Maintaining a tidy household or business often feels like a full-time job. For some, it certainly is! Yet, many property owners don’t know what not to put down the drain, which is just as important as sweeping the floors and wiping down countertops.
Throughout our emergency plumbing services in Parowan, UT, Iron Mountain Plumbing has rescued clients from preventable overflowing drains. We decided to save our readers from the same fate by listing what you can and cannot rinse or flush down your fixtures. Continue reading below to learn whether you’re risking your plumbing system’s health and safety.
What Not to Put Down the Drain of Your Sink
Let’s start with the sink, particularly the kitchen sink. This drain frequently becomes a catchall for unwanted food scraps and countless other materials. That goes double if you outfitted your sink with a garbage disposal.
However, your kitchen drain and garbage disposal are delicate mechanisms that you must treat with care. You’ll find substances that damage the drain pipes and disposal appliances below.
Starches
How often have you scraped pieces of leftover pasta or rice into your sink drain? How about soggy bread crusts? Starchy substances like these are big no-nos. They go in the garbage can.
Pasta, rice, bread, and similar menu items absorb water and expand. Pasta and rice, in particular, can become gelatinous in texture, enabling them to form a snug plug in the drain pipe. That’s the perfect recipe for a sink disaster.
Gritty or Crunchy Things
Have you ever peeled some boiled eggs only to rinse the eggshells down the drain? Maybe you’ve dumped old coffee grounds into your sink because you ran out of trash bags. Neither substance can dissolve in water, retaining its constitution instead.
Sure, you might break them down further with your garbage disposal, but they can damage the appliance by becoming wedged in its mechanisms. The ground-up particles can also mix with the starches or grease, making potential clogs even bigger and less water-soluble.
Grease and Oil
Nothing beats an evening meal complete with freshly cooked meat. Savory chicken, smoky steak, and juicy burgers are favorites in many Parowan households. Unfortunately, grease and oil make terrible bedfellows for sink drains.
They can solidify inside the pipes, and other debris can stick to the growing plugs or pipe coating. After cooking with oil or grease or making a piece of meat with lots of fat, try this instead:
- Allow the cookware to cool completely.
- Scrape the solidified oil or grease into a disposable container, like a paper bag.
- Throw the container into the garbage can.
- Wipe the cookware with a paper towel to remove as much residue as possible.
- Use hot water and dish soap to wash any remaining residue off the surface.
This approach limits the greasy substances that go down your drain. The dish soap can effectively dissolve small amounts of grease, so you shouldn’t have trouble when handwashing.
Vegetable or Fruit Fibers
Fibrous materials can also form sizable clogs in sinks, especially if they become entangled with other materials. They pose a particular danger to your garbage disposal since the fibers can wrap around the blades and other components and throttle the appliance.
Citrus fruits, leafy greens, and celery are examples of fibrous fruits and vegetables that can cause damage. Throw peelings and other undesirable parts in the garbage or, better yet, a compost heap.
What Not to Flush Down the Toilet of Your Parowan Property
Knowing not to flush down the drain of a sink isn’t enough to protect your property’s plumbing in Parowan, Utah. You must also protect your toilet from inappropriate items. Technically, the toilet is also part of your drainage system, so it counts. Let’s examine what to toss in the garbage rather than flush down the commode below.
Animal Substrates
If you share your home with pets, you likely handle their waste and clean up after them. Cats are common house pets that require their own toilets to stay hygienic and healthy. You likely clean the litter boxes at least every other day.
Never flush used litter down the toilet even if the label says you can flush it! Litter clumps together. Those clumps form a solid clog that will destroy your drain lines. Pet owners should also stay vigilant about these other examples of what not to put down the drain of a toilet:
- Aquarium gravel
- Sand
- Sawdust
- Wooden terrarium substrate
- Moss
- Straw
These substances often line the bottoms of fish or reptile tanks. Some people use them for dog enclosures, too.
