If you have experienced congestion, or sewer smell in your home, you know, how important it is to identify root causes and to solve problems quickly.
We explain it in this post, what factors can be behind the discomfort and we present those home methods, which can be an effective help in overcoming them.
What can cause a blockage?
Blockages in the canals are mainly caused by materials poured into the drains and their residues. In the kitchen, these can be, for example, coffee grounds, the flour, greasy dirt and food with smaller grains. Special attention should be paid to flour, because when mixed with water, it easily swells in the pipes.
Cosmetic products with a creamy texture work similarly in bathrooms, the hair knots, the thicker liquid soaps, and deposits left from various chemicals. Sometimes poorly diluted anti-clogging agents take crystalline form, they themselves create obstacles. A WC-primarily feminine hygiene products, excessively used wet wipes, and an inadequate amount of rinsing water can cause problems.
In addition, rarely, but such cases may also occur, when regular blockages occur due to a poorly installed sewer system. An error can be, among other things, the wrongly chosen slope angle of the pipes, or the installation of unjustified right-angled elbows.
What can cause a sewer smell to spread in the apartment?
Many people think so, a sewer smell its spread is due to the lack of cleaning in the apartment. However, this is far from true, the gases flowing back from the drains have little to do with hygiene. It can even appear at those, who meticulously take care of the cleanliness of their environment.
On the one hand, foul odors are caused by the above-mentioned impurities, on the other hand, the lack of odor blocking equipment, or malfunction can be held responsible. Among the latter, it is most often found under faucets and showers siphon problems arise around. There is always water in it, which forms a kind of barrier to gases returning from the channel. If this siphon is punctured for some reason, until it clogs or dries out due to infrequent use, the sewer smell can easily enter the apartment.
Eliminate blockages and sewer odors with home methods
You can even try to treat minor blockages and the rarely occurring sewer odor with home remedies. You won't need anything else to make them, as for the raw materials found in your household.
A mixture of baking soda and vinegar
Baking soda and vinegar are cleaners, its deodorizing effects were already known to our great-grandmothers at that time, when it wasn't so easy to drop by the store for chemicals. In addition, the mixture of the two materials has another great feature.
Since baking soda is alkaline, and vinegar is acidic, their meeting creates such a neutral foam, which does not corrode the walls of the pipes. On the other hand, it is able to dissolve deposits quickly and also removes odors. The operation is easy to perform, as you can see in the video below.
The degreasing power of hot water
Hot water can be especially useful for removing greasy deposits in the kitchen. Before pouring any substance down the drain, you should use this to flush the system.
Using lemon juice and salt
The mixture of lemon juice and salt not only dissolves dirt, but it also keeps the drain fresh with its pleasant smell. When mixing, you need to add as much salt to the lemon juice, to get a slightly more liquid consistency.
The pipe ferret
The pipe ferret is also such a tool, which does not corrode the wires and does not require any serious expertise to use. It wouldn't hurt you to get one either, as it is an effective solution against most blockages.
What can you do, if the home practices did not bring a solution either?
If with stubborn congestion, or struggles with a constant sewer smell, you should seek professional help. Our company is at your disposal with modern equipment and decades of work experience. Look for it U.S Feel free to contact us!
