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Tips for Winter Drain Maintenance

Your plumbing system is all connected throughout your home. This is why it's important to make sure that everything is functioning correctly so that it remains in sync.

Kitchen Sink drains

The kitchen is the heart of your home, it's where everyone gathers after a long day to cook a meal or grab a snack, and it's also pretty central to your plumbing as well. It's easy to think that when you're done eating, you can just toss all of your food scraps into the garbage disposal and call it a day, but there's only so much your garbage disposal can really handle. Treat your kitchen with care and follow these helpful tips.

Coffee Grounds and Egg Shells

Who else starts their day with a cup (or pot) of coffee and scrambled eggs for breakfast every morning? Experts always say it's the best way to start your day, and we couldn't agree with them more. But did you know that this breakfast choice could send your home's plumbing into turmoil?

That's right. When you dispose of your used coffee grounds and cracked eggshells, what do you do? If you typically toss them in the sink, you should stop this practice immediately. When broken down, coffee grounds and eggshells act in a similar manner. They'll eventually clump together and form a clog along with other debris that gets washed down the drain.

Keep breakfast clean and toss coffee grounds and eggshells in the trash.

Fibrous Foods

Another common culprit of drain clogs is fibrous foods. Because of their stringy nature, it's easier for them to get caught around the hammer or blades of your disposal and cause a clog, and if they make it past the disposal, they can get tangled up in other food debris in the pipes.

Here are some common fibrous foods that you should always throw in the trash instead of down the drain:

  • Celery
  • Asparagus
  • Corn husks
  • Artichokes
  • Lettuce
  • Onion skins
  • Rhubarb

Starchy Foods

Foods like potatoes, pasta, and rice are no good for your drains. As they begin to break down in the water, they form a gooey, paste-like substance that works to bind other food debris together, eventually forming a clog in your pipes.

Bathroom Drains

Your bathroom is a plumbing and drain hub. Not only do you have to worry about a sink drain here but also the toilets and showers.

Shower Drains

The leading cause of all shower blockages is hair, and don't exclusively blame the women who use the shower; sure, their hair is more likely to cause the clog, but short men's hair only exacerbates the issue.

To prevent loose hair from clogging up the showers in your home, install mesh shower drains that you can use to collect hair and other debris before it falls down the drain.

Toilets

We have a tendency to treat toilets as additional trash cans, but it's important to remember that not everything is flushable. There are several items that are commonly flushed that should be avoided in the future, including:

  • "Flushable" wipes
  • "Flushable" litter
  • Tissues
  • Feminine hygiene products
  • Q-tips and cotton pads
  • Dental floss

No matter how diligent you are about protecting your drains, mistakes, and clogs happen. That's why it's important to have a team of drain cleaning experts standing by at all times. Our team at Merry Plumbing are here to help get your plumbing moving again. Visit our website or give us a call at (626) 414-5583 today for more information about our services!

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