water there.
- Close the drain hole tightly with a rag and leave for 8 - 10 hours.
- After the specified time, drain at least 5 liters of very hot water into the sink.
What if the remedy did not help?
If cleaning the pipes with home remedies does not bring the desired result, there are several ways out of the situation:
- increase the procedure time by several hours, preferably at night;
- to clean several times in a row;
- additionally use mechanical methods - a cable or plunger;
- apply a technical calcified preparation.
Caustic will help
Cleaning pipes with caustic soda helps perfectly even when other means are powerless. Caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) is a fairly strong chemical compound that has a very active alkaline reaction. No wonder it is called caustic soda. The tool has the following qualities:
- strong toxic effect;
- volatility;
- increased reactivity;
- ability to corrode organic matter.
This tool is found in most store products designed to clean sewer pipes. When working with the substance, the maximum safety measures should be observed - wear gloves and a respirator, ensure the flow of fresh air into the room. To clean the pipes with caustic soda, proceed as follows:
- carefully pour 6-7 tbsp into the drain hole tablespoons of the product (you can use both dry and liquid version);
- pour 3-4 liters of very hot water;
- plug the drain with a napkin and leave it for 2-3 hours;
- after this time, flush the drain with plenty of hot water.
Reviews
If you believe the reviews, cleaning pipes with soda and vinegar is quite an effective way to eliminate blockages. Housewives note the simplicity of the method and its cost-effectiveness. Most impressive is the fact that the ingredients for the recipe are always at hand.
In the event of a spontaneous blockage, there is no need to run to the store. The cleaning components are non-toxic, there is no need to hide them as far as possible. Even if you accidentally spilled vinegar or spilled soda, nothing terrible will happen.
other methods
Let's look at a few more recipes for environmentally friendly sewer pipe cleaning.
Option 1
Take 1 cup of salt and baking soda. Add 1/4 cup of tartar to the mixture. Mix these components thoroughly, transfer them to a clean, opaque jar or box and leave them for 8-10 days in a dark place. This tool is great for small blockages or for prevention. You need to pour a glass of the mixture into the drain and after 5 minutes add a large amount of cold water. Leave for half an hour, and then rinse with plenty of liquid.
Option 2
This method is similar to the method we have already described for cleaning pipes using baking soda and vinegar. Only the latter in this case is replaced by lemon juice or a solution of citric acid in the same volume.
Preventive actions
In order for clogs in pipes to occur as rarely as possible, they must be handled carefully and gently. There are a number of simple rules, the implementation of which will extend the life of the plumbing system:
- If possible, disassemble the siphons from time to time and clean them.
- Flush pipes with a lot of very hot water once or twice every 10 days. So you can remove greasy deposits from the walls of the sewer system.
- Once every 2-3 months, carry out preventive pipe cleaning with vinegar and soda.
- Install special plastic or steel mesh in the drain holes. They will help to avoid difficult pollution and will detain the main part of large garbage.
- Before placing the dishes in the sink, remove all solid particles and food debris from it.
If the implementation of these simple rules will become a habit among all family members, you will have to less often clean the sewer pipes.
Remember! Clogged sewer pipes can not only deliver a few unpleasant minutes, but also lead to large financial costs. This will happen if, due to your carelessness, you have to repair your neighbors. The regular use of preventive methods will help get rid of a bleak prospect.