Wait — a sewer company telling you to *not* call them?
Yes. About 1 in 4 calls we get are problems the homeowner could've solved in 15 minutes with a cheap hardware-store tool. We'd rather earn your trust by being honest now than burn it with a service call you didn't need.
Here's the safe DIY list, in the order to try.
1. Boiling water + dish soap (kitchen sink only)
Squirt a tablespoon of dish soap down the drain. Slowly pour a kettle of boiling water behind it. The soap emulsifies grease; the heat carries it down the line. Works for early kitchen-sink slowness. Do not do this on a totally blocked drain — you'll have a sink full of scalding water. Do not use boiling water on PVC traps; very hot is fine, boiling can soften them. Stick with hot tap water on bathroom sinks.
2. Plunger — the right one, the right way
- Sink plunger = flat cup. Use on sinks, tubs, showers.
- Toilet plunger = flange (a rubber sleeve that extends from the bottom). Use on toilets.
Cover the overflow hole with a wet rag first (sinks and tubs) — otherwise air escapes and you get no suction. Fill the basin with enough water to cover the plunger cup. Plunge straight down 15–20 firm strokes. If it doesn't move on round two, stop — you're pushing the clog harder, not breaking it.
3. Hair snake (bathroom only) — a couple bucks at the hardware store
A barbed plastic strip. Push it down, pull it out, throw away whatever comes with it. Solves probably 70% of bathroom sink and shower clogs. Takes 60 seconds.
4. Clean the P-trap under the sink
- Put a bucket underneath.
- Unscrew the two slip nuts on the curved trap (usually hand-tight, but channel-lock pliers help).
- Dump it in the bucket. Rinse it. Reassemble.
- Tighten the slip nuts hand-tight + a quarter turn with pliers. Don't over-torque or you'll crack the fitting.
This is where 90% of "the sink won't drain" problems live.
5. Garbage disposal reset
If the disposal hums but doesn't spin: turn it off, look on the underside for the red reset button, press it. If it's still stuck, look for a hex key socket on the bottom — insert an Allen wrench and turn back and forth a few times to free the impellers. Never put your hand in a disposal, even when off.
6. Toilet auger / closet auger
Different from a regular snake — the rubber sleeve protects the porcelain. Insert, turn the handle as you push, retract. Solves almost any toilet clog the plunger didn't.
7. Vinegar + baking soda
Honest take: this is mostly a deodorizer, not a clog buster. A cup of baking soda followed by a cup of vinegar will fizz and freshen a smelly drain. Don't expect it to clear a real blockage — physics doesn't work that way.
What to skip
- Chemical drain openers (Drano, Liquid-Plumr, etc.) — they damage older pipes, generate caustic heat, and if they don't work, the next person who opens that line is dealing with the chemical on top of the clog. We charge extra for jobs where chemicals were used because we have to gear up.
- Coat hangers down toilets — scratch the porcelain, snap off inside the trap, make a fixable problem an expensive one.
- Renting a power snake without experience — easy to crack a fitting, perforate a pipe, or whip the cable and put a hole through drywall. Not worth the rental.
Stop and call when:
- More than one drain is slow or backed up at the same time
- A drain backs up when another fixture (washer, dishwasher) runs
- You see or smell sewage anywhere indoors
- Water comes *up* through the floor drain
- A toilet bubbles when the sink drains
- You hear gurgling from a drain you're not using
- You've cleared the same clog more than twice in 60 days
- The problem followed heavy rain or a sewer-main alert from your city
Any of those = it's downstream of your fixtures and you need a truck. Call us before it gets worse — almost everything is cheaper at noon than at midnight.
The bottom line
We make a living from drains. We'd still rather you DIY the easy stuff and call us when it actually matters. When you do call, you'll know we're not exaggerating — because we already told you the truth about the cheap stuff.
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