Navigate Any Bends In The Pipe
If the blockage is a long way down the pipe, you will probably have to negotiate a bend or two. You will know when you come to a bend because the snake will hit something hard and wont go any further.
To get around a bend, keep turning it gently and try to coax it into the bend. Once you manage to get it to go past the bend, continue feeding it into the drain.
Commercial Chemical Clog Removers
The next option you can try when unclogging a slow draining bathtub is using a chemical clog remover. These commercial removers are designed to unblock drains using caustic chemicals such as sodium hydroxide to burn through the clogs. Be very careful using commercial chemicals as they are all dangerous if ingested or if they make contact with sensitive skin or eyes. Keep these chemicals away from children and pets.
WARNING: Do not combine multiple clog-removing chemicals, as some chemicals may create toxic reactions when combined. These chemicals are harmful to the environment and many may be harmful to your plumbing system when used often. We advise calling a plumber over use of chemical clog removers.
Reasons Why Your Bathtub Wont Drain Properly
Taking a bath is a leisurely activity that you can enjoy in the sanctuary of your bathroom. However, this activity becomes far less enjoyable when your bathtub wont drain properly. It can be either slow to drain or not draining at all. In the worst-case scenario, the water that youve just used to clean your body remains in the bathtub without it draining away.
A faulty bathtub drain can be a real nuisance in the household. When there is a standing pool of dirty water in the bathtub, this can encourage smelly odours and the build-up of bacteria. To ensure the health and safety of your bathroom, the blocked bathtub drain should be treated by a plumbing service immediately.
Some homeowners may ask: Why wont my bathtub drain properly? There are several potential causes that may contribute to the bathtub blockages. Some causes are connected to the bathtub itself, while other problems may stem from your homes plumbing system. Learn about the five possible reasons why your bathtub wont drain:
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Baking Soda And Vinegar
Yep, the same science fair mixture famous for explosive papier-mâché volcanoes can be used to clear minor to moderate blockages in your drains. When mixed, baking soda and vinegar release carbon dioxide and create expanding bubbles capable of breaking apart clogs in your drain. Heres how to use this chemistry-class reaction to unclog your drain:
This method is affordable, environmentally friendly and wont damage your pipes, but it may not be enough to handle larger blockages.
Run Some Warm Water Down The Drain
Run some warm water down the drain to see if the blockage has been cleared. If not, you can try it once or twice more and then move on to the next technique.
Tip: Use cleaning-grade bicarbonate of soda and white vinegar because they are much cheaper than the food-grade versions. However, if you dont have white vinegar, food-grade vinegar will have much the same effect.
Tip: You can also try pouring a bottle of Coke into the drain with the baking soda Coca-Cola is slightly acidic, and the carbonation and fizzing will also help to shift the blockage. If you dont want to use real Coke, generic cola brands usually work just as well.
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How To Unclog A Bathtub Drain With A Plunger
The Spruce / Michelle Becker
- Working Time: 10 – 20 mins
- Total Time: 10 – 20 mins
- Skill Level: Beginner
- Estimated Cost: $0 to $20
Next to the kitchen sink, garbage disposal, and toilet drains, the tub drain gets the most abuse of any drain in the home. We load it up with hair, soap, and hair care products, along with the occasional shampoo bottle cap. Over time, the drain gradually clogs until you find yourself standing in the tub taking a shower with several inches of dirty water lapping at your ankles.
You can easily unclog your bathtub drain with a standard cup-style plunger, but you have to seal the overflow drain first. Tubs essentially have two drains: There’s the familiar one at the bottom of the tub that you close to fill up the tub with water. But there’s also one higher up on the front wall of the tub in line with the faucet spout and the bottom drain. This is called the overflow drain.
Is It Ok To Ignore A Slow
If your bathtub drains slowly but isnt completely blocked, you might be tempted to ignore it, but this would be a mistake.
A slow-draining tub is a sign that a ball of hair, soap scum and dirt is forming somewhere in your drain, but that isnt yet big enough or encrusted enough to cause a complete blockage.
This means if you take action now, it may be easier to shift with one of the less extreme methods but if you leave it to grow into a full blockage, you may find it much harder to resolve later on.
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How To Fix A Slow
Since leaving college, Paul has worked in a variety of roles, including: painter and decorator, general handyman, and freelance writer.
