Are you ankle-deep in the shower? Holding your nose because of the foul drain smell? Slow-to-drain sinks gurgling and sputtering? Toilet water rising? Feeling of dread setting in? It’s time to grab that trusty plunger and get plunging. Time to uncurl that coat hanger and go fishing. Time to throw in some baking soda and white vinegar and get fizzing.
But what about all the marketing hype about the latest liquid drain cleaner? When all other DIY unblocking drain methods fail, and you’re about to call in the professional drainage plumber with their high-tech gear and techniques, reaching for the harsher chemical drain cleaner products can be tempting.
But should you? Do chemical drain cleaners work? Is a drain cleaner bad for drain pipes? We know it’s tempting to listen to the marketing spin, hurl it down your drain and let the chemical magic do its amazing thing. But haven’t you also heard that using some of these commercial drain cleaner liquid products comes with certain risks as well?
You’re right to be cautious – and here’s why:
1. Drain cleaning liquid can burn
Get a bit of your homemade baking soda-plus-vinegar brew on your skin, and this liquid plumbing solution won’t harm you a bit.
But it’s a different story for the chemical drain cleaner products, many of which contain highly corrosive chemicals and compounds that won’t just eat through a harsh clog, but also your skin. Get it in your eyes, and you could even go blind.
2. Chemical drain cleaners have fumes
While direct contact with many a liquid drain cleaner will burn your skin, even the fumes can be extremely dangerous for the people – you – who are using them. Breathe them in, and you could burn or damage your entire respiratory tract – and some are so harsh that even your teeth aren’t safe from those chemical and acid fumes.
3. Blocked drain liquid causes many injuries
If you read #1 and #2 and thought ‘That won’t be a problem for me’, think again. In Australia alone, hundreds of injuries directly attributable to drain cleaner liquid occur every single year – so much so that some plumbers will even ask you before starting work what you’ve already poured down there.
4. Even your plumbing system isn’t safe
The idea is to ‘eat into’ that drain gunk, but drain cleaning liquid can actually ‘eat into’ your actual drain and pipe materials, too! Don’t forget, the active ingredients of every chemical drain cleaner are supposed to be highly corrosive – but not every pipe or drain will come out the other side intact. Worse still, the liquid could even collect in the pipe, eating away at a weak plumbing section over time or coming back out for the unsuspecting user.
Let the Drain Masters implement a safe, healthy fix
Is your trusty plunger, homemade natural brew or even a hand-held drain snake not doing the trick? Before reaching for that harsh and risky chemical liquid plumbing solution, consider giving the Brisbane drain cleaning masters a shout instead! We’ve always got our professional products, finely-tuned techniques, and the best heavy-duty plumbing tools handy, including:
- CCTV drain inspection cameras
- Ultra-high pressure water jetters
- Motorised augers, and more.
Need a fast, professional, cost-effective, safe, healthy and eco-friendly alternative to a harsh commercial liquid drain cleaner? Ashgrove to Annerley, Carindale to Camp Hill and everywhere across Brisbane, there’s one plumber to call. Give Drain Masters Plumbing a shout from and we’ll be right with you.
