What you put down the drain doesn’t just affect your plumbing system. A study found that Chemicals in medication ended up in the drinking water of 24 cities. That means there were antibiotics, pain killers, and hormones in the drinking water.
Ask any plumber. There are certain things you should never throw or flush down the drain. Read on to learn what they are.
Don’t Put it Down the Drain
There are many things that plumbers discover when they are called to unblock a drain. The range of substances and objects that they find suggests that people think once it’s gone down the sink, it’s gone. Sad to say, that’s often far from true.
1. Medication
It’s not safe to have out of date medication clogging up your bathroom cabinet. It’s best to dispose of it.
Your first thought might be to put it down the drain. Medication is not going to clog up your drains but it’s still not the right way to dispose of it. It might well affect someone down the line.
Take unused medications to your pharmacy where they can dispose of them safely.
2. Grease
Grease, along with fat and oil are common ingredients in your kitchen. When you wash dishes or cooking utensils, you wash grease, fat, and oil down the drain together with hot water and dish soap.
This mixture of substances cools as it passes through the pipes and turns into a sticky material preventing water from flowing and your drain gets backed up.
Whenever you have cooking fat to dispose of, pour it into a container, let it cool, and put it in the trash.
3. Cigarette Butts
Whether you smoke or your visitors do, it’s tempting to put a cigarette butt down the drain. The kitchen sink might seem like a convenient place to put out a smoldering butt. How much harm can it cause the drains?
The problem with this method of disposing of the occasional cigarette butt is that they don’t flush away easily. Once the cigarette butt is in the pipe it is easily embedded in grease and contributes to clogging of the pipes. The filter expands in water making it even harder to flush.
Use an ashtray, stub out the burning cigarette, and dispose of butts in the trash can. Better still, give up smoking.
4. Coffee Grounds
Making coffee with ground coffee is nicer than the instant version but what do you do with the coffee grounds?
Putting coffee grounds down the drain is not the answer. The grounds clog up the drains and can contribute to blockage.
Try using coffee grounds as garden fertilizer, slug repellant, or as a deodorizer for your fridge.
5. Hair
Everybody loses a little hair every time they wash it. It ends up down the drain. What’s the harm?
Hair can combine with soap to form a tough clogging substance in your drain. Don’t let it get into your system. Use a hair stopper to catch it.
Blocked Drain
Avoid putting the wrong things down the drain. That way you’ll help prevent it from blocking. If it does happen, call Paxton Plumbings, LLC. Contact us here.
