How to Unblock a Shower Drain

Tired of slow draining water, of gurgling sounds and unpleasant coming from the shower plughole? Then it’s time you learned how to unblock a shower drain!

Using a Commercial Chemical Drain Cleaner

If you’ve got commercial drain cleaners at hand or have the time and money to go out and purchase these, they are a straightforward and sure-fire solution to your blocked drain issues. Your local supermarket or hardware stores will certainly stock a variety of chemical cleaners which are both easy to use and affordable.

All you need to do is pour the chemical cleaner down the drain and let it work its magic. It’s important to note that these substances are, in most cases, toxic for humans. You should use rubber gloves when attempting to unblock your shower drain with a chemical cleaner so as to avoid skin damage; any gloves you usually use for cleaning will do. You should also make sure your bathroom gets adequate levels of ventilation while you use the chemical cleaner and for a short while after.

If your drain isn’t blocked but is still emitting a foul smell, check out our guide on how to get rid of drain odour!

How to Unblock a Shower Drain Using Baking Soda and White Vinegar

If you’re ever in a situation where you need your shower drain unblocked immediately and don’t have any chemical drain cleaners on hand, you can make a drain cleaning solution using two common household items: white vinegar and baking soda.

You don’t need to actually mix the two into a solution; you can simply pour half a cup of baking soda down your clogged drain and then immediately follow up with the same amount of white vinegar. Make sure that the vinegar is distilled! The two complement each other well and work together to do away with the blockage. Ideally, the solution needs to be left to its devices for about 20 minutes before you pour hot water down the drain. If you’re pressed for time 10 minutes is probably long enough as well.

If you’re a fan of using household products for bathroom cleaning purposes, check out tour blog post on the bathroom cleaning hacks that will change your life.

 

Boiling Water Can Also Be Your Ally Against Drain Blockage

For those who are even more pressed for time or simply don’t have both baking soda and distilled white vinegar available to them, there is another potential solution: boiling hot water! All you need to do is pout water which has just been boiled straight from the kettle into your shower drain.

While boiling water is great for easier blockages, for those which are trickier you will need to employ one of the other solutions in this list. However, pouring boiling water down your shower drain once a week can help prevent clogged drains all together. Adopting this weekly regimen will definitely improve your shower drainage.

 

Using a Hook to Unblock Your Shower Drain

One of the oldest methods of unclogging a drain is to use a hook to pull out the blockage. All you need for this method is a piece of wire which you can easily mould into a hook shape. One of the common household items which you can use is a coat hanger. If your drain is clogged by mineral build-up, this method will be your best bet.

Plungers Can Be Useful Too

Similar to a homemade hook, the plunger is also one of the oldest and most tried and tested ways of unclogging a shower drain. Plungers are straightforward enough to use, however, they aren’t always the best tools for unblocking shower drains. In order to improve the success rate of this method, you can try pouring boiling hot water down the drain before you attempt to use the plunger. In order for this method to be as effective as possible, you need to add enough water to the shower so that the end of the plunger is submerged.

 

Looking for More Cleaning Tips?

Prevention is always preferable to allowing blockages to build up and then having to get rid of them. We’ve already touched upon the weekly boiling water regimen to keep your drain clear of debris. Another great way of preventing build up is to install a drain screen. While drain screens also need to be cleaned and looked after, this will be easier on you compared to fighting a blocked drain. For more information on shower cleaning, check our blog post on how to keep your shower clean for longer.

 

Feature image credit: Number96 / Shutterstock