A slow-draining bathtub is annoying and will just get worse if not dealt with. Find out what to do when dirt, hair, and soap blocks the drainage.
In my experience, it’s always worth trying to avoid the expense of hiring a plumber if you can help it.
Fixing a slow-draining bathtub yourself often isnt anywhere near as difficult as many people think. Most clogged bath drain issues can be resolved by using some easy, affordable, and straightforward tools and methods.
Once you’ve fixed your bathtub drain, you should work on preventing or reducing the chances of it happening againsee my suggestions at the bottom of the page.
Reasons Why Bathtub Drain Wont Unscrew
A significant number of bathtub drains have a stopper to hold water. When the stopper closes, it allows your bathtub to prevent water from draining out. However, some issues might jeopardize such functionality.
For instance, if the drain stopper does not close, then your bathtub will not hold any water. The water will flow out through the bathtub drain.
If the brain stopper can no longer close, you have to find a way of fixing that issue.
You will need to disassemble the bathtub drain system to solve the problem.
Unfortunately, you might find it hard to unscrew your bathtub drain.
This occurs due to various reasons. First, you get to notice that your bathtub drains slowly. That becomes an indication of build-up dirt and hair, thus slowing down the seamlessly flowing out of water.
Normally blockages in your bathtub drain are a result of poor hygiene. You need to frequently subject your bathtub to thorough cleaning to prevent clogging around the draining system.
Such blockages are one of the reasons you will find it hard to unscrew your bathtub drain. The dirt clogs around the screw, making it tighter and thus posing a challenge when attempting to unscrew it.
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Remove The Drain Stopper To Inspect And Gain Access
If you’ve tried the above methods and none of them have worked, it’s time to get down and dirty. You need to unscrew and take off the overflow plate, then remove the stopper.
The stopper works by lifting and dropping a plunger to open and close the drain. It is operated by a small lever. If the stopper is not working correctly, it might be stuck in a semi-closed position, restricting water flow. The positioning of the plunger can be easily adjusted with the lock nuts that hold the plunger to the threaded rod.
If the stopper works okay, then your problem is likely to be a clog, and you will need to use a plumbers’ snake. You can use the overflow for access.
Note: Hair and soap can often accumulate underneath the drainage strainer, too, so I recommend removing that for inspection and access. Some strainers can be taken out manually, while others have screws that need to be removed first.
Why Is My Tub Draining Slowly Or Not At All
The most common cause of a slow draining bathtub is a clog restricting water flow. Clogs are often made up of knotted hair, dirt, grease and/or soap and are more common in homes with residents with longer hair. Pouring oil, grease or other congealing substances down the drain also causes clogs, as do other foreign material such as non-flushable wipes, toy dinosaurs, large quantities of narcotics or classified documents.
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How To Unclog A Bathtub Drain With Drain Snake
If the coat hanger method doesnt work, it means the blockage is probably further down the drain, in which case, youll need to try using a drain snake also known as a plumbers snake.
Drain snakes are coils of metal cord with hooks on the end that are designed to go much deeper into the drain to hook out blockages that are further down. Heres how to use one.
Shower Or Bathtub Flooding Or Wont Drain Heres What To Do
Standing ankle-deep in tepid shower water might not be the most annoying thing weve ever experienced, but it definitely makes the top ten. To make matters worse, if youve got a shower flooding, or your stubborn bathtub wont drain, the situation can start to become an emergency.
But fear not there are a few things you can do on your own before calling in the professionals if your shower wont drain. Read on for our helpful tips on how to get your shower draining smoothly again, after the break.
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Is There A Good Drain Protector That You Can Recommend For A Bathtub
There are lots of great products out there that will do the job effectively. Bear in mind that there are different types of drain stoppers and the screen you buy will have to take this into account. Common types of bathtub drain stopper include:
If you want me to make a general suggestion for a protector that works with the majority of bathtub drains, I would recommend the OXO Good Grips. This product provides a excellent barrier for catching small debris without slowing down water drainage and works with both pop-up and regular drains.
The OXO Good Grip is better than most of its rivals as it has a bit of weight to it and so doesn’t have the tendency to float up and away like some of the cheaper protectors do. It’s also affordable and easy to clean.The other bathtub drain protector that I am a particular fan of is the Tubshroom. This protector fits inside the drain rather than sitting on top and is particularly good at catching hair.
