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If anyone has ever had a problem with their drains the one thing they avoid doing is calling a plumber because they know it can be a hassle and they want to save money by trying to fix the problem themselves. How do they do that exactly? They try to find a home remedy- this home remedy being liquid drain cleaner. But does it really work and is it safe? Plumbers will tell you that this is not the answer and that it will only make matters worse. Leave it to the experts they believe that liquid drain cleaners present a red flag.
They have found that they are not good for cleaning drains. They have discovered that the drain cleaners may seem like an easy fix but it is actually quite the exact opposite. It may be very easy and accessible for you to go pick up a bottle at your nearest grocery store, but the reality is that they don’t do your drain justice. Sitting on the shelves of grocery stores and big-box stores, liquid drain cleaners seem like a good buy and a quick solution when a drain in your bathroom, kitchen, or laundry room plumbing backs up with water. But at the end of the day, it’s actually a scam and a trap. Here are the reasons why they can do harm versus fix your drain.
Drain cleaners bring forth toxicity, which is without a doubt a bad sign.
The chemicals in commercial drain cleaners, particularly the no-name and inexpensive varieties, have high toxicity levels. The fumes aren't healthy to inhale and will sting and irritate your nose and eyes. These fumes hang around wherever the chemical was used, long after it goes down the drain.
Drain cleaners won’t do justice but damage to your pipes. Ironically, the chemicals in drain cleaners can harm pipes while supposedly “cleaning” them. The principle chemical in commercial cleaning solutions is hydrochloric acid. This will not only aggravate pipes as it sits in them, but it will also chew off the enamel and other expensive finishes in your kitchen or bathroom.
For all you environmental junkies, here is something that will bring you some perspective; drain cleaners are bad for plumbing and the earth. Why would you want to invest in something that facilitates that kind of behavior? At the end of the day, the chemicals in drain cleaners are not good for the environment. The residue left in bottles ends up in landfills and can enter the water. Once it enters the water it can poison fish and other wildlife.
It’s safe to say that drain cleaners may not even work. If that doesn’t give you reason enough to not use it then I don’t know what will. What is the reason behind your drain clogging up? It could possibly be back up, because of trouble in the sewer line, or broken pipes. Dumping chemicals down a drain won’t fix these problems. It seems like an easy solution, but it ultimately does more harm than good.
What should you do the next time the sink backs up? You’re better off skipping the drain cleaners and using a plunger to clear a clogged drain. Your last and the probably most vital option is to call a plumber. It may be the more pricey option, but at the end of the day it is worth it, as it will actually save you a nightmare and more money. Doing more damage to your sink will end up costing you more.
In spite of how bad drain cleaner is the product has surprisingly generated a lot of revenue in the past. Statista outlines the sales data in 2015. The drain cleaner brand Liquid Plumber Foaming Pipe Snake generated 7.7 million U.S. dollars in sales. Undeniably, those are good numbers but unfortunately, this means that many people are wasting their money purchasing the product when it is not even good for your plumbing system.
