When nothing green works.... :(

AmyLane542010

My tub drain is clogged and nothing green is working. Pulled out what hair and scuz that I could.  I've tried regular baking soda and vinegar. I tried hot vinegar run through my coffee pot (it needed to be cleaned anyways). I tried 3 days straight of an organic safe for the environmemt naturally found in the water system enzyme drain unclogger and my ::insert expletive here:: drain is STILL clogged as ever. Any other suggestions out there? This makes the weekly cleaning of the tub a nightmare! (not to mention soggy feet showering)

SMILEY029

maybe the clog is farther can you can reach ???? they sell a small hand snake at home depot or maybe its time to call a plumber

AmyLane542010

Oh yea, I also used washing soda, let it sit for a while then several cups of boiling water on top. (I heard this works too because of the alkaline level...)

AmyLane542010

I live in an apt, and if I call the office so a plumber can come, maintainance will come and throw a gallon of draino down my drain. Ugh. I'll go get a snake and try that. Thanks!

toadstool

This may be hard for you in an apt, but a long time ago I remember my dad cleared a drain using a water hose. He just had the hose coming through a window from outside and he turned it up all the way. Then he held it to the tub drain and within minutes the water pressure pushed the clog through. Watching him do it, I thought "how is this going to work?"  But I have to give it to him, cause it worked.

cakozelka10

Try sticking a wire coat hanger down there and see what you can pull up!?

MMP

Get a Zip It for $2.99 at a hardware store, or Home Depot. It's just a barbed piece of plastic you stick down the drain. Pull it out, and whatever is in there will come out.

 

CDMay2006

MMP:

Get a Zip It for $2.99 at a hardware store, or Home Depot. It's just a barbed piece of plastic you stick down the drain. Pull it out, and whatever is in there will come out.

This is what we use and it works great!  Amazing, really.  And it says it's one-use on the package, but you can clean and use it many times.

We've also had to snake our plumping a few times b/c of old, root-invaded ceramic main line... If the problem was the main line then you would see symptoms in the other drains, too.

tokenhoser

Draino doesn't work on hair, either, and hair is pretty much always the culprit when the tub drain clogs.

Definitely snake it, one way or another. We've done the coat hanger thing with great (disgusting) success.

Alisha_A

CDMay2006:

MMP:

Get a Zip It for $2.99 at a hardware store, or Home Depot. It's just a barbed piece of plastic you stick down the drain. Pull it out, and whatever is in there will come out.

This is what we use and it works great!  Amazing, really.  And it says it's one-use on the package, but you can clean and use it many times.

We've also had to snake our plumping a few times b/c of old, root-invaded ceramic main line... If the problem was the main line then you would see symptoms in the other drains, too.

Another vote for the Zip It. Cheap, enviro-friendly, and reuseable. I'm baffled by its one-use labeling.

Fondue II

CDMay2006:

MMP:

Get a Zip It for $2.99 at a hardware store, or Home Depot. It's just a barbed piece of plastic you stick down the drain. Pull it out, and whatever is in there will come out.

This is what we use and it works great!  Amazing, really.  And it says it's one-use on the package, but you can clean and use it many times.

We've also had to snake our plumping a few times b/c of old, root-invaded ceramic main line... If the problem was the main line then you would see symptoms in the other drains, too.

I saw this just last night at Target and I wondered how well it would work.  I'm glad to know it actually works and isn't just some gimmicky waste of money.

jen5-03

Fondue II:

CDMay2006:

MMP:

Get a Zip It for $2.99 at a hardware store, or Home Depot. It's just a barbed piece of plastic you stick down the drain. Pull it out, and whatever is in there will come out.

This is what we use and it works great!  Amazing, really.  And it says it's one-use on the package, but you can clean and use it many times.

We've also had to snake our plumping a few times b/c of old, root-invaded ceramic main line... If the problem was the main line then you would see symptoms in the other drains, too.

I saw this just last night at Target and I wondered how well it would work.  I'm glad to know it actually works and isn't just some gimmicky waste of money.

It really works! In some situations it's better than a snake because it can slip behind a pop-up drain stopper so you can clean the clog without messing with the stopper.

It did wonders on my slow bathroom sink and the bathtub (previous owner must have shaved her dog in the tub and rinsed it down the drain. It was seriously nasty). But my other bathtub has a bend in the drain right at the top, and it doesn't work quite as well there (but it still helped some).

cattynine

Your drain may be too far gone for this idea- but sometimes when drains start to clog up I use a toilet plunger and a few plunges is usually enough to loosen up minor clogs from hair, sand, etc. You have to get the water several inches high in the tub for it to get enough suction.

robinadorno

MMP:

Get a Zip It for $2.99 at a hardware store, or Home Depot. It's just a barbed piece of plastic you stick down the drain. Pull it out, and whatever is in there will come out.

 

yes yes yes. best invention ever, but it's incredibly nasty what comes up with it.

And for tough cleaning I use Krud Kutter- it claims to be green. I just use it for dirty jobs. For around the house I like Dragonfly Organics Odor Eliminator- it smells great.

Johlise

You may have to check the pipes under the tub, sometimes there is more hair caught further down the line. What I've done for the sink before is use a toilet plunger which seems to bring up a ton of junk..

AmyLane542010

Sorry for the late reply. The Zip it worked wonders. I also don't understand the one time use thing... I cleaned it off and wa la its stored with other cleaning supplies awaiting the next time its needed.  I also cleaned out my coffee pot and poured the hot vinegar from it down the bath tub drain just for good measure. Thanks for all the help and ideas ladies! I love the green boards!

blueshirt2003

AmyLane542010:

Sorry for the late reply. The Zip it worked wonders. I also don't understand the one time use thing... I cleaned it off and wa la its stored with other cleaning supplies awaiting the next time its needed.  I also cleaned out my coffee pot and poured the hot vinegar from it down the bath tub drain just for good measure. Thanks for all the help and ideas ladies! I love the green boards!

The Zip It is awesome! I got it from seeing another post recently on this board for ways to unclog drains.  

pourroni

blueshirt2003:

AmyLane542010:

Sorry for the late reply. The Zip it worked wonders. I also don't understand the one time use thing... I cleaned it off and wa la its stored with other cleaning supplies awaiting the next time its needed.  I also cleaned out my coffee pot and poured the hot vinegar from it down the bath tub drain just for good measure. Thanks for all the help and ideas ladies! I love the green boards!

The Zip It is awesome! I got it from seeing another post recently on this board for ways to unclog drains.  

I'm just a lurker here, but I work in property management and this is what we use.  Most of the time Draino (or similar) will not cut a clog at all.  You have to get rid of the clog, which most of the time means pulling it back out the way it came, not just shoving it in further.  Go grab a zip--we multi use ours at work and never had a issue.