When you run your shower only to find it looks more like a bath, you know it’s time to unclog your shower. An overflowing shower drain is a common problem. If you’re only having an issue in the shower, the problem is almost always a blocked drain that needs unclogging.
Unclogging your Shower: Avoid chemicals
Harsh chemical drain cleaners are often the go-to for most people. After all, they’re readily available in the nearest supermarket. However, while they may clear the blockage, chemicals risk damaging your drains and pipework. They can also be hazardous if the chemical unblocked fails to solve the problem; If you or a plumber need to access the pipe, they’re at risk of burns and contact with these harsh sitting in the drains.
If you don’t have the right tools, or you’d rather have a professional sort it out, we are always on hand and happy to help. But for those who want to solve it themselves, a drain snake is an excellent tool for the job. If you’re happy to do some DIY and you want to solve your own drain issues, a drain snake can be a great way of doing it. It’s a mechanical solution to unblocking shower drains. It’s called a ‘snake’ because it’s composed of a coiled wire that snakes its way through your pipework, reaching the blockage or obstruction and giving you a chance to break up the clog.
Using a Drain Snake To Clear a Blockage
The most common point for a blockage is the U-bend or trap of your shower. This is the most likely place for soaps, hair, and other debris to conglomerate into a mass and clog your drain. In most modern traps there is a cup within the trap that helps form the water seal to stop odours and also catches a lot of these materials. Remove the cup and give it a clean into a bin. You can then take your snake and run it down the pipe, moving it through bit by bit, you might notice the feeling of hitting an obstacle. At that point, rotate the snake in a circular motion (all the easier if the drain snake you have has a mechanism for that). If there is hair in your pipe, the action will help snag it so that you can remove it. This should help free up the blockage and get your water flowing again.
Using the drain snake on a bath
If you have the same issue with your bath, be aware that if you feed the snake through the drain, it can go the wrong way and get stuck in the overflow. The best way to prevent this is to run your snake from the overflow of your bath. Once you’ve done that, the rest of the steps are the same as with a shower.
If this does not clear your drains, there may be a bigger problem at play, or perhaps it just needs more powerful professional-level equipment to do the job. If you need assistance at any time, you can give us a call on 1800 437 246
