how to unclog kitchen sink

", it worked very well. If your family sends vast amounts of food down the disposer, you’ll have a clogged sink someday. This article has been viewed 2,538,167 times. What to Know About the Cottagecore Home and Lifestyle Trend, These Simple Accents from The Home Depot Can Make an Old Room Feel New, 13 DIY Home Improvements You May Not Know You Need a Permit For, Best Furniture for Small Living Rooms on Sale Now, How to Choose the Best Leash for Your Dog, How to Install and Connect a Google Nest Hello Doorbell, 6 Trouble Spots Home Inspectors Hate to See, 15 Genius Hacks for Halloween Pumpkin Carving You’ll Use from Now On, These 20 Hidden Things in Your Home May Be a Fire Hazard, We are no longer supporting IE (Internet Explorer), How to Retrieve Items Dropped Down Drains, Do Not Sell My Personal Information – CA Residents. "Spent 2 days taking pipes apart from garbage disposal, no luck, then used the plunger. Let the baking soda and white vinegar fizz for 15 minutes, then run hot water to flush out the clog. Our latest shed is also a pavilion—and you can build it, too! Also, pushing the cable down through the basket strainer allows you to clean the slime-covered cable as you withdraw it by running clean water down the drain. unlocking this staff-researched answer. Do I pour in the soda and vinegar together or separately? It does a pretty good job removing sludge and other build up on the insides of your pipes. You can also use a flat-bottomed plunger to plunge the sink drain. Next, pour vinegar into the drain. If you are working on a bathtub, apply duct tape over the overflow opening at the front of the tub. When the water in your kitchen sink won’t drain or drains slowly, don’t reach for the chemical drain cleaner. There are 12 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. Pour ½ cup salt and 1 cup baking soda down the sink drain. But if the clog is in the trap or farther down the drain, you’ll need a 1/4-in. Attack with boiling water. These chemicals are poisonous and can harm your pipes. The combination will create a fizzy reaction to help loosen the clog. Can you use a plunger to unclog a kitchen sink? Run water in the clogged sink to tell if you’ve removed the obstruction. There's a good chance you can fix the problem yourself with one of these six methods to unclog a kitchen sink: 1. Here’s a home remedy for a clogged drain. In this article, we’ll show you how to unclog a kitchen sink using a plunger and drain snake to clear up all but the most stubborn drain clogs. Thank you. The heat from the water should help break up the clog. Use large slip-joint pliers to loosen the slip-joint nuts on both ends of the trap. Before you reach for the drain snake, look up into the baffle tee to make sure the baffle area is clear. If the bent coat hanger doesn’t get the clog, there’s a good chance you can clear it without taking your plumbing apart. After the baking soda sits, pour in a cup of white distilled vinegar. If you find the clog in the trap, reattach the trap. If you can’t unclog the drain using one of the steps above, then it’s time to take off the trap and waste arm and feed the drain snake directly into the drainpipe. To use boiling water to unclog your kitchen sink drain, you’ll first want to remove any standing water in the sink. If you’ve pushed the cable down through the basket strainer, you can rinse it off as you retrieve it by running water. ", "Baking Soda and vinegar works! It’s a good idea to know how your kitchen sink can get clogged. Position the plunger over the drain. Garbage disposers and grease are the two biggest contributors to clogged sink drains. Take off clog with baking soda, vinegar, and salt. You want to avoid this, so stop turning the drum if you feel that the cable isn’t turning freely anymore. Vinegar and Baking Soda Method This method is somewhat complicated but very effective in unclogging a double kitchen sink drain with standing water. If the auger meets resistance again, continue pulling the cable out and cranking the handle clockwise until the cable catches on the clog. Unclog … The first two steps we’ll show you don’t even require you to remove the trap or take anything apart. Pour 1/2 cup of baking soda into the clogged drain. ", Unlock premium answers by supporting wikiHow. If the clog is in a kitchen sink, lift out the removable basket strainer. You’ll be able to see what you’re doing, and if you do have to disassemble plumbing, it’ll be less messy. Allow it to sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Allen Lee. You have to modify the end of the cable on your drain snake to use this method, however (photo below). A plummer came over and put a cable auger in there, but he said that it needs a longer one. Follow that with 1 cup of vinegar. I used the baking soda, vinegar and hot water method (Method 2) on my bathroom sink which has seemingly fixed my issue. Last Updated: November 17, 2020 Then push the baking soda down the sink drain, using a spatula if necessary. Thank you. ", "Awesome. And finally, since the drain is still fully assembled, you’ll be able to tell, by running water in the sink, whether you’ve unclogged the drain. Thank you for your information! If nothing is working, you may need to use a drain snake to reach further down into the drain. Grease, even when run with hot water, will at some point stop and congeal. 