5 Common Causes of Blocked Drains and How to Prevent Them

Blocked drains are a hassle that could disrupt your everyday life. They could cause the destruction of your home’s plumbing, unpleasant odours, and even health risks. If not promptly dealt with, blocked drains can cause serious issues in your plumbing system, which can lead to costly repair or even replacement.
Key Takeaways
- Drains that are blocked can interrupt your daily life and result in problems with water, bad smells, and even health risks.
- Oil, grease and fat build-up can clog the pipes’ walls, causing obstructions; try not to pour grease down drains or make use of hot water and soap for cleaning dishes.
- The roots of trees naturally expand into the ground searching for nutrients, which could cause serious damages and blockages to pipes that can lead to flooding. Regularly maintain the trees surrounding drainage systems by pruning them.
- Disposing of non-biodegradable materials like wet wipes, towels, etc. can result in nasty smells emanating around toilets/bin areas; be sure to flush toilet paper down the drain.
- Hair
In this article, we will explore five causes of blocked drains and the best way to stop them from happening.
Cause 1. Grease, Oil and Fat Buildup
Fat, grease, and oil might appear to be harmless substances to flush down the drain, however, over time, they begin to accumulate over the insides of pipes, which causes obstruction. As a result the water can’t flow freely through the drainpipes. It is best to avoid throwing grease into the drain. Alternatively, use hot water and soap during cleaning dishes since it can help dissolve greasy substances.
Cause 2: Tree Roots
In time, the tree roots naturally expand into the soil in search of nutrients, which implies that they expand towards underground pipes. Once inside the pipes, trees roots can cause a lot of damage and may completely block them, leading to flooding. It’s crucial, therefore, if you have trees around to regularly monitor the growth of your trees around drainage systems by trimming them in a regular manner.
Cause 3: Flushed items
It’s not difficult to conclude that flushing biodegradable products such as wet wipes, sanitary towels etc. will not cause any major problems over the long haul, but when too many of these items are flushed in the toilets, they’ll build up, pushing other items aside and in the way of pipes. This could result in nasty smells emanating around bins and toilets! Always remember what should be flushed and which shouldn’t (i. the only toilet papers should be flushed).
Cause 4 Cause 4: Hair
Additional Information
- The Top Causes of Blocked Drains and Their Simple Solutions
- Why CCTV Drain Inspections Should Be Part of Your Regular Maintenance Routine
- Why You Need CCTV Drain Inspection Services
- The Benefits of CCTV Drain Inspection: Beyond Unclogging Pipes
- Investigating the Main Sources of Drain Clogs
- The Importance of CCTV Drain Inspections in Preventing Expensive Property Damage
- From Clogged to Clear: A Detailed Tutorial to Unblock Your Shower Drain
- How to Tell You Need Drain Clearing Services for Your Business
- Using the Power of High Pressure Drain Cleaning
- Preventing Clogs and Blockages: Best Practices for Maintaining Your Drains