Common Causes of Clogs in Kitchen Sinks

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No matter how clean a kitchen you keep, its plumbing will receive plenty of punishment. No other spot in your home puts as much strain on pipes and drains, and it’s common for kitchen sinks to develop clogs because of all the strain they undergo. Sometimes you can solve a clogged sink with a plunger, but if that doesn’t work, you should leave the chemical drain cleaners on the shelf and instead call for a professional plumber to take care of the trouble.

You can avoid many sink clogs, however, with regular drain cleaning services and a few precautions. To help you out, here’s a list of the most common reasons for sinks to develop blockages and slow drains.

For expert help for kitchen plumbing in Aurora, CO, call on the many decades of experience at Bell Plumbing and Heating. We can handle any clog, no matter the cause.

What causes sink clogs?

  • Liquid F.O.G. (fat-oil-grease): No doubt, these organic liquids are the major foes that kitchen sinks face. All of them seem innocent in their hot, liquid state, and they go down drains easily. However, in their cool state, they are waxy solids that will coat the inside of drainpipes and begin to close off the volume of a pipe. When the build-up gets thick enough, it will lead to frequent clogging, as well as the danger of increased water pressure. Professionals can scour the inside of the drains with hydro-jetters to eliminate this, but the best solution is prevention: pour out F.O.G. into a separate container and place it in the trash.
  • Soap scum: Soap seems innocent enough, but it’s actually caustic and can erode pipes. Too much soap scum inside a pipe will soak into other particles inside the drainpipes and turn into a wet mass along the interior of horizontal pipes. This will also require scouring to fix.
  • Food: Food should go down the garbage disposal (unless it is hard material you cannot chew, like bones or popcorn kernels), not the sink. The food particles will become trapped in the p-trap, the curved pipe beneath the sink that maintains the water plug to keep sewer gas from escaping up the drain. The p-trap will eventually become clogged with food particles and create a clog. If you don’t have a garbage disposal already, have one installed and make sure all leftover food goes down the disposal, not the sink drain.

Make professional plumbers your best option

When that sink plunger fails, call up a professional plumber to handle the clog using technology like hydro-jetters and mechanical drain snakes. A skilled plumber will clear those blockages without causing any damage to your pipes.

For fast solutions to your troubles with kitchen plumbing in Aurora, CO, call Bell Plumbing and Heating, any time of the day or night.

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