How to clear a blockage in a sink without harm to the environment and calling a plumber
One day I began to notice that the water in the kitchen sink drains more slowly.
This is an indicator of a blockage. Trash plug can occur not only due to food debris, fat deposits can form on the drain walls. Small cleanings, fish scales can quickly clog the drain hole and cause a rotten smell. Worst of all, there is a washing machine drain hose running into my sink. So you can fill in your neighbors.
You can call a plumber to clear the blockage. But I did it on my own using the following method.
First, I soften the blockage so that the pipe walls are cleaned and the smell disappears. To do this, I take regular baking soda.
I mix two tablespoons of soda with the same amount of salt and 1 tablespoon of citric acid. I pour the mixture into the drain hole. I add 1 glass of boiling water and wait 5-7 minutes. I spill the drain with hot water.
If citric acid is not found in the house, vinegar can be used as well. I pour ½ cup of soda into the drain, add 200 ml of vinegar and close it with a stopper. An hour later I pour boiling water into the hole.
The acid-base reaction will loosen the blockage. And citric and acetic acids will remove the unpleasant odor.
Now I start mechanical cleaning.
Dismantling the drain system
There are different types of drain:
Trumpet (it is called a knee)
Corrugated
Bottle (with a siphon).
The latter type is most often encountered.
The siphon is the weakest point of the sink. During draining, the liquid flows through the pipe first down into the siphon, then up into the drain to the sewer. Part of the water remains in the bend, preventing odor from penetrating outside. It is in the siphon that a blockage usually occurs.
I substitute the basin, put on household or medical gloves. I unscrew the flask, that is, the lower part of the siphon.
I clean out dirt, debris and sprouted seeds (yes, it happens). I install it back.
The sink has been cleaned, the water drains quickly and the smell has disappeared.