If your tub is the type where you flip a switch for drainage, then you can just leave the Tubshroom in place. If it’s the type that has a removable stopper, then you put the Tubshroom in when the tub is draining. Some people complain that it is awkward to clean, but I’ve not had much trouble.
This content is accurate and true to the best of the authors knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.
So The Bathtub Wont Drain
You dont have to worry when your bathtub wont drain. It could be a simple fix, like cleaning the drain opening or pulling out the hair that made its way down the drain. Or you may have to call the plumber to help you out.
If you found this post to be helpful, be sure to check out our other bathroom-related content!
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Ways To Unclog Your Bathtub On Your Own
Do you want to take care of a clogged drain yourself?
You can handle a simple blockage without the assistance of a professional through these simple steps.
Unclog Your Bathtub Drain With Baking Soda And Vinegar
Although the method of mixing baking soda with vinegar and pouring boiling water into the drain seems a bit old-school, we highly recommend it! The products are less harmless to the drainage system than other chemical compounds, and they have proven to be effective in many situations, from unclogging drains to removing red wine stains.
The tools you may need are:
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S To Unclog A Tub Drain
Now, if you have worked on the stopper and the water is still not draining, it shows that you have a bigger drainage issue. The first order of business is to wait for the water to drain out slowly. However, if it is stagnant and not receding at all, you need a bucket to drain out the water. Yes, it is gross, but you must do it! There is no other way to deal with standing water.
Wear rubber gloves and begin scooping out water with a pail. Make sure to layout old shirts and towels on your bathroom floors. This will prevent any nasty accidents because you may drip water all over your floor. Best to be safe than sorry!
After scooping the water into the bucket, dump the contents inside your toilet. You may need to repeat this process until your tub is almost empty. When you can no longer get water into the bucket, you can stop this procedure. After this, you can now begin working on the clog.
When your drain is clogged, it means youve got a lot of debris in there. If it is a simple issue, then you can probably do it without a professional plumber. Attempting an easy fix can help save you money. Here are some ways to unclog your bathtub drain by yourself:
Step 1: if you havent, take out the drain stopper.
Step 2: Wear your gloves and take out any visible signs that block the drain. It could be hair, sediments, soap scum, etc. Usually, you can see this nasty stuff when you peek in there with a flashlight. It is normal for big hairballs to form underneath.
How To Unclog Your Bathtub Drain Some Quick And Easy Methods
Poor maintenance of your drain can lead to either a slow draining bathtub or a complete blockage in the pipes. What causes such obstructions is usually hairs, heavy dirt or other debris that cant dissolve easily. The question here is whether you need to call a plumber to unblock your drain or you can try to fix it on your own. In this article, we are going to share 5 effective methods on how to unclog your bathtub drain in no time.
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Grab A Plumbing Snake
A plumbing snake or auger is designed to reach down deep into your drain and pull out any clogs. You can buy or hire an auger in a hardware store near you.
Remove the drain stopper using pliers or a screwdriver, then insert the cable slowly into the drain. Push the drain snake in as far as you can until you feel some resistance.
Twist it to grab the clog and then pull it out. Repeat the process several times until all the gunk has been cleared. Finally, run water in the tub and check if the problem has been resolved.
Removing The Drain Stopper
If none of the commercial drain cleaners are working to unclog the pipeline, its time to dig deep and get your hands dirty. You have to unscrew the overflow plate to remove your drain stopper.
The drain stopper opens and closes the drain, allowing the water in the bathtub to drain. It has a plunger that works as a lever to control the water flow but, if the plunger gets stuck, it will restrict smooth drainage.
You can easily adjust the position of the plunger by removing the drain stopper and using locknuts. Furthermore, hair and debris often get trapped below the drain stopper, which can block the water flow.
So, you can gain better access to the drain opening by removing the drain stopper. In that way, its easier to get rid of all the hair and debris thats clogging your bathtub drain and remove standing water.
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How To Prevent A Bathtub From Slow Draining
Preventing a bathtub from clogging can save you from the headache of fixing a slow draining tub. The most effective way to minimize bathtub clogs is to buy a drain protector. This device inserts into or onto the top of the drain and has a fine screen to catch hair, clumps of soap, childrens toys and other debris from entering the drain.