4 Ways to Unclog Drains Naturally

Don't you just hate sluggish drains? Are you looking for an inexpensive, non-toxic way to unclog drains using stuff you already have in your home? Here are 4 ways to unclog drains naturally.

1. Use a plunger, snake, or wire hanger. Let's begin with the most obvious. If you have a plunger or an augur in your home, you have your first offense against clogged drains. But by the time you find yourself reading an article like this one, you have probably already tried the plunger, snake, or coat hanger, and have come up wanting. So let's look at some of the other less obvious ways to unclog stuck drains in your home.

2. Attack it with dish soap. Another simple way to unclog drains is to attack the clog with dish soap. To use this method, you need to have a drain that's not full of water. The method works for a slow drain that has already emptied--not a drain that has backed-up water in the basin.

For this technique, squirt a stream of dish soap down the clogged drain, following it with a tea kettle full or saucepot full of boiling water. If you have a greasy clog, the combination of soap and hot water will do a number on it.

3. Use salt, vinegar, and baking soda. Remember the science experience in school where the volcano erupted when vinegar met baking soda? Well, this is the experiment done in your drain. There are various recipes for this method and you can choose one that suits you, or devise you own amounts.

Recipe 1: Use one-half cup baking soda, one-half cup salt, and one-half cup vinegar. Pour the ingredients down the drain, followed by a couple quarts of boiling water.

Recipe 2: Use one-half cup vinegar and three-quarter cup baking soda. Put the baking soda down the drain first, then pour in the vinegar. Have a rag ready to totally cover the drain, and do so immediately. You want nothing to escape. Wait one-half hour and flush the drain with water.

Recipe 3: Use one-half cup baking soda, one cup vinegar, and a couple tablespoons of salt. Put them all down the drain and cover immediately. Wait one-half hour and flush the drain with water.

4. Use peroxide and baking soda. A variation on the vinegar and baking soda method is to use hydrogen peroxide and baking soda. You can use equal amounts of each and follow the same procedure as above.

You don't need to buy that caustic drain cleaner or call a plumber that could set you back for weeks. Instead, try these 4 natural ways to unclog stuck drains. And if you find the problem is larger than you can handle naturally, then do call in the professionals. But why not see if you can dislodge that clog yourself--using supplies you already have in your home?