Best Old Fashioned Drain/Plughole Cleaner

[amandaandherveg]

My downstairs shower plughole has a tendency to clog up and get a little gunky with soap/shampoo residue and the water starts to drain out slowly.

I've used Mr Muscle type stuff in the past but wondered if anyone could suggest a 'store cupboard' type method of cleaning/flushing/breaking down the residue.

[terrier]

Drain plunger... works every time and good fun to use, de rigueur for every well dressed Dalek

[NOG]

Caustic Soda.....But be careful with it.

[amandaandherveg]

Caustic Soda.....But be careful with it.

I thought that might be a possibility, used it for cleaning griddles/barbecues when I used to do Outside Catering. I could pick some up at the local hardware store tomorrow after I've taken one of our pooches to the vets.

[lynda66]

yup, caustic soda then rinse and wash it out with washing up liquid, wear gloves, it burns, and don't get any in your eyes, it burns a lot

[Growem]

A little less scary to use is baking soda and vinegar. Cheapest of both that you can find. First dump the baking soda generously into the drain, and follow up with vinegar. Bubbles very entertainingly too.

[geoff]

Soap and shampoo shouldn't clog up a drain - the opposite in fact. Get underneath the sink and open the dirt trap, and give it a good clean out. It has probably done what its name suggests, and be full of all sorts of muck and grease. Use bits of wire and old rags, put an old bowl or something like that underneath to catch any goo. Not very pleasant, but must be done

And when you've washed it out, remember not to pour the bowlful of dirty water down the same plughole! Pour it down the loo, or on the furthest corner of the garden

The proper name for caustic soda is sodium hydroxide. If you use it, be careful

[geoff]

Just seen it's a shower not a sink, sorry.
In that case it's probably blocked with hair. If you can get under it, so much the better. If not, go fishing down the plughole with a bit of wire bent so it has a small hook on the end. An old wire coathanger will do the job

[Growem]

True, hair is probably the culprit. The baking soda and vinegar trick will help loosen hair and bring it closer to the drain hole, so I doubly recommend it!

[Alice]

Soda crystals, followed by a kettleful of boiling water.
Since it's the shower, it's probably all gunked up with hair.
Pull out the drain cover that's there
Have a good poke down there with an old toothbrush
Yank out all the gunk - hair, soap, body fat , yuk
You might be amazed at what you find
Do it regularly. That should solve the problem.