How to Keep Your Holidays from Going Down the Drain.

By Billy Aldridge

Another year has come and gone along with another holiday season.  With the holidays, most any holiday, where you wind up playing host to family and friends, it is not at all unusual for the household plumbing to get overstresses.  Instead of having to put up with yet another unwanted guest, in the guise of a plumber, I have come up with a holiday checklist that is designed to reduce those pesky HPDs (otherwise known as holiday plumbing disasters).

Prep Your Potty: Before the troops hit the beach, if you have a septic system I suggest you prep every toilet in the house with a bacterial/enzyme based product like RidX every couple of months in order to keep the lines clear.   Since you need to let the product remain in the toilet for several hours, this is not something you want to do if the thundering herd is expected to show up at any minute. 

Deep Clean Your Drains:  The best way to think about your pipes is the to view like them to the arteries in your body.  Like arteries, pipes tend to over time as lime scale, hair and all manners of crud gradually reduce their effective diameter until they stop up completely.  The best way to keep blockages from forming both in the body as well as in your home, is to give the system a vigorous workout on a weekly basis.  The best way to do this is to plug the drain and fill the sink with hot water and a few drops of dish detergent.  When the sink is full, pull the plug and allow the drain to empty completely.  If successful you will both see and hear the water swirl rapidly down the drain.  This indicates that the pipes are clear.  If the water drains lethargically, repeat the process.  If that doesn’t work, call in the plumber before the holiday to save the overtime costs. 

Disinfect Your Disposal: Along with the drains, it is also a good idea to disinfect your disposal at least every quarter.  To do this you will need the following 3 items:  Ice, Dish Detergent and either Vinegar or Lemon Juice.  Step number one is to turn on the disposal and run some hot water and then toss in a couple of handfuls of ice.  This both cleans and sharpens the blades at the same time.  Next, pour a couple of drops of dish detergent and a tablespoon of lemon or lime juice while the unit is still running to disinfect and deodorize the unit. (Below is a video that shows you the entire process.)

Disaster Relief Kit: Even if you do all that I have suggested above, this doesn’t necessarily mean that either you or one of your houseguests can’t find a way to gum up the works.  If that should happen, you should put together a disaster relief kit that consists of a plunger, a bucket, a plumbing snake, a bottle of dish detergent, a box of baking soda and a bottle of vinegar. 

Should the unthinkable happen and either a drain or toilet become clogged, do not panic.  If the toilet is clogged, simply turn off the water to the toilet, fill up the bucket with hot water, add a couple drops of dish detergent to the bucket and then pour the bucket as quickly as possible into the toilet while simultaneously having someone else flush the toilet.  Ideally, you want to hold the bucket at waist height in order to increase the pressure of the water against the clog.  Many times this will clear the clog and allow the toilet to flush.  If not, plan B is to start plunging. 

When plunging a toilet, the most important factor is to make sure that the plunger is completely submerged. It’s water pressure, not air pressure that is necessary to clear out a clog.  If there isn’t enough water to ensure that the plunger is completely underwater, then add some.  If the toilet is nearly filled to the brim with water, simply remove some.  The trick is to get the job done without turning the bathroom into a disaster area.

If the clog still won’t come loose, there is one more step you can try, provided that you have at least one additional working bathroom for you and your guests to use.  That is pouring a box of baking soda and a half bottle of vinegar into the toilet and let it stand overnight.  First you need to drain all the standing water out of the bowl.  Then add the baking soda and vinegar.  This mixture will immediately start to foam.  (Using more caustic over the counter products is not recommended, since these can erode the pipes.)  After allowing the baking soda/vinegar mixture to do its think all night long, try pouring a bucket of hot water into the bowl and flushing the next morning, followed by one more round of plunging if necessary.  If this doesn’t get the job done, it’s time to call in the professionals.

Drains are another matter altogether.  The first thing you need to do in order to clear a drain is to determine what caused the clog.  The second is to determine how deep the clog is located in the drain.  Before attempting to clear a drain, you should remove and screen covering the drain and then using a finger feel around for any surface clog.  If that doesn’t do the trick, take your plumbing snake and thread it down the drain.  If you meet resistance, twist the snake around a few times and then pull it out.  Hopefully this will unseat the clog which should attach it self at least partially to the snake.  Repeat as needed.

When it comes to keeping your holidays from going down the drain, remember that HPDs are a lot like unwanted house guests.  With a little preparation and a solid emergency action plan, they can usually be dealt with without resorting to that other handy holiday helper Jack Daniels.

Billy Aldridge is one of the Doctors of Plumbology at Aldridge and Sons Plumbing, a residential and commercial plumbing service located in Jacksonville, FL.  For even more helpful hints including videos, visit their site at http://plumbers-jacksonville-fl.com