{"id":1583,"date":"2024-11-11T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-11T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/?p=1583"},"modified":"2024-11-07T23:29:26","modified_gmt":"2024-11-08T04:29:26","slug":"avoid-using-drain-cleaning-chemicals-for-3-good-reasons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/drain-and-sewer-service\/avoid-using-drain-cleaning-chemicals-for-3-good-reasons\/","title":{"rendered":"Avoid Using Drain Cleaning Chemicals for 3 Good Reasons"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"graphic-of-a-plumbing-clog-being-washed-away\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

A drain clog can spoil your whole day. If it\u2019s bad, it could even spoil a whole holiday weekend, while you wonder whether it\u2019s worth getting emergency plumbing services or if you can get away with waiting until regular business hours. But whatever you do, don\u2019t go to the hardware store and buy a bottle of liquid drain cleaner! Here are 3 good reasons not to use chemicals to unclog a drain<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

1: Your Health and Safety<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Liquid drain cleaner has a pH of 14. This means it is significantly more alkaline than lye, oven cleaner, or bleach, any of which you surely already know are hazardous. Liquid drain cleaners are so caustic that they can cause severe chemical burns to the skin with very slight exposure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fumes of the drain-cleaning chemicals are also toxic! Being exposed to or inhaling the fumes can cause a wide variety of problems. Skin irritation, respiratory distress, and burning, watering eyes are some of the most common.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep in mind that you must leave the solution in your sink, generally for about fifteen minutes, while it releases these fumes. Any children or pets in your home are especially vulnerable to both the fumes and the substance itself if they get near or into the sink. It\u2019s not worth the risk!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2: Questionable Effectiveness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While these liquids are caustic enough to damage your skin, they can\u2019t actually dissolve just anything. That\u2019s perfectly clear when you consider that they are sold in plastic bottles. What\u2019s causing your drain clog? People generally don\u2019t know the answer to that question. And it\u2019s often the case that a clog has built up around a small plastic item that has been washed down the sink.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cap of a cosmetic item, a plastic picnic fork, a child\u2019s paintbrush or tiny doll\u2019s shoe\u2014all of these things can easily slip down a drain and become lodged. Then, any smaller debris such as hair or food particles will have a convenient place to cling. Even if the liquid drain cleaner can remove the other debris, the main cause of the clog will remain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s very common for drain-cleaning chemicals to do an ineffective job, leading people to try a second time with more chemicals. And even if you do have reasonable success with these solutions, it\u2019s very common for that success to be short-lived, and for clogs to build up quickly again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3: Damage to Plumbing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A major reason for clogs building up quickly after using drain cleaning chemicals is a side effect of the chemicals themselves. As we mentioned, they are extremely caustic. While they can\u2019t dissolve plastic, they can do a lot of damage to the metal\u2014usually copper\u2014that most plumbing pipes are made of. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These harsh chemicals leave scarring, pitting, and rough surfaces behind. This means that instead of a smooth metal surface that soap scum or food waste will slip past, there\u2019s an ideal place for everything to cling to. Beyond the simple frustration of recurring clogs, this will also shorten the lifespan of your pipes, leading to potential leaks and major plumbing work in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t use drain-cleaning chemicals! Trust the professionals, who can provide safe, effective drain cleaning in Pine Brook, NJ<\/a>.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact MarGo Plumbing Heating Cooling Inc. today<\/strong><\/a> to schedule an appointment or ask any questions about your plumbing!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

But whatever you do, don\u2019t go to the hardware store and buy a bottle of liquid drain cleaner! Here are 3 good reasons not to use chemicals to unclog a drain.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[72],"tags":[46,227],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1583"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1583"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1583\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1586,"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1583\/revisions\/1586"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1583"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.margoplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}