When your drain gets clogged, you want it fixed as soon as possible, especially in areas like your kitchen or bathroom, where you rely on your drains a lot. Many people turn to chemical drain cleaners when they have clogs because they’re quick, they’re easy, and they seem to work fine. Unfortunately, just because something is easy to access and may work on minor clogs does not mean that they are good for your pipes – or your health.
There are many easily accessible ‘quick fixes’ on the market for all sorts of issues, but that doesn’t make them safe or the best option. Fast food is incredibly convenient, but it’s also full of ingredients that are very bad for us if we have them frequently. Convenient as chemical drain cleaners may be, they’re not surefire solutions to fix your drain clogs, nor are they the safest things to use.
Here’s what you need to know about chemical drain cleaners, factors that affect their safety, and what you can do in the event that you have clogged drains.
#1. They’re Harmful To Pipes
Yes, chemical drain cleaners are able to eat through the clogs in your drains. They wouldn’t be so popular if they couldn’t! However, chemical drain cleaners can’t differentiate between good chemicals and bad chemicals. This means that it’s not just the clogs that the chemical drain cleaners are eating away at – it’s also your plumbing. Chances are, if you use chemical drain cleaners regularly, then you could have corroded pipes in addition to the problem behind why your drains are getting clogged so frequently.
#2. The Dangers Of Mixing
If one chemical drain cleaner doesn’t work, it’s natural to want to try another one until you find something that does. If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again, right? Not right when it comes to chemical drain cleaners. This is because you never know how chemicals will react when combined. When you try another drain cleaner, you could accidentally be concocting dangerous chemical compounds and gasses in your home. For the health of you and your family, it’s better to steer clear of these drain cleaners as a whole.
#3. They’re Bad For The Environment
It’s no surprise that chemicals that can create toxic fumes and gasses that are hazardous to our health would also be bad for the environment. Chemical drain cleaners may remove your clogs, but they can also get into your public water system, which can result in other sorts of health problems.
#4. Potential Health And Safety Hazards
Many people don’t realize how careful they need to be when it comes to handling chemicals. When you think of chemicals and needing protective gear, your mind might go to a scientist’s lab and their white lab coats. You don’t need a lab coat to handle chemical drain cleaners, but you do need to protect your hands and your face, to prevent your skin from coming in contact with the chemicals and to keep from inhaling any fumes.
These cleaners don’t just pose health and safety hazards as you’re pouring them down your drain, but also after the fact. They can bubble back up, pushing chemicals into the air that can result in the development of respiratory diseases, in addition to everything that has been previously mentioned. The convenience simply isn’t worth the potential damages to your health and safety.
#5. They’re Damaging To Septic Systems
In addition to being bad for your plumbing, these drain cleaners are also damaging to your septic systems. This is because they disrupt the balance of bacteria responsible for breaking down waste. As such, you could find yourself in need of emergency maintenance for your septic tank.
Safe Alternatives To Chemical Drain Cleaners
As you can see, just being chemical drain cleaners are easily accessible doesn’t make them good or safe solutions to use for your drain clogs. Not to worry, though! S & B Plumbing offers professional clogged drain services that will fix any issues with your plumbing and get to the root cause of your clogs. Unlike drain cleaners, professional services will not only get rid of the clogs in your drains, they will also resolve any underlying problems in your pipes.
Plus, the professionals at S & B Plumbing can give you expert advice on how to prevent clogged drains in the future, such as what can and cannot go down your garbage disposal. Do you have a clogged drain or want to learn more? Contact us for a service or for more information today! We’re happy to help.
