Handy Home Remedies: Eco-Friendly Way to Clean Your Drains

A slow drain can be very annoying. Instead of using harmful chemicals poured directly down the drain, why not save the environment, as well as your money and try a greener solution. I have been using baking soda,salt and vinegar with great success to clear out my drains for years.

The process is quite simple. pour about half a cup of baking soda, and half a cup of salt down the drain so it rests in the p-trap, then slowly pour in the vinegar a little at a time. The vinegar will react with the baking soda and begin to fizz. The fizzing action cleans the insides of your plumbing preventing the build-up of crud on the sides of the pipes. The salt is there as an abraisive. Slowly add the vinegar and listen to the fizzing. When it slows a little add some more vinegar. Continue this process until there is no longer fizz when you add vinegar. Once you're done with the vinegar you should run the hot water for about a minute.

To prevent any future clogs, I've purchased a wire mesh drain filter from the dollar store. This has to be one of the most useful things you can buy for a dollar. If ever pouring fatty stuff down the sink, bacon grease for example, it is always a good idea to run the hot water for about a minute. This will ensure that all the fatty grease does not co-agulate in your drain and cause a blockage. This may not be the most important life altering information in the history of useful articles but believe me, I've spent enough time in my life unclogging sinks to know that it is worth the while to try to take a few preventative steps to ensure it does not happen to me again.