How To Choose The Right Drain Cleaning Tool
How To Choose The Right Drain Cleaning Tool
Many people pay no attention to the drains in their homes until something goes wrong. More than just a stopper at the bottom of your sink or tub, a drain serves a very important purpose in whisking away the water from your home through the plumbing system. Backed up toilets, sinks that are slow to drain and standing water in the shower are just a few of the pesky problems that signal that it’s time to break out the plumbing tools or call a professional. More serious problems result in extensive repairs that can prove costly, but the good news is that when you learn how to choose the right drain cleaning tool, you can easily tackle most drain issues yourself.
Types of Drains in Your Home
There are several types of drains in every home including those in your kitchen, bathroom and laundry room. Wherever water comes out, it must have a way to leave. Tubs, sinks and toilets all have drain lines but so do your major appliances such as your washer and dishwasher. These drain lines are just the beginning of your plumbing system, and each connects to the main line where water exits either into your septic or into your city or town’s water system. There are numerous plumbing problems that can arise with your plumbing with a clog being the most common, and also among the easiest to fix, even for a homeowner
Types of Clogs
There are several types of clogs that afflict drains and pipes, causing standing water in a sink or tub. Serious clogs result in a backed up washing machine, or worse, a flooded basement or main floor.
Knowing exactly what type of clog you’re facing helps determine which tool to use for the best results. If you’re unable to clear a clog with the use of tools, a professional can help resolve the clog before it does more damage.
Types of Tools
There are several types of drain cleaning equipment designed to help clean out drains and these tools range from basic to handheld, and for stronger drain clogs, electronic tools. The type of tool you’ll need to clean out the blockage depends on the type of clog you’re facing.
Basic Drain Cleaning Tools
When a clog strikes, it’s not uncommon to reach for the liquid drain cleaner, but you’ll find that there are times when it’s just not strong enough and you require additional tools. Drain snakes are a popular drain cleaning tool for toilets and sinks, and are best used for small drain problems such as a clump of hair. A long metal stick, they are narrow to fit within your tub or toilet to push through or break up the clog. They’re often used in combination with an auger which features a hook and loop design that grabs the source of the clog so you can pull it out. Augers are especially helpful in grabbing and removing small objects such as jewelry and small toys.
Electric Drain Cleaning Tools
Serious clogs or clogs that are deeper in the plumbing system require more power that a simple handheld tool cannot do. In these instances choosing a piece of electric drain cleaning equipment is best. There are a number of electric drain cleaning machines that Welping offers including drums, sectional drain cleaning machine .
Drum machines work with sink lines that range from 3/4 to 4 inches in diameter. They deliver water a high torque levels to propel obstructions through the line using cables or cutters, depending on the type of blockage you have. Welping’s drum machines deliver high RPM using powerful induction motors. They’re suitable for clearing hard and soft blockages such as tree roots, food build-up, grease and sediment. Since the snakes have cables that can pinch, make sure to pick up a drain-cleaning mitt to protect your hands.
Sectional machines work with sink lines that range from 3/4 to 8 inches in diameter. The cables are carried separately from the machine as 8-, or 15-foot sections. No need to carry the weight of 100 feet of cable when the job only calls for 50 feet. Once on the job, the cables are fed into the line one section at a time and coupled together as needed. The open-coil design of the sectional cable helps corkscrew the cable down the line, making it easier to clear longer runs. And if a section is ever damaged, it can easily be uncoupled and replaced.