Handy Advice
Smelly drains
If your bathroom seems to suffer with sewer smells every once in a while but doesn’t show signs of any blockages, you may benefit from fitting a device in your floor waste that prevents sewer smells from travelling back up into the room. We use and recommend Gratemates for this job. VIEW GrateMate-info-sheet.pdf
Blocked Shower Drain
Often these are caused by normal hair and soap scum build up and can be minimised by removing the floor waste grate at regular intervals and pulling out any hair trapped here. Flushing the pipe through with very hot water can help keep the soap scum from building up in this area too. Think about swapping to a soap free shower gel as this will not only stop the build up occuring in the drain, it will also prevent soap scum deposits on your shower screen and tiles from building up.
Blocked Basins
The most common cause of a blocked basin is hair and soap scum build up as well as foreign objects such as cotton ear buds. You can use a wooden kebab skewer to pull out any trapped hair near to the plug hole and flush this down the toilet if the blockage appears around the plug hole. If the blockage is lower down it may be necessary to undo the trap under the basin and clean out the trap. Only attempt this if you have the correct tools to loosen and tighten the trap up correctly afterwards. Always pop a bucket under the trap to catch any water that may be in the pipe to avoid damage to your cabinet/floor.
Blocked Kitchen Sink
Kitchen sinks are a very common area of the house to have minor blockages. Most are caused by either food scraps getting stuck in the pipes or a build up of grease/fat. Avoid putting food scraps down your kitchen sink by using a basket plug to catch these scraps and pop them into the bin. If you have a waste disposal unit make sure you run plenty of water at the same time the scraps are being chopped up and continue to run water for at least 20 seconds after the machine has stopped. This will keep the scraps moving within the pipe and outside into the main drain. Avoid pouring any fats down your kitchen sink especially those that solidify when they cool. Pour very hot soapy water down your kitchen sink at regular intervals to help disperse fat deposits.
Blocked Toilets
Never use over the toilet pan rim fresheners as these are a common cause of blockages as they can become unhooked and get stuck in the bend of the toilet. Usually the toilet needs to be removed to resolve this issue. Only flush toilet paper down the toilet, never sanitary products, nappies, make up wipes or any other non-soluble item as this is likely to cause a blockage.
Septic System
Ensure the only cleaning products used are as organic as possible so your septic system can work correctly. This will avoid smells and keep the correct natural bacteria balance working at breaking down the sewerage. If a blockage occurs, it’s probably best to call in the experts. VIEW septic-system-guide.pdf
