Express Sewer & Drain Blog

Has clogging caught you off guard? Does it seem like there’s not end in sight for problems with your home drain and water system? For homeowners in Sacramento and the surrounding areas, you aren’t alone in dealing with these problems. There are a few recurring, common drain problems you should be aware of; problems that our experienced, knowledgeable specialists help homeowners resolve every day.

In most cases, problems with your home drain pipes aren’t due to extraneous, unforeseen circumstances, but rather direct use and poor cleaning behaviors that you can avoid entirely.

A large part of avoiding these common problems is accurately diagnosing their cause, and learning the best drain maintenance practices.

DIY Repairs Gone Wrong

Some of the most common drainage problems we encounter here in Sacramento are caused by DIY repairs or maintenance tasks that take sudden, unanticipated turns for the worse. Whether due to poor use of professional plumbing tools or a lack of information on how exactly your drain plumbing systems work, DIY drain cleaning disasters are completely avoidable with the right preparation and, in some cases, professional advice.

While attempting DIY kitchen and drainage maintenance can wind up saving you a hefty dollar in pipe repair, performing these tasks incorrectly or with the wrong tools can actually wind up further damaging your home drain pipes, resulting in more extensive repairs. If you’re unsure of how to carry out a drain repair, or uncertain as to the cause of your drain’s issues, don’t make matters worse by taking on DIY tasks unprepared; contact a local drain cleaning and repair specialist.

Chemical Cleaning Product Damage

Another common Sacramento drain problem is not the result of direct, improper maintenance, but rather an adverse reaction of the chemical cleaners countless homeowners flush through their drain systems to “clear” clogs.

While these agents can clean out clogged drains, they can also severely damage your pipes if used too often or extensively. In fact, it’s the chemical agents that make these commercial products work that can have detrimental, damaging outcomes on your pipes; for this reason, it’s best to simply avoid them altogether, and try some comparable home mixture remedies.

As it turns out, some of the most effective means for clearing out clogged drains are likely in your home pantry already: try carbonated soda, or baking soda/vinegar mixtures. The natural acids in these home mixtures and products can break away frustrating clogs and gunk, without the potential for adverse drain damage that comes with commercial products.

Garbage Disposal Malfunctioning

Along with corrosion from dangerous chemical cleaning products, we here at Express Sewer and Drain see faulty garbage disposals and disposal drain damage all too often. What’s surprising to many Sacramento homeowners is that these issues are almost always 100% avoidable, and that disposals just need the right care to run correctly indefinitely.

One of the best ways to ensure that your garbage disposal continues to run well is by knowing what you can and cannot process in your disposal. That’s right… despite the name, your disposal is not an all-around “garbage,” and there are certain products you should never run through disposal units. These include:

• Product packaging, papers and plastics
• Overly-fibrous products
• Starchy foods
• Animal bones and cartilage, even small fish bones
• Shells and animal skins
• Vegetable skin
• Household metal and glass products
• Paper towels
• Fatty oils and cooking grease
• Chemical products, such as everyday cleaner

Poor Regular Maintenance

Beyond disposal damage and corrosion, another common drain issue we see results from irregular Sacramento drain cleaning and poor maintenance techniques: that is, extensive buildup over time. Neglecting your home drain systems, and the recurring maintenance they need, is one of the most damaging things you can possibly do to your pipes.

The best home drains are those that are inspected and maintained on a monthly basis; this can be done by you or by an outside professional company. We recommend drain pipe self-checks be done once per month, and at least one professional inspection be done annually; while you can likely catch any major drain performance issues on your own, much more about your drains can be revealed with the trained eyes of hired plumbing professionals.

To learn more about the most common Sacramento drain issues, and what you can do today to prevent them from happening to you, contact us today.