Why You Have Blocked Drains
Are you continually having draining issues? It’s not unheard of to have blocked drains in Auckland, but if you’re reaching for your plunger on a regular basis, then it will certainly pay to investigate the cause of the blockage.
There are many reasons why drains continually block, and here at iSpecialise, we’ve seen them all, and we’ve fixed them all. More often than not, a blocked drain is a sign of a more significant issue, which should be addressed as soon as possible, not ignored.
Today, I’ll share with you some of the most common reason why you have blocked drains, addressing at each area of the home. Hopefully, after having read this article, you’ll put down the plunger, pick up the phone and give me a call.
Bathroom Blocked Drains
The bathroom is one of the most common rooms of a home to experience blocked drains. A bathroom usually has a shower drain, vanity drain, floor waste, and toilet, which can all become blocked. Showers and toilets are more likely to become blocked, so I’ll start there.
Blocked shower drain – a blocked shower drain is usually caused by a hair build-up. This isn’t something that happens instantly, rather something that builds up over time. If the base of your shower is pooling with water, this is probably the cause.
To fix this, you can remove the drain cap and see if you can remove the hair yourself. But a safer option is to call a plumber. To prevent hair build-up from reoccurring, I recommend you invest in a handy hair strainer, like this one, which you can buy from Bunnings.
Blocked vanity drain – like showers, a blocked vanity drain too is often a result of hair build-up, so the same information above applied.
Blocked toilet – a blocked toilet is never pleasant. The most common cause of this type of blockage is usually either a result of too much toilet paper being used or un-flushable items such as sanitary pads and baby wipes being flushed down the toilet. These products can easily become lodged in pipes, causing a blockage and will generally require a plumber with a high-pressure jetter to dislodge and clear the blockage.
The best prevention is to use less toilet paper per flush and only to place toilet paper in a toilet.
Blocked floor waste drains – if you have a blocked floor waste in your bathroom, then this is likely a result of a cracked or damaged pipe, which will need repairing. Since nothing goes down a floor waste, other causes can be ruled out. A CCTV camera is used in an instance such as this to locate the block and its cause. A cracked pipe can be caused by tree roots or simply due to the age of the pipes.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do to prevent this type of blockage. However, some plumbers, such as iSpecialise, offer free drain inspections which can locate any potential problems and prevent further blockages from occurring.
Kitchen Blocked Drains
Any type of blocked drain in Auckland is inconvenient, but a blocked kitchen sink us up there with a blocked toilet.
Blocked kitchen sink – a blocked kitchen sink is usually caused by a build-up of cooking grease, fat and food scraps. Just like the toilet, certain things should not be placed down a sink. You may even unintentionally be causing your drain to block merely by rinsing fatty pots and pans in your sink.
To prevent the build-up of kitchen greases, or “fat bergs”, as I call them, ensure you run hot water down the sink after doing the dishes to dissolve any fat build-up. There are some DIY methods to clear a blocked kitchen sink that you may like to try before calling iSpecialise. You can view these here.
Conclusion
Many things can cause blocked drains. More often than not, they are a result of either something being put down them that shouldn’t have been, or they’re a result of an actual issue, such as a crack or broken pipe.
If you are experiencing blocked drains regularly, then there may be an underlining issue that needs resolving.
Pick up the phone and give iSpecialise a call for a free drain inspection today. Call 09-2322 895 or contact us via our online enquiry form.