8. Unclog your kitchen sink with baking soda and salt. % of people told us that this article helped them. A tea kettle will do nicely as well. If you have a double-bowl kitchen sink, stuff a wet rag into the drain opening that isn’t clogged (this will help with suction). Be careful not to scratch your sink with the wire. If the sink still doesn’t drain, there’s a clog farther down and this kitchen drain cleaner won’t do the trick. Much better than Liquid Plumber. By using our site, you agree to our. Boil a pan full of water on the stove. Please help us continue to provide you with our trusted how-to guides and videos for free by whitelisting wikiHow on your ad blocker. Home Improvement Specialist. The first step to clearing a clogged kitchen sink is to use a plunger. The only thing I added to the instruction was instead of warm water, I poured boiling hot water, "No money required for this home solution - baking powder and vinegar for 5 minutes, followed by a couple of pulls. Use the plunger up and down quickly until the clog is dislodged. The same goes for heaping plates of leftovers. That was not found on other sites. This is where your intuition comes into play. If that doesn’t work, try using baking soda and white vinegar. Amid the current public health and economic crises, when the world is shifting dramatically and we are all learning and adapting to changes in daily life, people need wikiHow more than ever. What can I pour down a drain to unclog it? Modify your drain snake to fit through the slot in the basket strainer. Peek under the sink to get a rough idea how far down the waste tee is from the basket strainer. Here’s another simple and cheap way to unclog your kitchen sink. Working with homeowners and businesses to get their small repairs done in a timely and efficient manner, Honest Lee Handyman Services provides gutter and dryer vent cleaning along with fixture, fence, drywall, and toilet repairs. Indeed, hot water simply delays the process, pushing the future, greasy clog further down into the drainage system where it will be harder to access. You don’t have to remove all the stuff from under the sink, struggle to take apart and reassemble drains, or worry about spilling dirty drain water when you remove the trap. Use a bucket and mug or any other method to remove all standing water. You need to pour a cup of baking soda and half a cup of salt down the drain. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. (Believe me, this is a nice bonus!) Luckily, there are a lot of easy ways to unclog your drain! I ran the garbage disposal, but it's still clogged. and try again. Move on to the next step. They’re also easier to take apart if you have a problem in the future, and they don’t corrode. If your sink has a garbage disposal, try turning it on to see if that breaks up the clog. Don’t start panicking! The grease will just congeal farther down the drain pipe where it’ll be even harder to clear. In an effort to make your cleaning task simpler when dealing with a clogged kitchen sink, we’ve compiled ideas on how to spot a clogged sink, unclog kitchen sinks, and also how to prevent a blocked sink in the first place. Worked like a charm! ", "I didn't realize the baking soda and vinegar would unclog so quickly. Then twist and pull until you feel it hook onto the baffle. By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube. Baking soda and vinegar dissolve grease and oil. To keep your sink smelling fresh and running clear, pour in equal parts of vinegar and baking soda on a regular basis. Persistence, as recommended. Can you pour Drano down the kitchen sink? Run water in the clogged sink to tell if you’ve removed the obstruction. Unscrew the nuts and remove the trap. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. First, pour 1 cup (180 g) of baking soda down the drain. It worked immediately after many previous unsuccessful attempts. Thanks. Disposing of turkey carcasses, gummy foods like pasta and fibrous items like banana peels in the sink is asking for trouble. Baking soda is frequently used as a multipurpose cleanser. What really worked for me is the waiting for 5 minutes for it, "Baking soda and vinegar works like a charm every time! If the previous two approaches didn’t work, remove the trap and waste arm to get to the clog. Otherwise, put on some gloves and wipe the cable off with a rag as you push it back into the drum. If Food Waste is the culprit. I then ran hot water and the disposal. Method 4 … increase the pressure inside the drain pipe before I use the plunger again on the clogged one. For this method, there should be no water standing, inside the sink. ", fizz abundantly in contact with the vinegar, it's old and will be less effective. ", first. The most common ones are build-up in the pipes that can be caused by grease, coffee grounds, food scraps, soap scum residue and even hair. 1. If you follow the steps of this article and still can’t clear the blockage, don’t hesitate to call in a plumber. Then, pour in 1 cup (235 mL) of white vinegar. Here’s how you do it. If you can't unscrew the pipes by hand, then use a pipe wrench or channel locks to loosen the connections. Insert