Flushable Wipes
Let’s cut to the chase. Almost any item marketed as flushable probably isn’t, unless it’s toilet paper, and that includes wet wipes. Toss these thick, often fibrous cloths into the garbage can and keep them far away from your toilet.
Facial Tissues
Yes, even some paper products shouldn’t go down your toilet. Facial tissues are thicker and more durable than toilet paper. They can form wads that expand when wet, and they don’t break down quickly.
Paper Towels
Like facial tissues, paper towels have a more fortified structure than toilet paper. Fortunately, many paper towels are biodegradable and compostable, especially if you purchase chemical-free options. So, don’t feel guilty about allowing them to take up space in the garbage can.
Cotton Balls
Cotton balls are highly absorbent and can expand inside your drain pipes. Plus, multiple cotton balls can stick together, forming a big plug in your toilet. You’ll face rising water levels in the porcelain bowl in no time if you don’t throw these seemingly innocuous items in the trash.
Feminine Hygiene Items
Like wet wipes, manufacturers may tout many feminine hygiene products as flushable. However, this rarely proves true.
Tampons contain cotton that expands and contracts when exposed to dampness. Pads feature plastic and cotton-like materials, too. Plus, they are incredibly thick compared to the average drain pipe. The same goes for diapers, too!
Never Flush Medicines, Chemicals, or Sticky Substances
Our lesson on what not to put down the drain isn’t quite finished yet. We still need to cover common household products, including:
- Household cleaners: Many run-of-the-mill cleaning products contain harsh chemicals that kill the beneficial bacterial and plant life in local waterways.
- Chemical drain cleaners: Don’t let the name fool you; many drain cleaning products cause pipe damage and destroy natural water sources.
- Waxy substances: Melted wax always goes in the garbage. It’s like grease plugs but more stubborn and destructive.
- Paint: Some paints coat the drain’s interior, while others do the same with the added touch of disrupting our local ecosystems.
- Home improvement chemicals: Paint thinners, bleach, ammonia, and other concoctions used for home improvement projects wreak havoc on your plumbing and neighboring creatures.
- Prescription and over-the-counter medications: Although most medications can dissolve in water, they release their formulas into our waterways, causing friends and family to consume substances they want to avoid.
You shouldn’t rinse or flush the above-listed items down the sink or toilet drain. Many municipalities have facilities or programs for safely disposing of these substances.
How to Care for the Drains in Your Home or Business
So, what can you rinse down your drains in Parowan, Utah? And how can you take better care of your plumbing system starting now? We’re so glad you asked.
Clog prevention begins with consistently cleaning your drains. Our plumbers recommend stashing the following products in your bathrooms and kitchen:
- Make boiling water and dish soap your monthly go-to. Pour a pot of boiling water down each drain to loosen debris. Squeeze one to two cups of your preferred dish soap and allow it to sit for half an hour. Then, chase the soap with one more pot of boiling water.
- White vinegar and baking soda are a powerful duo. If you have an active clog, pour a pot of boiling water down the drain followed by a cup of baking soda and a cup of vinegar. The pressure blasts debris free.
- Replace harsh drain cleaning products with an enzymatic drain cleaner. You should still use this sparingly, but it should help when vinegar and baking soda don’t cut it.
- A drain snake is incredibly user-friendly. It’s your best bet for removing hair from bathroom sinks, showers, and tubs. The hooks snag the strands, enabling you to pull them out.
- You can purchase plungers for sinks and toilets. Cover the drain opening with the rubber cup and apply intense pressure to loosen the clog. The water should begin draining once you’ve successfully plunged the fixture.
You should also cover your tub, shower, and sink drains with drain traps during use. These metal traps collect debris before it flows down your drains, limiting potential blockages.
Iron Mountain Plumbing Has Your Back with Drain Cleaning Services in Parowan, Utah
Now that you know what not to put down the drain, read through these clogged drain signs to learn when to act against plumbing blockages. Iron Mountain Plumbing offers drain cleaning services in Parowan, Utah, when your at-home methods fail.