it into the kitchen drain or stub pipe to push through or pull out the clog if you can reach it. The key is to create a tight seal with the cup of the plunger against the bottom of the sink as you pump the tool up and down. of cable. For a good seal with the right plunger, you’ll need at least three or four inches of water on the clogged side, so if necessary, run the sink until the water reaches that level. When hair, grease, soap residue and other debris get stuck in your drain, boiling water may be all your pipes needs to loosen the blockage. It creates heat inside your drain to melt and dislodge greasy clogs. Finally, unwind the tip slightly to form a small hook. Vinegar (white or apple cider vinegar work) is the acidic base for creating the foaming reaction. unlocking this expert answer. To see if the problem is solved, fill up your sink with standing water by purposefully clogging the drain, and then let it drain to see if runs as it should. Please consider making a contribution to wikiHow today. The baking soda and vinegar tip worked for me, and I found the step-by-step guide, "Drained out old water, put baking soda in, then vinegar. There’s an art to using a drain snake, and the more experience you have, the better you’ll be at it. Support wikiHow by How do I unclog it? Use Vinegar and Soda Method to Unclog Kitchen Sink Drain Vinegar and baking soda is very common method of unclogging a kitchen sink drain for those who do not want to do anything mechanical. If anything solid clogs the sink, only use method 3 or call a professional. Avoid drain cleaning chemicals. Position the end of the drum so there’s about 8 in. Step – 01. There are several advantages to using a snake tool as a kitchen drain cleaner. 1. tb1234. If you have a double sink, then stuff a washcloth into the unclogged drain to ensure that the plunger's pressure is focused on the clog. I have one that I bought at Walmart for less than $20. Several things can happen at this point. It shows step by step, which helps. If all else fails, it might be time to call a plumber. 10 July 2020. ", "Very helpful, since I don't have anyone or money. If you’ve got a metal trap and drain arm, we recommend replacing them and the other metal drain parts with plastic. A clogged garbage disposal may need more work to dislodge. Withdraw the cable about 6 in. A clogged kitchen sink is a nightmare that everyone has to deal with some day. Run a modified snake down through the slots in the basket strainer. How to Unclog Your Kitchen Sink Drain Using Baking Soda and Vinegar. You can buy an inexpensive snake that’s simply a cable running through a bent pipe that allows you to twist the cable, but we recommend spending a little more money for a cable that’s enclosed in a drum. This article has 22 testimonials from our readers, earning it our reader-approved status. You’ll have two fewer bends to get around with the snake and have an easier time reaching deep clogs. This method to unclog a kitchen sink is almost the same as the one using baking soda and vinegar but uses salt instead. I just used plunger and it worked. To unclog a slow draining kitchen sink, before you go out and buy drain cleaner, try this first. ", actions. Plastic parts are easy to cut and assemble. This article was co-authored by Allen Lee. It’s quite possible that even after trying some of these methods the drain is still clogged and is still resulting in standing water. Before you get started on any of our solutions, suck all the water out of the sink with a wet-dry shop vacuum or sponge it into a bucket. Kitchen sink clogs—usually caused by grease or overworked garbage disposers can be easily removed in minutes with these simple tools and common-sense tips. There’s a baffle inside the waste tee that is meant to direct water down the drain, but since the baffled area is narrower than the rest of the drain, food often gets stuck there. How do I get rid of standing water in my sink? Although using a plunger may appear to be self-explanatory, it is possible to use it incorrectly. If you don't have a flat-bottomed plunger, you can also try using a wire coat hanger to unclog your kitchen sink. The second rule: Never pour grease down the drain. Cover the hole with a piece of duct tape or stuff it with a damp rag. Rice, eggshells, tea leaves, and coffee grounds don’t dissolve easily and can lodge in the curved pipe beneath the sink (also known as the p-trap) and result in a clogged drain. The trick is to bend a hook on the end of a coat hanger wire and use it to dislodge the clog. By doing them in the order in which I read them in this article, I fixed my problem. What should I do? Can I use boiling water to help unplug my kitchen sink if I have PVC pipes? Any reputable plumber would have a long auger somewhere, even if he/she didn't have it in the truck. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/b\/bc\/Unclog-a-Kitchen-Sink-Step-1-Version-8.jpg\/v4-460px-Unclog-a-Kitchen-Sink-Step-1-Version-8.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/b\/bc\/Unclog-a-Kitchen-Sink-Step-1-Version-8.jpg\/aid105170-v4-728px-Unclog-a-Kitchen-Sink-Step-1-Version-8.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":259,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":410,"licensing":"